It wasn’t that long ago that the Dallas Cowboys had a perennial top-10 defense. In fact, under Dan Quinn, the defense never finished outside of seventh in points per game, and they led the league in turnovers in multiple seasons. But going into the 2025 season, the expectations are that they might have one of the league’s worst defenses.
If the Cowboys want to get back to being a dominant group, it’s the defensive line that will need to lead the bunch. Micah Parsons is one of the league’s most dominant defenders, and he is poised to make a run at the Defensive Player of the Year award. But who else on the defensive line can step up and take some of the pressure off him?
Zoltan Buday of Pro Football Focus ranked all 32 defensive lines heading into the upcoming season. The Cowboys finished above average, coming in at No. 12. While that ranking is fine, Dallas needs the unit to perform better than that if they are going to turn their defense around this year.
"Dallas' defensive line was one of the worst units against the run in 2024 but still boasted elite edge defender Micah Parsons, whose 91.6 PFF pass-rushing grade ranked third in the NFL last season," Buday wrote. "Similarly, interior defender Osa Odighizuwa brought the heat from inside, placing 12th at his position with a 78.5 PFF pass-rushing grade."
Cowboys desperately need their young pass-rushers to step up in 2025
For the defensive line to take the next step forward, they’ll need Osa Odighizuwa to make the leap from above-average starter to Pro Bowl player. Dallas paid him like a superstar this offseason, and that was a wise decision after a career season in 2024. He continues to improve each season, and the fit with Matt Eberflus should unlock him even more.
But who else from the defensive line can take a big step?
The hope is that Marshawn Kneeland can be an every-down defensive end in 2025. Sam Williams is returning from his torn ACL, and he should play a factor on pass-rushing downs. Dante Fowler Jr. was brought back to help the pass rush, and second-round pick Donovan Ezeiruaku should contribute right away. Ezeiruaku could end up being the most impactful of the group.
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They Cowboys have depth on the defensive line, but they need someone else outside of Parsons and Odighizuwa to emerge as a high-impact player. If that happens, this could easily be one of the league’s best defensive lines, and it could be the reason why they make it back to the postseason.
But a lack of development in the other pass rushers (Kneeland, Williams, Ezeiruaku) could be highly detrimental for the defense. They desperately need someone to step up for this defense to return to the level that we saw under Quinn.