3 Cowboys who will immediately benefit from Dan Quinn's departure

1. Sam Williams, EDGE

This one is a bit of a double-edged sword. Sam Williams was the team’s second-round pick in 2022 and registered 22 tackles and four sacks in a reserve role as a rookie. In year two, he continued to play well when given a shot and had 26 tackles and 4.5 sacks.

Under Dan Quinn, he was making progress and proved he can get after the quarterback. The only issue was that he couldn’t stay on the field enough. As a rookie, Williams saw just 27 percent of the defensive snaps and then in year two, that number only increased by one percent.

With Micah Parsons, DeMarcus Lawrence, Dorance Armstrong, and Dante Fowler, Jr. all on the same roster, it was simply tough to get Williams out there. Going forward that could change and Quinn’s exit might play a part in that.

Both Armstrong and Fowler are free agents heading into the offseason. Keeping Armstrong feels like a necessity but Fowler might be headed out. He could even be on the short list of free agents Dan Quinn would love to sign since Washington traded away all their pass rushers in 2023. If Fowler were to follow Quinn, that would open the door for Williams to truly take off — and he has the talent to do just that.

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