The one Cowboys player who could turn Week 7 on its head

The Dallas Cowboys are hosting the Washington Commanders in Week 7, and they're desperate to get back on track this week against their bitter division rivals.

If they're going to make it happen, they're going to need someone to absolutely terrorize Jayden Daniels, maybe multiple someones, but there is one player who absolutely needs to have a huge game for the Dallas defense.

That player, the player who could flip Week 7 on its head, is rookie pass rusher Donovan Ezeiruaku.

Donovan Ezeiruaku can make Jayden Daniels miserable as Cowboys look to upend Commanders

Over the past two weeks, the second-round pick out of Boston College has looked like the steal everyone thought he was when the Cowboys got him with the 44th overall selection. Many 2025 NFL mock drafts had Ezeiruaku going much higher than the 44th overall pick, typically somewhere within the top 32 overall.

The Cowboys couldn't pass on the value of Ezeiruaku where they got him, and with the way the Micah Parsons situation transpired, that turned out to be rather fortuitous. Ezeiruaku's presence on the roster, along with a couple of other young edge players, undoubtedly played a factor in Jerry Jones's willingness to trade a player of Parsons's caliber.

Over the past two weeks, we're at least getting a glimpse of the best of what Ezeiruaku brings to the table. He's got four quarterback hits, a tackle for loss, nad a forced fumble. It just so happens going into this matchup on Sunday against the Commanders that Ezeiruaku is looking for his first NFL sack.

Maybe against Jayden Daniels and the Commanders, he can notch not only one, but maybe get a couple on the board.

This graph right here shows us that Ezeiruaku not only has one of the highest pressure rates this season, but he's also one of the quickest guys in the NFL to get to the quarterback. The Cowboys need more of that kind of production to help flip the script for a defense that ranks an ugly 31st in points per game allowed and is dead last in 3rd-down efficiency.

Getting pressure on Jayden Daniels is not easy, and it doesn't always even lead to positive plays for the defense when you can make it happen. That's where Ezeiruaku finishing behind the line of scrimmage can flip this game for the Cowboys.

If the rookie can come through big for the Dallas defense, they've got a shot to end the weekend with a 3-3-1 record and send Commanders fans into a bit of a tailspin at 3-4.