The Dallas Cowboys are gearing up for the 2024 NFL season, and their defense will need to be special if they will be contenders.
With several key players returning and some new faces in the mix, let’s look at the projected starters and rank them based on what we expect to see from their performance on the field.
Jul 29, 2023; Oxnard, CA, USA; Dallas Cowboys defensive tackle Mazi Smith (58) wears a Guardian / Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports
Mazi Smith had a disappointing rookie season, so putting him any higher on this list wouldn’t feel right. The hope is that he thrives in Mike Zimmer’s system and can become the dominant run-stopper that they drafted him to be.
Jul 27, 2023; Oxnard, CA, USA; Dallas Cowboys linebacker DeMarvion Overshown (35) wears a Guardian / Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports
Unfortunately for Overshown, he tore his ACL during the preseason, and we never saw him play during his rookie season. Reports say Overshown has put on some extra muscle during the offseason and the coaches are impressed with how he attacked the recovery process.
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I expect Overshown to be much higher on this list next year.
Jan 14, 2024; Arlington, Texas, USA; Dallas Cowboys linebacker Damone Clark (33) reacts after a / Kevin Jairaj-USA TODAY Sports
Clark missed a significant chunk of his rookie campaign recovering from a neck injury he suffered at LSU. Last season, he started all 17 games for the Cowboys and had a solid year.
He needs to improve at stacking and shedding blocks in the run game, but he brings sideline-to-sideline speed and toughness to this defense.
Sep 24, 2023; Glendale, Arizona, USA; Arizona Cardinals running back James Conner (6) runs against / Joe Camporeale-USA TODAY Sports
Malik Hooker joined the Cowboys in 2021, and he has been one of their better free-agent signings in recent memory.
While he’s not an all-pro type of safety, he is reliable and has done an excellent job playing coverage in the deep third of Dallas’ defense. Fortunately for the Cowboys, Hooker has been able to stay healthy, which he was never able to do during his time with the Indianapolis Colts.
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Oct 1, 2023; Inglewood, California, USA; Las Vegas Raiders running back Josh Jacobs (8) carries the / Jayne Kamin-Oncea-USA TODAY Sports
Eric Kendricks isn’t quite the player he used to be for the Minnesota Vikings, but he is still a solid linebacker. He’s smart, tough, and has a great feel for zone coverage. He is the perfect kind of mentor who should do wonders for the development of the young linebackers on this team.
Jan 7, 2024; Landover, Maryland, USA; Dallas Cowboys safety Donovan Wilson (6) celebrates with / Geoff Burke-USA TODAY Sports
Donovan Wilson has been up and down over the past few seasons. But when he is healthy, he is a missile in the secondary.
Wilson is a pseudo-linebacker who plays like his hair is on fire and adds intensity to this team.
Oct 9, 2022; Inglewood, California, USA; Dallas Cowboys defensive tackle Osa Odighizuwa (97) / Jayne Kamin-Oncea-USA TODAY Sports
Odighizuwa doesn’t get much love from the national media, but the coaches and players on this team know that he is a force. Osa is as tough as nails and does a lot of the dirty work on the interior of this defense. Dallas’ run defense would be hard to watch without Odighizuwa.
Jan 14, 2024; Arlington, Texas, USA; Dallas Cowboys defensive end DeMarcus Lawrence (90) tackles / Kevin Jairaj-USA TODAY Sports
Lawrence has been a cornerstone player for the Dallas Cowboys for a decade, and somehow, he is still criminally underrated. He is, arguably, the best run-defending EDGE in the entire NFL and has great versatility to play all over the defensive line.
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Ranking him as the fourth-best defensive player felt too low, but Dallas has some dominant players on the defensive side of the ball.
Jan 8, 2023; Landover, Maryland, USA; Dallas Cowboys cornerback Trevon Diggs (7) gestures on the / Geoff Burke-USA TODAY Sports
On most teams, Diggs would be their best defensive player. He missed most of the 2023 season with an ACL tear in his left knee, but he is expected to be ready for training camp.
When healthy, Diggs is a star and is a massive difference-maker for the defense.
Jan 7, 2024; Landover, Maryland, USA; Dallas Cowboys cornerback DaRon Bland (26) intercepts a pass / Brad Mills-USA TODAY Sports
DaRon Bland followed up his stellar rookie season with an All-Pro year in 2023. Bland has quickly become one of the best young defensive backs in the league. He is the NFL record holder for interceptions returned for a touchdown in a season (5) and has 14 interceptions in his first two seasons. Bland is off to an all-time great start to his career.
Dec 30, 2023; Arlington, Texas, USA; Dallas Cowboys linebacker Micah Parsons (11) stands on the / Tim Heitman-USA TODAY Sports
There was no doubt that Parsons would be at the top of this ranking. Micah is a generational talent and one of the best defensive players in all of football. Nothing more needs to be said.
Despite heightened security around World Cup matches at Dallas Stadium, Arlington police say eight people have now been arrested for attempting to enter games without tickets.
The latest arrests occurred Saturday during the Argentina vs. Jordan match. NBC 5 Investigates found similar incidents have happened multiple times during the tournament.
Police said all eight people arrested have been charged with criminal trespass.
On Saturday, Arlington police arrested 32-year-old New Zealand national Catalina Gambadoro, 26-year-old Argentine national Alejo Melgar and 18-year-old Kareem Kakour, who has an Indiana address.
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According to police, the three were apprehended quickly and did not make it inside the stadium. However, police said at least four people arrested this month were able to gain access to the venue before being caught.
NBC 5 Investigates obtained police reports detailing arrests made on June 22 during the Argentina vs. Austria match.
According to the reports:
• Gerardo Nielsen, 46, of Cordoba, Spain, and Juan Ignacio Campoamor, 35, of Hollywood, Florida, unlawfully entered AT&T Stadium property without effective consent. Police said both had noticed that entry without a ticket was prohibited and pushed through a hole in a fence to gain access.
• Leandro Ayala, 46, of Buenos Aires, Argentina, allegedly jumped a fence to gain access to AT&T Stadium without purchasing a ticket. Police said he entered the property without the owner’s effective consent despite notice that entry without a ticket was prohibited.
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• Federico Llach, 45, of Plano, allegedly crossed ticketed barriers and trespassed into AT&T Stadium.
Earlier in the tournament, on June 14, police arrested Ryan King, 39, during the Japan vs. Netherlands match. According to a police report, King attempted to climb a security fence and enter the stadium before it opened to the public.
Officers quickly located and arrested him. The report states that officers determined he intended to watch the match without purchasing a ticket.
Security measures at the stadium include vehicle barriers, metal fencing around the perimeter, and a heavy police presence at entry checkpoints.
After the initial arrests, Arlington police said they were reviewing security procedures. It remains unclear whether any security changes have been implemented following the additional arrests.
J.D. Miles is an award-winning reporter who has been covering North Texas for CBS 11 since 1996.
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/ CBS Texas
It’s called a blue card survey. But some residents in the Preston Hollow neighborhood of Dallas believe it could be their ace in the hole and their fight against the proposed development.
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The 2019 tornado left a trail of destruction in North Dallas, including Victor Toledo’s home. He said been able to rebuild along with others in his neighborhood.
But he says one area is still an eyesore.
“It’s become a very desirable neighborhood, other than that one corner, that one corner is still stuck six years ago with the old office buildings,” said Toledo.
That “one corner” he’s referring to is the southwest side of Preston Road in Royal Lane.
It’s where developers want to build an $800 million 19-story resort hotel, apartment building, and mixed-use development.
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There are signs all around Preston Hollow opposing the project.
A recently completed survey of residences within 500 yards of it reveals just how strong the opposition is.
City of Dallas survey:
258 opposed
7 in favor
18 no response
Margaret Chabris hopes the city’s planning and zoning commission, which meets again on Aug. 6, will take the results of the survey seriously.
“It does have an impact because this is what the city wanted to know, and this is the chance that residents and property owners right here can voice their opinion; it should have a considerable impact.”
But some residents, like Toledo, believe the benefits of the development outweigh concerns about traffic and construction.
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“It’ll be great for the neighborhood to have that kind of amenity,” Toledo said. “To have hotel options, new restaurants. Now it’s a vacant old building that wasn’t being used much.”
