Cowboys Defense Arrives at Camp Already Short-Handed

Charles Snowden is suspended for the first three games, which matters more than it might look on paper. The linebacker depth behind Rashan Gary was already thin coming out of 2025 — Gary was essentially the only linebacker who logged meaningful snaps all season — and Snowden was at least a name on the depth chart. DeMarvion Overshown is the candidate to fill the void, and he's active heading into camp, but asking an honorable-mention off-ball linebacker to anchor a rotation that barely existed is a significant ask from Week 1.

The defensive tackle picture is similarly bare. Quinnen Williams is on an expiring contract with nothing behind him — the two names below him on the depth chart logged no meaningful time last season. That's a structural problem the Cowboys haven't solved, and it's sitting right next to the Snowden situation on the same side of the ball.

The offensive line note is quieter but worth tracking. Center Matt Hennessy remains on injured reserve, which creates continuity concerns up front at a moment when the offense is already navigating contract uncertainty at quarterback. It's not a crisis on its own, but it's another piece that needs to resolve before the season starts.

The headline story in Dallas this offseason has been the contract standoff with Prescott, Lamb, and Pickens. That's fair. But the defense is walking into camp with a suspended pass rusher, one functional linebacker, and a starting defensive tackle who may not be back. The offense carried this team to 7-10 last year. It can't carry a defense that's thinner now than it was then.