Dallas City News

The second of the Cowboys’ three preseason games is upon us and it’s another opportunity to see how certain players are building their résumés. Even some who are already guaranteed to make the 2024 roster need this time to prepare, particularly rookies, and state their cases for playing time.

While there’s plenty to take in when Dallas visits the Las Vegas Raiders, here are five players you may want to pay extra attention to. Thank

QB Trey Lance

Like last week against the Rams, Lance is probably going to get nearly all of the snaps at quarterback. Cooper Rush may play the first drive or two, but this preseason is all about seeing what Lance can do before Dallas has to decide whether or not to bury him as an emergency QB3 again.

Last week’s results weren’t great. While he showed off his mobility and arm strength, plus took good care of the ball, Lance struggled with accuracy and finishing drives. These next two games are his chance to show that any issues during his Cowboys debut were more about how little he’s played the last three years than a cap on his ability to develop further.

OL Tyler Guyton & Cooper Beebe

The future may be now for Dallas’ two rookie offensive linemen. With Chuma Edoga injured, Guyton has no challenger to the starting job at left tackle. He was probably going to start all along but this removes Edoga’s experience as a potential preference for coaches, especially to start the year. Guyton was a stud at left tackle in the preseason opener but didn’t get the start, nor did the Rams use their top defensive players in the game. But Guyton can do his perform well against whoever is lining up across from him, and so far he’s rising to every challenge.

Cooper Beebe was getting first-team work at center this week in camp, not as an indictment on Brock Hoffman but more so that the Cowboys can fully explore their options for roster decisions. If Dallas believes in Beebe’s upside more than Hoffman’s, giving him as many reps as possible now and even during the season is important. Even if the plan for 2025 is for Beebe to replace Zack Martin at right guard, playing time at center still helps him develop. But the best guy for this season still matters a lot, so it’s on Beebe to wrest that center job away from Hoffman if he can.

DE Marshawn Kneeland

It’s may not be fair to ask the second-round rookie to take on a lot of work already but Kneeland’s been forced into that spot by Sam Williams’ injury. While Dallas did just sign veteran Carl Lawson to improve their pass-rushing depth, he’s got to prove he still has something to contribute. With nobody else inspiring confidence, Kneeland may have to take on a primary share of the rotation right away.

Thankfully, the Western Michigan man has impressed so far. Recently, Micah Parsons likened him to a “young Cam Jordan” in terms of his style and potential. Jordan is an eight-time Pro Bowl DE for the New Orleans Saints with 117.5 career sacks since 2011. If Parsons has drawn a good comparison here, that would be quite a boon for the Cowboys.

But even Jordan needed a couple of years, only getting one sack as a rookie despite starting 15 games. The Cowboys have lost 16 sacks from last year’s group with Williams hurt and the departures of Dorance Armstrong and Dante Fowler. While Kneeland is certainly allowed time to grow, hopefully he can learn on the fly and help fill the void.

Given his increased importance to the upcoming season, Kneeland may not see much playing time in Las Vegas. But even if it’s a brief glimpse, any encouraging signs are welcome.