Dallas City News

One of the Dallas Cowboys’ most exciting young defensive players is a guy they didn’t even draft. Heading into his third season, safety Juanyeh Thomas has risen from humble beginnings to being declared a potential starter.

Undrafted in 2022, Thomas spent all of that year on Dallas’ practice squad but became one of their key backups and a core special teams player last season. He started one game in 2023 and led the team in special teams snaps. He didn’t get ample playing time on defense behind Malik Hooker. Jayron Kearse, and Donovan Wilson, but showed well when he was on the field.

Thomas’ ascension has been enough, and is apparently continuing in the Cowboys’ spring practices, that Patrik Walker of the team’s official website has him competing for a starting job in 2024. In the piece, Walker refers to Thomas as a “starter in the making” and even declares him “potentially being a full-time starter in 2024.” The article includes some glowing remarks from coaches Mike McCarthy and Al Harris as well.

That’s high praise, especially with a solid pair of veterans in Hooker and Wilson returning. Kearse wasn’t re-signed in free agency by the Cowboys and remains untouched by the rest of the NFL. But while Dallas did play all three safeties regularly in Dan Quinn’s scheme, the arrival of Mike Zimmer is expected to curtail the hybrid LB/S role that Kearse played in favor of more traditional linebackers. That would seem to leave Hooker and Wilson as the favorites to be the typical starting duo with Hooker at FS and Wilson in the SS role.

Though they’re far more familiar to us, neither veteran should be considered a lock to start. While their trio with Kearse was a fun story and all played well, none of them were stars for the Cowboys. Being adequate leaves plenty of room for improvement, and there seems to be a lot of momentum building behind Juanyeh Thomas as a potential upgrade to one of their positions.

Thomas has the size to play strong and the athleticism to play free, giving him two avenues to a starting role. And with both Hooker and Wilson getting older and more expensive, the Cowboys could jump at a chance to pivot to a younger, cheaper option even if he just maintains the level of play. If Thomas gives them a reason to think he could elevate one of those positions, either now or in the near future, that will only incentivize the team more.

Don’t balk at Thomas’ potential just because he was undrafted, either. Wilson was only a sixth-round pick himself in 2019, and just look at what DaRon Bland is doing for the Cowboys as a former fifth-rounder. The margin between Day 3 picks and undrafted guys can be really slim, and Thomas has as much right to NFL success as any of them.

Juanyeh Thomas didn’t enter the league with the same fanfare as a Micah Parsons or Mazi Smith, or even most of the other young defensive talents in Dallas. But he’s already outclassed some of them as a prospect and is quickly rising the Cowboys’ ranks. Even if he doesn’t push Hooker or Wilson out of a job this summer, he’ll definitely be a key backup and in position for bigger things in the very near future.