Dallas City News

The words redshirt or wasted year has been used a lot when reviewing the Cowboys 2023 draft class, like we’ve done here with DT Mazi Smith and TE Luke Schoonmaker. In the truest sense of those terms though, only second-round pick DeMarvion Overshown was lost for the season with an ACL injury suffered early in the preseason that ended his rookie year in the NFL. The linebacker out of Texas was drafted under the leadership of Dan Quinn, who left Dallas for the Washington Commanders this offseason. Fears of losing Quinn to a head coaching job and seeing Mike McCarthy paired with a less capable defensive coordinator were quickly replaced with the idea the Cowboys could actually improve from Quinn – whose scheme seemingly hit a wall and ended in embarrassment with a season-high 48 points allowed in the playoff loss. The root of this embarrassment was a year long Achilles heel for the Cowboys defense when it came to defending the run, with Quinn relying on converted defensive backs like Markquese Bell and safety Jayron Kearse to play in the box and try to stop the run in nickel and dime defenses.

The narrative that Quinn is radically opposed to playing a more traditional style of defense with real linebackers on the field has taken on a life of it’s own ever since he left the Cowboys, but in fairness he did not wish for season-ending injuries to both Overshown and the now-retired Leighton Vander Esch. With the Cowboys defense now being led by Mike Zimmer, this is good news for Overshown getting a restart to his career. Instead of writing off the second-year pick with the rest of the currently underwhelming 2023 draft class as just a “Quinn guy” that will have a hard time finding a role under Zimmer, the Cowboys seem to be preparing to trust Overshown quite a bit at linebacker in their remade defense. The position is still a need going into the draft, but without a very deep group of prospects or many standouts worthy of the Cowboys first-round pick, linebacker has taken a back seat to more pressing needs at offensive line and running back for the Cowboys. A rookie taken with any of Dallas’ picks will still have a clear path to playing time, but Overshown should have a big role.

Jerry Jones mentioned Overshown playing a big role in Zimmer’s scheme as a reason he feels better about where the team’s run defense is at before they’ve had a chance to add any draft picks. The Cowboys only external free agent signing addressed the front seven as well, with veteran Eric Kendricks, who played for Zimmer with the Vikings, joining the Cowboys on a one-year deal.

Jerry specifically mentioned DeMarvion Overshown as part of the reason for his optimism in this sense (alongside Kendricks of course). Counting on a second-year player who technically does not have any live action NFL experience all while they are coming off of a torn ACL is a bit of a bold move, but one that many of us assumed the Cowboys would make.

Jerry also made reference to defensive alignment for this belief, the idea being that Mike Zimmer’s defense will be more aligned to stop the run.

Photo by Hannah Foslien/Getty Images

In just 46 defensive snaps split between two preseason games, Overshown was able to begin making a name for himself pn a star-studded Cowboys defense. Carrying over his style of play that earned him first-team All Big 12 honors as a senior at Texas, Overshown used his length and speed well to read plays and avoid blocks to make plays both in the tackle box and outside the numbers. Overshown is a sure open field tackler that knows how to bring his 6’2”, 229-pound frame through ball carriers. His coverage ability was supposed to be another asset that would help him stay on the field in the hybrid looks that Quinn deployed, but with Zimmer having the benefit of returning Trevon Diggs to the secondary and adding Markquese Bell to an already versatile safety group, the focus for Overshown can be becoming the true linebacker the Cowboys need right now.

This Cowboys offseason has not strayed too drastically far from previous ones under McCarthy, but doubts about the team being able to repeat their on-field performance of winning at least 12 games are at an all-time high. The Cowboys have done this in recent history by seeing second- and third-year players take big steps up in their development. Only having Kendricks, and RB Royce Freeman, as free agent acquisitions puts more pressure than usual on upcoming 2024 draft picks to do what none of last year’s draft class could and make an immediate impact, but players like Overshown in prime position to go from afterthought to impact player at least gives Dallas a vision to remain contenders.

Overshown is an instinctive player that should benefit from the more straightforward and “old school” approach to defense the Cowboys are bringing back through Zimmer, by reading his keys quickly to shoot gaps, avoid blocks with footwork and agility, and make plays downhill. The surprises that lie ahead for the Cowboys 2024 season are still a long way off from being realized, but Overshown is a player that can go from potential surprise for the rest of the offseason to solidified starter early on when the season begins – regardless of what Dallas may do at linebacker in this draft.

The current Cowboys depth chart that has faced so much scrutiny thanks to departing names in free agency that haven’t been replaced is about to be shaken up starting on Thursday night. The board may fall for the Cowboys to add a linebacker high and try to really turn the entire position group around with Overshown returning from injury, or they may feel any defensive picks are better spent elsewhere to further build around Micah Parsons, DeMarcus Lawrence, Trevon Diggs, DaRon Bland, and a player with sky-high expectations like Overshown.