Cowboys DE Sam Williams’ Role To Increase
Dan Quinn did well to raid the Cowboys’ roster, signing three of the team’s free agents. Two of those additions — edge rushers Dorance Armstrong and Dante Fowler — are set to serve as Commanders defensive ends as the team regroups post-Montez Sweat and Chase Young.
The Armstrong and Fowler defections wound the Cowboys’ D-line, but they do not exactly gut the unit. Micah Parsons and DeMarcus Lawrence remain, and the Cowboys will gain a clearer picture of what they have in 2022 second-round pick Sam Williams. An earlier report pegged Williams as likely to play more in 2024; the Dallas Morning News’ David Moore indicates he is the lead candidate to be the Cowboys’ top rusher off the bench this season.
While the Quinn connection opened the door to Fowler and Armstrong making intra-NFC East relocations, Moore adds the Cowboys deeming Williams readier for more work helped lead the older pass rushers to Washington. Despite Williams missing two games as a rookie, he logged only 30 more defensive snaps (303) in 2023. With Armstrong (468) out of the picture, the former second-round pick will be a more important part of Dallas’ pass rush this season.
Williams, 25, recorded 4.5 sacks last season; that eclipsed his 2022 number (four). Though, the Ole Miss product tallied just nine QB hits. And his 17 QB pressures did not rank in the top five among Cowboys. Williams did total 10 tackles for loss as a rookie, showing signs of potential. Leading the way for the Cowboys’ DE3 role, Williams could begin a true course for a lucrative second contract by making strides this year.
This gig netted Armstrong a three-year, $33MM Washington accord, one that came after he played out a two-year, $14MM contract following Randy Gregory‘s about-face that closed an unusual round of negotiations. A month after Gregory’s Denver departure, the Cowboys chose Williams 56th overall. The team gave Fowler another one-year contract in 2023, however, restricting Williams’ upward mobility. The ex-Quinn Falcons charge played in all 17 games, totaling four sacks as a supporting-caster.
The Cowboys placed a premium on a well-stocked pass-rushing crew, drafting Western Michigan’s Marshawn Kneeland 56th overall. A rumored sleeper who booked 16 pre-draft visits, Kneeland joins Williams as a potential auxiliary rusher in Dallas. Williams compiled a better college resume, notching 20.5 sacks in his three Rebels seasons. Kneeland tallied 13 in five Western Michigan slates. But this duo stands to comprise Dallas’ top rotational options. It appears Williams will be asked to do more to start this season.
NFC Rumors: Cowboys, Tepper, Greenlaw
The Cowboys hit on quite a few of their picks in the 2022 NFL Draft, with first-rounder Tyler Smith reaching second-team All-Pro status last year, fourth-rounder Jake Ferguson earning the starting tight job halfway through his rookie season, and fifth-rounder DaRon Bland leading the NFL in interceptions, interception return yards, and pick sixes last season. Their second- and third-round picks from that draft, though, are still struggling to make a similar impact two years in. That may be changing soon.
Former second-round edge rusher Sam Williams found his name getting called fourth on the depth chart last year, behind Micah Parsons, DeMarcus Lawrence, and Dorance Armstrong. It’s hard to imagine being disappointed with a fourth-place finish in that situation, considering Parsons has become a perennial DPOY candidate, Lawrence is a four-time Pro Bowler, and Armstrong is a veteran with 21.0 sacks in the last three years. Still, per Michael Gehlken of the Dallas Morning News, Williams wants to play more, and director of player personnel Stephen Jones claims that, thanks to Armstrong’s departure in free agency to Washington, those opportunities will come this year, though he will be competing now with this year’s second-round pick Marshawn Kneeland.
Likewise, third-round wide receiver Jalen Tolbert has seen limited production behind CeeDee Lamb, Brandin Cooks, Noah Brown, and Michael Gallup. With Brown gone last year, Tolbert stepped his role up a little bit. After the team released Gallup, Tolbert is, once again, expected to step his game up in 2024. With Lamb and Cooks returning, Tolbert will now be given a larger opportunity to step in as WR3, per David Moore of the Dallas Morning News.
Here are a few other rumors from around the NFC:
- Many have looked at the Panthers‘ decision to draft Bryce Young over C.J. Stroud in the 2023 NFL Draft as a gigantic misstep, given the vast difference in success each team saw last year. According to Joseph Person of The Athletic, some in the Panthers organization point to the S2 cognitive test as the main reasoning for the decision. Per Person, team owner David Tepper, a hedge-fund billionaire and a proponent of analytics, took the S2 test results very heavily into consideration when helping the team to make their decision. The test of processing speed and reaction time has been looked at as a potential indicator of future success at the quarterback position. Young scored extremely well (in the 98th percentile), while Stroud did not (18th percentile).
- 49ers linebacker Dre Greenlaw notoriously missed a good mount of the team’s Super Bowl loss after tearing his Achilles tendon in the big game. According to a report from Matt Barrows of The Athletic, Greenlaw told the media that he had been experiencing some soreness in his Achilles for about a month or so before the game. He recently was able to shed his walking boot as he continues in recovery.
- It’s been over a year since Steve Keim stepped down as general manager of the Cardinals following an indefinite leave of absence due to “an undisclosed health-related matter.” According to a recent interview Keim did with Jay Glazer of FOX Sports, the Cardinals administration advised Keim to check into a rehab while he was still general manager of the team. Of course, the situation eventually resulted in the two sides parting ways, but Keim continues to work on himself following the conclusion of his NFL career.
Cowboys DE Sam Williams Arrested
AUGUST 25: Providing further details on Williams’ arrest via the police report, Hill notes (on Twitter) the second-year edge rusher was found to have a vape pen with a synthetic narcotic (which is a controlled substance) in his possession, as well as marijuana. Williams also had a Glock hand gun and 14 rounds of ammunition, and was caught driving 71 mph in a 45-mph zone. Those details will no doubt be central to any league investigation into the situation which takes place separate from the legal process unfolding.
AUGUST 23: Frisco (Texas) police arrested Cowboys defensive end Sam Williams on gun and drug charges Sunday night, Clarence Hill of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram reports.
Unlawful carrying of a weapon and possession of a controlled substance represent the charges against the second-year edge rusher. While Williams, 24, was back at practice Tuesday, this arrest could certainly produce a suspension, as it comes months after another off-field incident.
A December 2022 car accident led to a police investigation, with Hill adding an arrest warrant was issued for Williams, who was cited for misdemeanor reckless driving. That wreck led to Williams’ hospitalization and a missed Week 16 game, due to a concussion and a neck strain, but further details revealed the Ole Miss alum was driving “up to” 98 mph — in a 55-mph zone — shortly before that crash, Hill adds.
Williams displayed pass-rushing talent as a rookie, registering four sacks as a backup in 15 games. He finished with 10 tackles for loss. While the Cowboys re-signed Dante Fowler and still have Dorance Armstrong under contract behind starters Micah Parsons and DeMarcus Lawrence, Williams is expected to remain a key part of the team’s deep pass-rushing corps. But Williams’ off-field troubles can now be labeled frequent. A sexual battery charge while at Ole Miss led to a suspension in July 2020. This charge was later dropped, and the Rebels reinstated Williams during that season.
The two incidents involving Williams as a pro could lead to a suspension. Convictions do not need to arise for players to be banned under the NFL’s personal conduct policy.
Cowboys DE Sam Williams To Miss Week 16 After Car Accident
Cowboys second-round pick Sam Williams was involved in a car accident Thursday in Plano, Texas, according to WFAA’s Alex Cruz. As a result of injuries from the accident, the rookie defensive end will miss the Cowboys’ Week 16 game against the Eagles, the team announced.
Williams suffered a concussion and a neck strain in the accident, according to the Cowboys. His black Corvette collided with a vehicle that “didn’t appear to yield to oncoming traffic,” Cruz adds. The driver of the other vehicle, a 71-year-old man, is not believed to have suffered serious injuries, either.
Both drivers were hospitalized briefly, but Williams indicated (via Twitter) both he and the other driver are OK. Williams, 23, had the right of way, but police are investigating if the speed at which he was driving contributed to the accident. No alcohol or drugs are suspected to be a factor, Michael Gehlken of the Dallas Morning News notes.
The Cowboys added the Ole Miss alum to their injury report Friday; he remains on the team’s active roster. Playing as a rotational rusher, Williams has three sacks, eight tackles for loss and seven quarterback hits this season. He has also forced a fumble and recovered three more.
While the Cowboys use veterans DeMarcus Lawrence, Micah Parsons and Dorance Armstrong ahead of Williams, the young edge rusher has played a steady role this season. He has played between 16 and 24 defensive snaps in each of Dallas’ past six games. Pro Football Focus rates Williams 44th out of 123 qualified edge rushers this season.
NFL Draft Pick Signings: 5/17/22
Here are the latest draft pick signings around the NFL:
Chicago Bears
- WR Velus Jones (third round, Tennessee)
Dallas Cowboys
- DE Sam Williams (second round, Ole Miss)
- WR Jalen Tolbert (third round, South Alabama)
Detroit Lions
- S Kerby Joseph (third round, Illinois)
Indianapolis Colts
- WR Alec Pierce (second round, Cincinnati)