FRISCO, Texas — The journey in the football career of Caleb Downs takes another massive step forward when he makes his NFL debut for the Dallas Cowboys, in primetime, against a division rival, as the 11th-overall pick in the 2026 NFL Draft.
Needless to say, the Lott Award and Jim Thorpe Award winner is no stranger to the big stage or the bright lights that tower above it. A former superstar at Ohio State, Downs is mentally ready for the task at-hand on Sunday, Sept. 13 at MetLife Stadium.
That is to say Downs won't let emotions alter his focus.
"I mean, there's always gonna be energy there. It's going to be upbeat for me, either way," he said. "So, really, it's just trying to get into the game, trying to maintain focus and do everything that I need to do to win. So that's pretty much it.
"... [It being my debut] definitely does [mean a lot], but I can't look at it like that. I've got to think of it like it's just another game right now. That's the way I'm going about it."
That level of focus, especially as a rookie, lends to Downs' ability to be a leader on the field and in the locker room, to the degree that future first-ballot Hall of Fame edge rusher Von Miller cast a vote for him to be named team captain in 2026.
Downs was humbled to hear that news, floored actually, but this is also the same caliber of player that made Giants' receiver Malik Nabers upset at his own team for passing on the former Buckeye in April.
Now, instead of lining up against the Cowboys on Sunday, he'll line up for the Cowboys against Nabers and the Giants, a headline piece in helping to turn around the defense for new coordinator Christian Parker who, as Downs tells it, has been preparing him for this day, and beyond, from the minute they first spoke.
"[He tells me to] just keep it simple," said Downs. "That's the biggest thing for our defense. If we do what we do at our best level at our highest capacity, then we're gonna be fine. That's what our thought process is going into the game."
Given his level of preparation, ability and maturity, both mentally and emotionally, it's easy to forget Downs is a rookie. But when he misspoke the day the game was being played, his ability to laugh at his own mistake served as a fun reminder that he is, still in fact, just getting started.
What's also key to note is that the Cowboys have Downs listed as a defensive back, and not a safety or cornerback, the only player with that designation on the depth chart.
The game of "Where's Waldo?" is officially on for Jaxson Dart and every other quarterback in the league, and Downs is also using his matchups against CeeDee Lamb, George Pickens and Ryan Flournoy to ensure his proverbial iron is as sharp as his mind is.
"Yeah, confidence-level wise, that's probably the biggest thing going against the best every day [in practice]," he said of his daily battles the three receivers. "That's a huge positive for me. And going into a game like Saturday, I mean, Sunday.
"Shoot — I'm still on college time. I'm going into a game on Sunday. It's great to know that I've been playing against the best in practice."
If that's the only mistake Downs makes this week, the Cowboys can easily forgive it. And for the player that "craves teaching", in the hands of a coordinator that loves to teach, it's likely that will, in fact, be one of only a few miscues from the two-time Unanimous All-American.
"At the end of the day, that's how you get better, and you're not going to get better just by doing it yourself to not having other people have their input," said Downs. "You'd be dumb not to take the counsel you can get. [Parker] is a voice, and he's someone that I can rely on to push me to have better technique, and to see the game from a different perspective."
The two will enjoy a dual debut on Sunday, their maiden voyage to what might be a special relationship in Dallas for the foreseeable future.
The answers for the Cowboys-Cardinals trivia questions leading up to Monday's Week 8 game.
1) The Cowboys own a .629 winning percentage all-time in season openers. Where does that rank among NFL teams? Over their previous 66 seasons, Dallas has posted a 41-24-1 record, a .629 winning percentage that ranks second overall in NFL history. Only Denver's mark of .641 is better (41-23-1). While the two teams have faced each other four times in Week 2, which included a 31-21 win for the Cowboys on Sept. 10, 1995, they have never faced off in a season opener.
2) Christian Parker is making his debut as the team's defensive coordinator in Sunday night's matchup against the Giants. Who is the longest-tenured defensive coordinator in Cowboys history While Tom Landry designed the famed Flex defense and largely called the plays on both sides of the ball, Ernie Stautner served as his lead defensive coach for 18 years, from 1971 to 1988. Tough as nails, Stautner was truly the emotional force behind the famed Doomsday Defense. As a player, he spent 14 seasons as a defensive lineman with the Steelers, earning nine Pro Bowls and a spot on the NFL's Team of the Decade for the 1960s before eventually being inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
3) Throughout his career, Von Miller has played in 12 season-opening games. How many total sacks has he recorded in those Week 1 matchups? In his 12 season-opening games, Von Miller has racked up 11 sacks, which that total alone is more than all but four other players on the Cowboys roster have for their careers. Of those 11, Miller had a three-sack performance against the Seahawks in 2018 and a two-sack effort in 2021 at the Giants, both while playing for the Broncos. He also notched two more sacks in 2022 versus the Rams when he was with the Bills.
4) First-round draft pick Caleb Downs, a safety by trade, could get the start in Week 1 at the Giants, although if he does, it will likely be in the slot. Regardless, who was the last rookie safety for the Cowboys to start in his very first NFL game? While Byron Jones started 11 games in 2015 and Jeff Heath did so nine times in 2013, neither was in the starting lineup on opening day. But Patrick Watkins was on the field from the get-go in 2006, starting the first six games of his NFL career and eventually nine overall that season. Roy Williams, the team's first-round pick in 2002, started all 16 games in his rookie campaign.
5) How many times have the Cowboys shut out their opponent on Sunday night? Of the 84 times the Cowboys have played on Sunday night, they have shut out their opponent twice. And surprisingly, both came on the road at a division rival. The first time was on Dec. 27, 2009, when they beat Washington, 17-0. The second and last occasion happened on Sept. 10, 2023, in a 40-0 destruction of the Giants that saw DaRon Bland record his first career pick-6. For the record, Dallas has only been shut out once on Sunday night, falling at the Patriots, 12-0, on Nov. 16, 2003.
6) Which Dallas player holds the record for most starts in a Sunday night game? Jason Witten has started more Sunday night games than any player in Cowboys history, which is really no surprise considering he holds the team record with 255 career starts overall. Tyron Smith edged out Zack Martin for second place, 33 to 31, while DeMarcus Ware comes in at number four with the most starts among defensive players, totaling 27.
7) Who is the only Cowboys player to rush for more than 100 yards in a Sunday night season opener? Ezekiel Elliott opened the 2017 season with a 104-yard rushing effort in a Sunday night matchup on Sept. 10 against the Giants. But that's not all. He also totaled 36 receiving yards off of five catches to help the Cowboys take down their NFC East rival, 19-3.
8) The Cowboys have previously opened their season against the Giants 12 times. How many of those games has Dallas won? For whatever reason, the Cowboys have simply dominated the Giants in their season-opening matchups, winning 11 of those 12 games with the lone loss coming on Sept. 11, 2016. Overall, Dallas has outscored the New York club by a per-game average of 32.8 points to 15.5. On Sept. 18, 1966, behind Bob Hayes' 195 receiving yards and two touchdowns, the Cowboys defeated the Giants, 52-7, which is tied for the third-largest margin of victory in franchise history.
9) Dallas has played at the Giants six times on a Sunday night. Which quarterback has thrown the most career touchdowns in those games? Although the Cowboys have faced the Giants 15 times overall on Sunday night, only six of those games have been held on New York's home turf, with Dallas posting a 3-3 record. In turn, Tony Romo played in two of those games during his career, throwing a pair of touchdowns in a loss on Oct. 1, 2012. He then followed that with four more in a Nov. 23, 2014, win for a combined six touchdowns to lead the pack. Danny White totaled three with Vinny Testaverde and Dak Prescott each earning one.
10) Sunday's showdown in New York will mark the sixth time the Cowboys have opened their season on Sept. 13. And among those previous five outings, Dallas also played the Giants on Sunday night to start the 2015 schedule. In that game, what unlikely running back helped the Cowboys to victory with 140 all-purpose yards? Lance Dunbar didn't gain a single rushing yard in this game, but he did have eight catches for 70 yards and also returned three kickoffs for another 70, his 140 total all-purpose yards becoming the second-highest mark of his career. Forty of those receiving yards came on the Cowboys' final possession, a drive that ended when Tony Romo threw an 11-yard touchdown pass to Jason Witten with only 13 seconds remaining to secure a 27-26 come-from-behind win.
11) Who scored the Cowboys' first touchdown of the season in 2023 during a 40-0 blowout over the Giants?**
The Cowboys started the game on defense and appeared on the verge of allowing a field goal before it was blocked by Juanyeh Thomas. The ball rolled around before it was scooped it up reserve cornerback Noah Igbinoghene, who raced 58 yards to the end zone for the first touchdown of the season. The Cowboys never did allow a point and scored 40 of their own to earn a 40-0 win. Igbinoghene played just five games for the Cowboys that season.
