FRISCO, Texas - Football season is getting closer and closer.
The Cowboys are set to depart for training camp in less a month. That's when we'll get an up-close look at Brian Schottenheimer's second season with this revised roster and coaching staff. When we get to Oxnard, that's when we'll start to get some real answers about this 2026 Cowboys team.
But what are the questions? We've compiled our annual list of pressing questions that need answers heading into the regular season. The staff writers, consisting of Patrik Walker, Tommy Yarrish, Nick Eatman, Mickey Spagnola and Kurt Daniels, weigh in on some of the pressing issues.
Today, we'll continue the series with an annual prediction on which player could be ready to take their game to the next level.
18) Who Makes Their First Career Pro Bowl?
Mickey: If healthy, and unfortunately history suggests that is somewhat of an if, time for DeMarvion Overshown to emerge as the very versatile linebacker the Cowboys always expected him to be. Now the Cowboys will start off training camp in their newly-formed 3-4 base defense with Overshown and Dee Winters as the two inside linebackers. And as interchangeable they will be between the Mike and the Jack, DeMo will start off as the Mike and because of his athleticism will certainly remain on the field with the defense moving into the nickel.
So, the opportunity will present itself for Overshown to really emerge as a Pro Bowl type player. And remember, if you go back to his second season after missing his entire rookie season when tearing an ACL in the second preseason game, Overshown, starting 12 of 13 games while playing an outside linebacker position in the 4-3 and also on the nickel, finished with 95 tackles, five sacks, 16 pressures and four PBUs. Remember the Thanksgiving Day game against the Giants when he tipped a pass to himself and returned the interception 23 yards for a touchdown. That kind of talent, and he was on his way to making a name for himself until tearing his other ACL in Game 14, causing a delay in 2025, playing in just six games.
Tommy: I'll say Tyler Booker. I don't know if it's been mentioned enough how good his draft selection was for the Cowboys' offensive line last year Replacing Zack Martin at right guard was never, ever going to be an easy task, and Booker is not Zack Martin. What he did do, however, is minimize whatever drop off anyone may have thought there could have been with a Hall of Famer no longer playing in that position.
Booker has the potential to be a starter at that spot for a decade plus, and I think a full second offseason in Brian Schottenheimer and Klayton Adams' work is going to benefit him greatly. His rookie season wasn't perfect and there are certainly things to work on especially in pass protection, but Booker was a mauler in the run game as expected and contributed greatly to the Cowboys' success on the ground. If that's what he's giving Dallas as a rookie, I think the sky is the limit for his career and a Pro Bowl in year 2 is very much in play.
Patrik: I'm going to make a bold prediction here, so hold onto your hats. I believe the answer to this question is DeMarvion Overshown and, by the way, I confess I don't actually think this is bold at all. Overshown's misfortune with injury isn't because he's prone to it. Instead, I could rightfully assign it to bad luck that, if he can avoid it in 2026, would leave him on the field to remind everyone of his potential. Overshown returned in 2024 and immediately became one of the best in the league at the linebacker position. When he's on the field for long stretches of the season, he shows how special he can be.
Not that he needs any more motivation to have a breakout season, Overshown is entering a contract year and, let's be honest, that matters as much as anything. His NFL future will be shaped by this season, and it times up perfectly with the introduction of Christian Parker as defensive coordinator and Scott Symons as ILB coach. If Overshown is on the field for the entire season, there's nothing I can come up with that would keep him out of the Pro Bowl conversation.
