FRISCO, Texas — Nothing is sorted or settled at the cornerback position in Dallas, at least not until training camp at the earliest but, even then, that won't be the final depth chart for the Cowboys as they await word on when Trevon Diggs will retake the field following a season-ending knee injury in 2024.
As it stands, the former NFL interceptions leader is continuing his rehabilitation and it's one that could stretch into the start of the 2025 regular season; but head coach Brian Schottenheimer did have an optimistic update on the veteran cornerback — speaking from the final session of OTAs.
"It's going good," Schottenheimer said. "I talked to Trevon last week. He's down in Miami doing some training. No timeline for his return, but he had to come back a couple weeks ago to get checked out by the doc.
"All signs are positive."
Needless to say, that's good news, even if it does come packaged with the caveat that neither said quite yet knows when the All-Pro and two-time Pro Bowler will be available next season.
His absence creates a vacuum that will result in a position battle to watch closely once the team arrives in Oxnard in late July, seeing as only fellow All-Pro cornerback DaRon Bland is the only other proven commodity at the position. Others on the list include a wealth of unproven, though talented, youthful defensive backs such as rookie third-round pick Shavon Revel Jr., as well as second-year talent Caelen Carson.
And then there's Josh Butler, who had a breakout game but suffered a torn ACL shortly thereafter, in December, and that instance highlights another issue within the Cowboys' cornerback room: Diggs isn't the only one returning from a major injury.
Butler, Carson, and even Revel (torn ACL in September) at the collegiate level before entering this year's NFL draft, are all working their way back to the field in one way or another.
Hoping to add some outside firepower to the mix, the Cowboys traded this offseason to acquire Kaiir Elam, a player Schottenheimer is keeping a close eye on.
"First-round draft pick — sometimes there's issues with fit and different things," Schottenheimer said of Elam. "The talent jumps off the film. We keep track of our players' speeds each week to see who's hitting top speed. … He's been consistently at the top of the skill guys on defense with his top speeds.
"I think he's really taking to the system and the coaching."
That bodes well for what the Cowboys will need to begin the 2025 season, but it's also true that the pads aren't on yet and, as such, the true story of what the cornerbacks' depth chart will look like is yet to be told.
The sooner Diggs can return, the better, and he's at least on the right track. Until then, Schottenheimer and the Cowboys understand they'll have to figure out how to drive their train without him.
