I am sure we all sound like a broken record lately, but this is one of the biggest issues for this Dallas Cowboys team heading into the 2026 season.
The defense was the worst in football, and the secondary was a huge reason why they were so bad.
Dallas is still searching for the guy who will run the defense next season, but once they get him in the building, the next question should be, can they even fix the issues they have on that side of the ball in one offseason?
Let’s first start with something we all should know and that is they let Trevon Diggs go, and now DaRon Bland had another surgery on his left foot last week.
The surgery was performed by Dr. David Porter, a consultant for the Indianapolis Colts. Near the end of training camp in 2024, Bland had a screw inserted into his left foot to help with a stress fracture, so here we go again.
He is expected to be ready at some point in the offseason program with the focus on making sure he is 100 percent for the start of training camp in July, a source told ESPN.
So that leaves us wondering. Do we even know who is left for Dallas on the backend outside of those guys??
Dallas is in need of one starting caliber safety. They need someone capable of playing in the box for Cover-1 and Cover-2 looks.
They traded for Kaiir Elam. He was cut already. Shavon Revel, the guy everyone thought would be a stud when he returned from his ACL injury, was not good this year.
Caelen Carson is under contract until 2027, and he is going to be a guy that they depend on regardless of the DC next season.
Bland has to be ready to go for the start of the year, because Dallas keeps the 20th pick. I think that is where they use it in the corner. They should use the 12th overall pick on either an edge rusher or Sonny Styles, the linebacker from Ohio State IF he is there.
If the #Cowboys hire Jonathan Gannon as the defensive coordinator, just know I said what I said. This is who he was with the Cardinals. Please hush all that noise about him being any good.
2023 Season (Gannon’s 1st year)
The Cardinals defense finished near the bottom of the… pic.twitter.com/tDjY2BslLX— Law Nation Sports (@LawsNation) January 15, 2026
That leads to whether the best corner in the draft, Mansoor Delane from LSU, is there at 20, taking him in 30 seconds. Don’t even make us wait for the pick to come in. I don’t think he makes it that far down the draft board, but we have about a 50/50 chance that he does.
Even if they get Delane, they have to sign a solid free agent for this secondary. You can’t expect to fix it with a top 20 pick and a bunch of late-round college players, it just won’t work.
A guy like Roger McCreary from the Rams, if he does not resign, would be a solid player to bring in. He has shown enough to be a No. 2 corner in this league.
Heck, I would even try to make a trade for Minkah Fitzpatrick. I don’t think it would happen, but that is a guy that, if I was in the front office, would try and give up some draft capital for, and it doesn’t work out at least you tried.
I think the best answer to the title of this post is that they have to get the right defensive coordinator in the building, coaching matters. We saw that this season with a bunch of teams.
If you get the right guy in the building, you can coach who you have there now, and maybe that will attract a player or two via free agency to come over, and then make sure you get the guy in the draft that you need/want.
More must-reads:
+
Get the latest news and rumors, customized to your favorite sports and teams. Emailed daily. Always free!