It’s been a quick transition for new Dallas Cowboys defensive coordinator Christian Parker, the 34-year-old former Eagles defensive backs coach who will take over one of the NFL’s worst defensive units coming out of 2025. The team, of course, ranked No. 32 in points allowed and No. 30 in yardage allowed, wasting what was a thrilling season from the offense and finishing 7-9-1.
Parker has had some immediate momentum in filling out his staff. Already, Parker hired former Packers coach Derrick Ansley as their defensive backs coach/defensive pass game coordinator and former Arizona Cardinals cornerbacks coach Ryan Smith for the same role in Dallas. There have been multiple interviews, too, and this weekend saw Eric Henderson (USC run game coordinator), Denzel Martin (Steelers outside linebackers coach) and Marcus Dixon (Vikings defensive line coach and former Cowboy) have had in-person interviews.
Still, no matter what the Cowboys do with Parker and his staff, it will all be moot if they can’t improve the personnel. And they’ll have multiple first-round draft picks as well as free agency, to achieve that goal.
Cowboys Trade Up for Safety Caleb Downs
To that end, the folks at USA Today’s Cowboys Wire site have put together a mock draft that sees the Cowboys make a pretty bold move–trading way No. 12 and No. 20 in the first round to move up to No. 8 and select Caleb Downs of Ohio State.
The Cowboys would get the Saints‘ second-rounder and third-rounder as well, with New Orleans receiving No. 112 overall in the fourth round.
Downs is a safety, and if he played pretty much any other position, he might well be considered the No. 1 pick in this draft. The Cowboys, like much of the NFL, have not typically valued safeties, though that is changing around the NFL.
Cowboys Would Gamble on Safety
Downs is a two-time All-American who transferred to Ohio State after leading the SEC in tackles as a freshman, and helped the Buckeyes tot he 2024 championship. It’s Downs’ versatility as an excellent tackler in the run game and a terrific cover man in the passing game that makes him stand out.
Writes Cowboys Wire: “Many draftniks have Downs as the No. 1 player on their board, only he plays a position that isn’t as highly valued in the NFL as others. Getting this level of defender into the mix for the new regime is crucial, as he can become the centerpiece to the new-look defense. Parker stresses intelligence from his players and Downs has that in spades, as well as the tenacity and physical ability to put those smarts to great use.”
Michael Reaves/Getty ImagesCowboys safety Malik Hooker, left, returned to practice Thursday.
Caleb Downs a Big Secondary Upgrade
No doubt, safety is a position of need for the Cowboys, even if they do keep much of the room–starting with Malik Hooker and Markquese Bell, who are both under contract–intact. It’s likely that Donovan Wilson, and perhaps others, will be out as the team must remake its defensive backfield, which was rated last in the NFL by Pro Football Focus.
The Cowboys still have not gotten into the details of rebuilding their defensive roster with parker at the helm, but personnel chief Will McClay says that is coming.
“We’ve had general conversations to begin with, but you know he wants good players and he wants smart players, which every coach does,” McClay said. “We’ll get down to the nitty gritty once they get the rest of the staff together, but we talked about our roster. He has a vision for the guys that we have, so it’s off to a good start right now.”
