While the Cowboys weren’t exactly quiet during free agency this spring, there is still plenty of work to do for this team that finished 7-10 in 2024.

Not only did they add some key players in free agency and via trades, but they also re-signed some of the core depth as well.

Still, there are other guys on this team that must take that next step in order for the Cowboys to be successful in 2025.

Today, we’ll continue the Next Man Up series with defensive end Sam Williams.

The Past: As the second-round pick in the 2022 NFL Draft, Williams entered the organization at a critical time on the defensive line. The Cowboys had just waved goodbye to Randy Gregory, one of the more controversial free agency parting of ways in recent memory, and immediately turned their attention toward trying to replace him one month later. A record-setting sack machine out of Ole Miss, Williams got off to a hot start for Dan Quinn, delivering four sacks as a rookie, and with zero starts. That set a foundation for what his potential could be at the NFL level, besting that number in Year 2 when he notched 4.5 sacks; and the stage was set for Williams to be next up in Dallas alongside Micah Parsons and DeMarcus Lawrence.

The Present: What might’ve been, and was predicted to be, a potential breakout season — with both Dante Fowler and Dorance Armstrong departing for the Commanders in free agency — for Williams in 2024 immediately became disastrous when he went down on a routine non-contact drill at the beginning of training camp. It was discovered he’d torn his ACL and would be done for the season, completely deleting Year 3 from his NFL calendar in the process. Well, Fowler has returned to the Cowboys, but Lawrence has taken his talent to the Seahawks.

The Future: As Williams works his way back onto the field, it’s also Marshawn Kneeland, the 2024 second-round pick, that he’ll have to contend with going forward; but Williams’ could not be more driven to make 2025 his best season as a pro. It’s not simply his social media post that read “my turn” following the departure of Lawrence, but also the fact he’s entering a season that will likely determine the next step in his career and, yes, I’m also talking contractually and financially. It’s undetermined yet if Williams will begin this year’s training camp on the PUP (physically unable to perform) list, and that is something to keep an eye on but, once he does return to the field, you can expect to see a starved animal looking for a meal during every one of his snaps.