Heading into the 2026 season, Brian Schottenheimer had it all. A solid draft? Check. A new defensive coordinator? Check. Major defensive additions? Check again. But seven weeks into the season, the Cowboys look worse than they did last year, and that’s saying something. Schottenheimer just hasn’t been able to make the pieces fit.
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He even admitted it. “The effort is right, the fight is right, but mistakes are killing us… We’re in a hole. We’ve put ourselves there. There’s one way out of it. I told our guys we’ve got to work, we’ve got to find solutions, we can’t repeat mistakes. And they understand that.”
But even as the Cowboys walk away from Philly with a win over their longtime rivals, there’s bad news for Schottenheimer. For a team that has struggled to find consistency, he could now be without two key pieces of his defense.
According to the Cowboys’ official Week 8 injury report, two key defenders were limited in Wednesday’s practice. Here’s a closer look:
Caleb Downs
Downs headlined the defensive rebuild in the 2026 draft. After all, the Cowboys traded up to get him. And so far, he’s been worth the pick. Starting safety Malik Hooker has clearly been impressed.
“Every play he lines up, he feels like he’s gonna win that rep [against anybody], and that’s the type of mentality we want on this defense; and especially coming from a guy that we’re expecting to play a lot.”
But ahead of Week 8, Downs has been limited. The safety picked up an ankle injury in the Week 7 game against Philadelphia, and it couldn’t come at a worse time for the Cowboys.
The team already has problems in the secondary, and Downs has been its saving grace. His performance against Philadelphia proved it. On 56 defensive snaps, Downs recorded five tackles, including one run stop. He missed two tackles on run plays, but it was still a respectable outing. On the season, he also has three forced fumbles and a pass defensed.
Now, the injury may not be as serious as it looks, and Schottenheimer is likely being careful. After losing multiple safeties to injuries, the team has been forced to use the Defensive Rookie of the Year contender in several spots. That workload has weighed on the coaching staff, particularly defensive coordinator Christian Parker.
“I think a player like Caleb, the more you can get him in the action that’s not dictated by call, the better. So there’s different ways to do that, whether it’s nickel, dime, whether you’re cranking the safety down a little more by call. But that’s where he’s been training. Obviously he’s played both spots when we were healthy. But he’s doing a good job managing the workload and running the show back there, which is what we needed him back there to do”
Quinnen Williams
The Dallas defense struggled in the weeks following Micah Parsons’ exit, and the Cowboys traded for Williams right before the deadline. It was only a small patch on a bigger leak, but he has worked out well for the team this season.
That’s what makes his limited status equally troubling. Like Downs, Williams got hurt against the Eagles, picking up a hamstring strain after a strong showing with four solo tackles and a sack.
That performance wasn’t a one-off, either. Williams already has three sacks and 13 solo tackles, and if he keeps leading this unit, he could define how the Cowboys’ defense looks for the rest of the season.
He also has Schottenheimer’s backing. The coach made that clear when asked whether Williams was fitting into the system.
“I think it’s a great fit. I understand the question. I think right now we haven’t played well enough on defense, but when Quinnen Williams knows he’s getting singled, I think that’s a good thing for us. We have times where he has to play gap and a half, as we call it, so he’s got to fit and hold the B gap, and then he’s going to react. We have those, but we also have times where we allow him to take his shot.”
What does it mean for the Cowboys?
Dallas has an injury problem. We saw that in the first few weeks, and ahead of Week 8, more names remained on the list of players who were limited or absent from practice.
Wide receiver KaVontae Turpin, who bruised his rib cartilage in Week 6, remained out of practice. George Pickens, who suffered a hamstring injury in Week 7 on top of a pre-existing shoulder issue, and offensive tackle Drew Shelton, who strained his hamstring, both practiced Wednesday in a limited capacity.
Still, Schottenheimer didn’t seem overly concerned about the roster during Wednesday’s press conference, though he acknowledged that some players were dealing with the usual wear and tear of the middle of an NFL season.
“Yeah, we got a few guys, you know, bumped and bruised,” Schottenheimer said. “Again, we won’t get a great read on them till probably Thursday ‘cause tomorrow will be all walk. But nothing major.”
As far as the defense is concerned, there is a silver lining. The Cowboys could see outside linebacker Marist Liufau and safety P.J. Locke return in the coming weeks. Liufau fractured his arm in the preseason finale, and Locke injured his foot in Week 2. Both players, who are on injured reserve with the designation to return, were full participants on Wednesday.
Could things finally be looking up for Dallas after a shaky start?