Cowboys rookie Marshawn Kneeland ready to show what he can do after injury to Sam Williams

Dallas Cowboys rookie Marshawn Kneeland saw his importance to the defense rise exponentially this week after defensive end Sam Williams went down in training camp. The veteran’s season-ending injury bumps Kneeland up on the depth chart, and though he’s not happy to see his teammate suffer, he is eager to prove what he can do at the NFL level.

A standout at Western Michigan coming into the draft, Kneeland wasn’t one of the more talked about prospects this year. And yet, the Cowboys spent their No. 56 overall pick in the second round on him. He believes they made the right choice and now, with Williams’ injury, he’ll be able to show it in Year 1.

“I got to step up. I got to be ready to play that much more,” Kneeland said at camp on Wednesday, via Jon Machota. “… With (Williams) here, obviously, I was still playing a good amount, but now it’s that much more reps I have to take. I just got to step it up a notch.”

“(I want to show) I can pass rush too,” he added. “… Not just doing that in the MAC. I can do that here too.”

Kneeland had a career-high 57 tackles this past season at WMU along with 7.5 tackles for loss and 2.5 sacks. In four seasons, he had 28.0 tackles for loss and 13 sacks. He also blocked a kick as a redshirt sophomore.

He provides crucial depth for Dallas now, but he could also develop into a starter, which could be key for the team moving forward with DeMarcus Lawrence entering a contract season.

Dallas loses Sam Williams to ACL tear

An MRI confirmed that Cowboys defensive end Sam Williams tore his ACL and partially tore his MCL during practice on Sunday. Williams went down with an apparent left knee injury and had to be carted off the field. He sustained the injury while taking part in a special teams drill.

Williams was gearing up for his third season with the Cowboys, who selected him in the second round of the 2022 NFL Draft out of Ole Miss. He has suited up in 32 games over the past two seasons, tallying 8.5 sacks, 48 tackles (30 solo), 16 quarterback hits and two forced fumbles.

Free agent option to watch

As NFL.com‘s Kevin Patra suggested this week, there are free agents that could be a good fit for Dallas to help make up for the loss of Williams. Patra picked out two free agents that the Cowboys may want to look at before the regular season, starting with edge rusher Yannick Ngakoue.

Ngakoue became a free agent in March when his one-year deal with the Chicago Bears expired. Though the Bears paid him just over $10 million for the 2023 season, the Cowboys could potentially sign him for much less. He’s 29 years old and coming off of a season in which he played 13 games, tallying 22 tackles with four sacks and 2.5 tackles for loss. Williams posted similar numbers for Dallas over the last two years.