Cowboys roster coming together as minicamp approaches, but uncertainty remains at key position

Here's how former Bills first-round pick cornerback Kaiir Elam could add clarity at Dallas' CB position

FRISCO, Texas -- The Dallas Cowboys went all in to address their need at the wide receiver position with the post-draft trade acquisition of George Pickens. His tenure in Dallas, thus far, is off to a strong start. 

However, will the moves they have and haven't made at cornerback, another position that was a glaring need entering the offseason, be enough? From the time Cowboys drafted All-Pro cornerback DaRon Bland in the fifth round of the 2022 NFL Draft, Dallas had a trio of corners it felt strongly about. There was 2021 NFL interceptions leader and first-team All-Pro Trevon Diggs, 2023 NFL interceptions leader and first-team All-Pro DaRon Bland and the reliable, versatile Jourdan Lewis. Unfortunately, getting all three of them on the field simultaneously was like playing Whac-A-Mole: none of them were healthy at the same time. Now, Lewis is a Jacksonville Jaguar after signing a three-year, $30 million deal with $20 million guaranteed in free agency this offseason, and Diggs' return to action is unclear after he underwent a second significant knee surgery in as many years: ACL repair for a Week 3 practice injury in 2023 and a procedure for a chondral tissue graft in January that will help replace damaged cartilage joints in his knee. The team's expectation for Diggs is that he will begin training camp on the physically unable to perform list. 

This series of events is why the Cowboys traded a 2025 fifth-round pick and 2026 sixth-round pick to the Buffalo Bills in early March to acquire 24-year-old cornerback Kaiir Elam, the 23rd overall pick in the 2022 NFL Draft, in addition to a 2025 sixth-round pick. They also drafted Shavon Revel Jr. in the third-round of the 2025 NFL Draft out of East Carolina. Revel, like Diggs, will likely start training camp on the PUP list after tearing his ACL in practice last fall. He was regarded as a potential first-round talent, if not for the injury. Caelen Carson, a 2024 fifth-round pick, returns after a shoulder injury limited his up-and-down rookie year to six games. Through a couple OTA practices, Elam has stood out. 

"I feel good about it," Cowboys new head coach Brian Schottenheimer said when asked about Dallas cornerback position prior to the team's second organized team activities (OTAs) practice of the spring on Tuesday. "I think the draft was big for us with Shavon [Revel]. I think we wanted to add some depth at that spot. Kaiir Elam has been just awesome for us. We do a thing where we kind of monitor the top speeds each week that our guys have hit in phase two out there running, and he's had one of the fastest times each week, which is great. Trevon, DaRon, getting Caelen Carson back. ...  I feel like we won't know, we won't put timetables on the injured guys, but I think you'll see early on in training camp that the depth should be there for us."

Speed is certainly a prerequisite to success in the NFL as a corner, and Elam flashed plenty of it as the standout at the cornerback position during Dallas' second practice of OTAs on Tuesday, the first open to media viewing. He produced a number of pass breakups, and he didn't allow any catches downfield while lining up with the first team defense. 

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"It felt great," Elam said of his second practice with the Cowboys on Tuesday. "My goal is to be consistent every day. ... I just want to be consistent."

Elam feels new defensive coordinator Matt Eberflus and his defensive staff have made his transition from Buffalo to Dallas "very smooth." Being one of the faster guys on the field, or in his words "the fastest" has helped accelerate his acclimation to a new scheme and teammates thus far in the offseason program. 

"The fastest, the fastest, the fastest" Elam said with a smile when it was mentioned that Schottenheimer noted his speed numbers were among the tops on the team this offseason. "I think it 23.5, 23.6 [miles per hour on the players' GPS tracking system]. I've been moving. I've been training, and I compliment that to my training."

He noted those eye-popping numbers don't surprise him because he no longer goes into any situation with expectations. That likely stems from being unable to find his footing in Buffalo, starting only 12 of his 29 games played in three seasons despite being a first-round pick. He had two interceptions as rookie, but hasn't produced any in each of the last two years. Elam did total two of his three career tackles for loss in 2024.   

"I was always a kid,  like I put in the work, and I expect the results to happen," Elam said. "The majority of the time, it's [in] God's hands. No matter how hard we work, no matter how hard we sacrifice, it doesn't really pay off when you want it to. So I just go in and want to be a consistent dog every day. ... I don't really go into this situation being like 'I want to be the backup.' You know what I mean? I prepare like a starter. I've been doing that since I've been in Buffalo. ... Obviously, I have goals of being All-Pro and that stuff, but my right now, my one goal every day is just be a consistent dog every moment, every chance I get. So that's what I'm going to do."

A standing out in the first two practice of OTAs certainly doesn't mean the accolades Elam, and most players in the NFL , dream about are about to roll in for the fourth-year corner. If Dallas can get consistent performance out of Elam opposite Bland, the Cowboys defense could more than hold its own until the calvary of Diggs and Revel arrive -- whenever that may be.