New defensive coordinator Christian Parker The Dallas Cowboys went with the old adage, if you can’t beat them, hire them, when it came to their new defensive coordinator this offseason. The Cowboys, along with the rest of the NFL, seemed to struggle moving the football over the last few seasons against the defensive scheme that is credited to Philadelphia Eagles defensive coordinator Vic Fangio. So Dallas hired Fangio’s protege, Christian Parker, who has made quite the impression on the Cowboys in the last few months. Head coach Brian Schottenheimer has high expectations. “I think I would start with the exposure of the guys he’s been exposed to. Vic obviously gets the first nod, but he’s been around Vance Joseph. He’s been around all these great defensive minds. And a little bit like myself, when you’re around these great minds as a position coach, a wannabe coordinator, you’re grabbing and stealing things that you like. You’re constantly writing down, hey, I like this. I like that. Hey, I would do this differently. I wouldn’t. So there’s an expedited understanding of what you want to do. Like there’s a philosophy. And you see that from (Parker) and I think it’s because he’s thought about this for five or six years But not only that he’s been exposed to some great defensive minds and but what I love about him is he’s gonna take good ideas from these people But he’s gonna do it his way like I think if you ask Vic Fangio Vic’s gonna say Christian had a huge voice And what they did in Philadelphia and certainly I think he’ll lean on his staff,” Schottenheimer said. “He’s gonna do the same thing that his predecessors have done.” Christian Parker is just 34 years old, just one year older than Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott. He has a lot of optimism in his corner right now with this team, though it’s gonna be a tough job after the Cowboys allowed more yards than any other team in the NFL in 2025. First-round rookies at training camp Expectations are sky high for Dallas Cowboys star safety Caleb Downs, the former Alabama and Ohio State star in college, who was the Cowboys’ first-round draft pick in 2026, and he’s already being moved all over the field in Oxnard. He’s the highest-rated rookie in the upcoming Madden video game set to be released, and has made quite the impression on his new coaches. “I don’t think we can put anything on Caleb Downs that is above what he expects for himself. He’s a young player, he’s a rookie, he’s gonna make mistakes. But like I said in the spring, I’ll say it again, Caleb’s not going to, he doesn’t repeat mistakes. And that is a sign of a young man that understands X’s and O’s in football, and he’s wired the right way,” Schottenheimer said. Downs is just as confident. “I mean, I feel like. That’s something I’ve done at every level is communicate at a high level. That’s what I think makes me special. Just being able to understand everything and articulate everything. So it’s something that if that’s on my plate, I’ll do it at the highest level,” Downs said. “We have the talent to do it, to dominate every offense that we go against, to go out in the game and know that we’re prepared to make the plays that we need to make to win.” The Cowboys believe Downs is a major reason the defense can make a major improvement in 2026 after allowing more yards than any other team in 2025. The Cowboys have already moved him all over the field on defense, playing slot corner as well. The Cowboys’ other first-round pick is flying under the radar. Defensive end Malachi Lawrence was selected 23rd overall. But because he was the Cowboys’ second draft pick after Caleb Downs was taken earlier in the 1st round, most of the attention is on Downs, which is just fine with Lawrence. “Right, I mean, it’s great, true. Like I’m just looking at my blessings. I’m so proud of Caleb and I’m happy for him. Like I don’t discredit anything that he does. I’m going to focus really on what I can get better at,” Lawrence said. Lawrence is being overlooked a bit, but he is able to provide something that the Cowboys desperately need this year: better pressure put on opposing quarterbacks. He can get to quarterbacks well. It’s one of the reasons the Cowboys were so happy to land him. Click here to read more about the Cowboys’ offense. ...read more read less