The Cowboys finished the 2024 campaign with several of their biggest playmakers in street clothes, their seasons ended prematurely by injury.
It appears they could start the 2025 season the same way, with those same ailments now forcing a late start for multiple defensive stars.
Cowboys chief operating officer Stephen Jones had sobering news for fans eager to put last season's nightmare fully in the rear-view mirror and get a fresh start this fall. When asked about two-time Pro Bowl cornerback Trevon Diggs and promising third-year linebacker DeMarvion Overshown and their progress following their respective knee injuries, Jones was careful to temper expectations.
"They have significant injuries," he said, per Nick Harris of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram. "There's a good chance that they may not start for us when the season starts. They may not be available."
Cowboys EVP Stephen Jones on the recoveries for LB DeMarvion Overshown and CB Trevon Diggs, who both suffered season-ending knee injuries:
— Nick Harris (@NickHarrisFWST) March 31, 2025
“They have significant injuries. There's a good chance that they may not start for us when the season starts. They may not be available."
Both players were dealt a difficult hand late in the season.
Overshown, a highly-touted third-round draft pick out of Texas in 2023, tore an ACL in the preseason and missed all of his rookie year. He finally made his NFL debut in a Week 1 start last September and was brilliant, logging 11 tackles, two QB hits, a tackle for loss, and a sack versus Cleveland.
He kept up a torrid pace through 13 games- including an interception returned for a score against the Giants on Thanksgiving Day- before suffering a devastating injury on Dec. 9 in a meeting with the Bengals. Testing showed that Overshown tore the ACL, MCL, and PCL in his other knee, ending his season and re-starting the clock on another long rehab.
The 24-year-old himself had offered hope that he would return to the field sooner rather than later, but the severity of the late-season injury- and Jones's more recent prognosis- signal that it's possible Overshown won't play again until 2026.
Diggs is also working to overcome a troubling injury history, having missed 21 of 34 games since signing a five-year, $97 million contract extension in summer of 2023.
The onetime second-round pick ended up being sidelined for most of the year after tearing an ACL during a midweek practice early in the season. Like Overshown, he was back in action for the Week 1 win in Cleveland last fall, nabbing an interception as a welcome-back gift.
But the Alabama alum missed two games in November with persistent knee trouble. After attempting a comeback in the same Week 14 contest that saw Overshown get hurt, Diggs was shut down for the remainder of the year with an issue in the same knee as his previous tear.
In January, Diggs underwent a chondral tissue graft procedure, which comes with considerable recovery time.
The calendar was always stacked against both Overshown and Diggs, ...
