Sometimes, all it takes to turn around the career of a highly-touted prospect is a change of scenery, and the Dallas Cowboys hope that rings true when it comes to one of their offseason additions.

With needs up and down the roster, Dallas was very aggressive this offseason in seeking out fits to add to its roster.

Regardless of whether that came via the draft, free agent signings, or trades, the Cowboys’ front office provided first-year head coach Brian Schottenheimer with plenty of talent on both sides of the ball for him to lean on as he implements his system.

While it is still very early in the process, one of the new faces in Dallas is already making a name for himself with his play on the practice field.

New Cowboys Arrival Kaiir Elam Already Off to Great Start With Dallas

The Buffalo Bills selected cornerback Kaiir Elam out of the University of Florida with the No. 23 overall pick in the 2022 NFL Draft and had high hopes for the SEC defensive back.

Unfortunately for Buffalo, while Elam showed flashes of what made him a first-round pick during his tenure with the Bills, but was far too inconsistent to be fully trusted on the outside.

With Buffalo not wanting to fully commit to Elam being “the guy” in the secondary, the Cowboys were able to swoop in and add the former first-round pick to the fold without having to give up too much in return.

Dallas received Elam and a 2025 sixth-round pick, which wound up being Ajani Cornelius, for a 2025 fifth-round pick and a 2026 seventh-round pick.

Since his arrival, Elam has been very impressive and is doing so on his rookie contract. With the needs that Dallas has in the secondary, Elam living up to the potential he showed in college is as big of a win for the Cowboys as they could ask.

As ESPN’s Todd Archer pointed out in a recent NFL Nation piece, Elam intercepted multiple passes during OTAs and minicamp and showed the ability to keep pace with the team’s receivers in coverage.

If he can keep that up throughout training camp and into the regular season, Dallas will have won this trade in a big way.