It has been a busy offseason for the Dallas Cowboys regarding their defensive line.

Looking at the edge rusher spots in particular, Dallas signed veteran free agent Dante Fowler Jr. to bring him back to the Cowboys after a year with the Washington Commanders and added depth by signing former first-round pick Payton Turner of the New Orleans Saints.

In the NFL Draft, the Cowboys were licking their chops when they got the chance to draft Boston College sack-getter Donovan Ezeiruaku in the second round.

This is the second straight year of Dallas drafting a defensive end in the Round 2, with Marshawn Kneeland still on the roster from 2024.Of course, all of this activity is overshadowed by the contract speculation surrounding star edge rusher Micah Parsons – which remains a storyline a week out from training camp.

Getting lost in the fold is the Cowboys’ second-rounder from 2022, Sam Williams.

Williams was an exciting prospect with an excellent combination of speed and strength coming out of Mississippi State.

His potential remains high, but his name has received less attention lately, mostly for reasons out of his control.

Williams was unfortunately drafted to a team already deep at the edge rusher position, so when he was a rookie, he was stashed behind the likes of Parsons, Fowler (during his first stint) veteran DeMarcus Lawrence, and others.

Then he suffered a torn ACL at the beginning of last training camp, which knocked him out all of last year.

As the Cowboys roster begins to take shape before heading to Oxnard, fans and chatrooms have seemed to forget about all the promise that Williams initially brought. He has been mentioned as a potential trade candidate leading up to the start of this season.

Why? Your guess is as good as mine. But let’s consider all angles.

Williams, even in a crowded room, was able to put on a show as a rookie.

He finished the year with four sacks, three fumble recoveries and 10 tackles for loss – proving the hype was real. In Year 2, things continued to look up. His 2023 season saw 4.5 sacks, another forced fumble, a safety, and four more tackles than the year before.

Last season was where things changed. Williams’ devastating injury sacrificed his season – one in which many people believed could be his true breakout year as Lawrence continued getting older and Fowler had left for Washington.

Now to today, Williams is expected to head to camp fully healthy, but Cowboys fans have seemed to forget about how he can still impact the team with everything he showed when on the field.

There are multiple reasons why the Cowboys won’t trade Williams, and the first is his position. The edge rusher unit is a crucial group that needs versatility and depth, so Williams is a valuable piece to that rotation.

But Dallas would also be smart about examining his trade potential.

Yes, he’s shown true promise and lived up to his draft pedigree so far, but he’s coming off a full year off after scary knee injury. His return, of course, weighs in the balance.

Who would want to gamble on something like that?

Plus, past examples of questionable behavior and attitude doesn’t bode well for his reputation and are traits other teams would likely avoid.

Over the course of his three-year career, his market value may be at the lowest it’s ever been right now. At best, Dallas might get a late-round draft pick in return, which is not nearly worth giving him up for with so much untapped potential still there.

Assuming Williams is a full-go for Week 1, he will still be in the midst of a loaded rotation, but his spot should be secure. In the time he’s been on the field, his playmaking has proved that he deserves to get snaps. That won’t change as long as he feels a hundred percent healthy, confident, and aggressive.

Parsons will be a mainstay on the line. Lawrence is gone, but Fowler has returned in a comparable role. Turner is an odd case, as he still has something to prove at training camp to avoid being cut. His few years in New Orleans have left a lot to be desired.

Kneeland is just a second-year player, but profiles as a more useful run-stopper rather than pass-rusher. And “EZ” is a rookie, kind of in a similar spot as Williams was in 2022, with the chance for spotty opportunities to sub in and prove himself.

Sam should assume a position ahead of those latter three in the depth chart. That then becomes an integral part of the rotation behind the starting unit, which is definitely not a piece worth trading, especially being the prospect that he is.

Williams’ injury recovery may have forced him to be forgotten about at this stage of the offseason, but the 2025 year should remind Cowboys Nation of the exciting “Slam Williams” days of the past if everything goes according to plan. Fowler is also aging, so his spot in the starting lineup could come sooner than expected if he performs well this year.

At 26 years of age, Williams will have to regress on the field or in-between the ears in order to make a case for a trade.

That simply hasn’t happened, so the Cowboys shouldn’t bother moving him.