In 2024, the Dallas Cowboys were counting on a bigger contribution from Sam Williams in his third NFL season after losing defensive ends Dorance Armstrong and Dante Fowler in the offseason.

But early in training camp, the former Alabama high school star sustained a torn anterior cruciate ligament, and the knee injury caused him to miss the entire 2024 campaign.

With the Cowboys set to kick off their 2025 season on Thursday night, Dallas is suddenly counting on Williams in a bigger way again, and he aims to deliver after the trade of Pro Bowl pass-rusher Micah Parsons to the Green Bay Packers on Thursday.

“It’s just who wants it more, honestly, and I want it bad,” Williams said on Monday about facing the Philadelphia Eagles in the NFL’s season-opening game. “You know, this is my first game back since being injured. I’m very excited, but also patient. And I just want us to go out and be ourselves because only we can beat ourselves. And that’s how I feel. So I just want to go out there and just play ball, like just play.”

A second-round draft choice from Ole Miss in 2022, Williams played in 32 regular-season games and three postseason games in his first two NFL seasons. He had 48 tackles, 8.5 sacks, 15 tackles for loss, 16 quarterback hits, two forced fumbles and three fumble recoveries. Williams has 576 defensive snaps and 544 special-teams plays in regular-season play.

Parsons contributed 52.5 sacks over the past four seasons.

“If you watch practice and stuff, I feel like the opportunity was going to be there anyways, even if he was here,” Williams said. “More reps and opportunities because, like, every day in practice, there was no falloff. There was no falloff day. I went hard every day, and I gained the coaches’ trust, my teammates’ trust. And, like, if you ask them — you just ask them. Like, they’ll tell you that Sam brought it every day. And that’s the main objective, like, to gain the trust of the people around so I can be in those situations with Micah. But he’s gone now.”

The Cowboys’ depth chart for the opener shows Williams and Fowler as the starting defensive ends. Fowler recorded 10.5 sacks for the Washington Commanders in 2024 before returning to Dallas in 2025 as a free agent. They’re backed up by 2024 second-round pick Marshawn Kneeland and 2025 second-round pick Donovan Ezeiruaku.

A prep standout at Lee-Montgomery (now Percy Julian), Williams has never started an NFL game.

Thursday night’s game will mark the head-coaching debut of Brian Schottenheimer. He moved from offensive coordinator to the top spot after Dallas’ 7-10 showing in 2024. His new defensive staff includes former Chicago Bears head coach Matt Eberflus as defensive coordinator.

“They’re consistent,” Williams said of the new coaches. “Every day they bring the energy, and the positions that they put us in, I mean, I feel like we’re just going to be great. It’s like a blind trust, you know? We can’t see the results until we play.”

For his part, as he enters the final season of his rookie contract, Williams said he plans to “just give my all, man. Just be where I’m supposed to be. Play hard and just do everything I can. You know, it’s me versus me this year. I don’t look at anybody else. I just look at the man in front of me, and I got to beat him. That’s it.”