FRISCO, Texas — With the dust is quickly settling for the Cowboys’ defensive coaching staff following the biggest domino having fallen, namely, the dismissal of Matt Eberflus and the hiring of Christian Parker as his successor at defensive coordinator, the team’s scouting department will ramp up their work at both the 2025 Reese’s Senior Bowl and 101st East-West Shrine Bowl.
The latter got underway at the world headquarters of the Cowboys, giving Dallas a very close look at more than 100 NFL draft prospects at The Ford Center in Frisco. In observing a matchup that included tight ends coach Lunda Wells serving as head coach of the West, while Aaron Whitecotton, slated to depart for the Tennessee Titans, manned defensive coordinator duties for the East.
There were several players who jumped off of the film, but not every one of them makes sense for the defense-craved Cowboys.
With that, I’ve opted to key in exclusively on the defensive side of the ball — in a game that allows talent to showcase themselves in large part thanks to an institution that has helped more than two million children in medical need over the course of its 101st showing (a more worthy cause doesn’t exist).
And, now, to my [defensive only] standouts:
[Note: All height measurements are rounded to the nearest inch.]
EDGE
- Mason Reiger – Wisconsin (6’4″, 245 lbs.)
- Wesley Williams – Duke (6’3, 251 lbs)
- Keyshawn James-Newby – New Mexico
One of, and arguably the, position of biggest need in Dallas gave the Cowboys an eyeful when Reiger, Williams and James-Newby took the field in Frisco. It was initially Williams, a redshirt junior Blue Devil, getting things cooking and making multiple plays in the first half, before James-Newby (First-team All-Big Sky) and Reiger (All-Big Ten Honorable Mention) began to steal the show after halftime, though Williams bending the corner with only nine minutes remaining in the contest to force a strip sack that resulted in a defensive touchdown made sure he wasn’t forgotten.
KJN forced what would’ve been an intentional grounding ahead of halftime by quarterback Jalon Daniels (Kansas) that wasn’t called, only because they don’t flag that in this game, and then planted Daniels on a 4th-and-2, and that was flagged but, unfortunately, against KJN but, hey, that’s easily cleaned up at the next level (just don’t body slam the QB out of the air, young man).
Reiger felt like the game’s defensive MVP to me, producing three sacks on the evening (a career-high): one using a stunt on third-and-long late in the second quarter, and deep in West territory, to force a punt and good field position, and then a strip sack in the second quarter; and despite arguably being held, to force a takeaway. And then there was the third, taking down the QB on a technical masterpiece of edge rushing with his East nursing a two-point lead in the waning minutes of the contest.
Add these three to your scouting assignments, if you haven’t already, because they are deserving, Dallas.
Linebackers
- Shad Banks, UTSA (5’11”, 233 lbs.)
Hailing from the Houston area (Harris County), Banks is born-and-bred Texas football kid who is a receiver-turned-linebacker (hello athleticism) that also spent time in the Metroplex at TCU before transferring to the University of Texas at San Antonio to continue his journey, where he earned First-team All-American Conference honors this past season, and it’s not hard to see why.
One of Banks’ standout plays was when he showed sensational football IQ and patience to pause, read and then quickly react late in the second quarter to fill the run lane, one that was massively wide, to take down the ball carrier just behind the line of scrimmage —preventing a guaranteed first down and more — also laying the boom on multiple occasions.
He jumped off of the tape in coverage as well, the pass breakup on an inside slant in the end zone denying a red zone touchdown just ahead of halftime. For a Cowboys’ team that is thirsty for help at the linebacker position, I’d say keep an eye on Banks throughout the predraft process.
Cornerbacks
- Brent Austin, Cal (5’11”, 176 lbs.)
A third-team All-ACC selection in 2025, things really began coming together or Austin last season. His time with Cal was preceded with stretches at the University of South Florida and James Madison, sharpening his skill set to be able to put things on tape such as what was witnessed at the East-West Shrine Bowl. In a game that so multiple dropped interceptions by others, though Austin didn’t have a shot at one, his coverage ability was more than evident.
Late in the first quarter, Austin displayed great play recognition to not allow himself to be washed out as he kept his eyes on the quarterback, having diagnosed it as a screen play. He was correct, and once the ball left the QB’s hand, Austin was shot out of a cannon, the second part of the play that was executed well but, for a Cowboys team that struggled with missed tackles, it was the perfect tackling technique by Austin that also saw him drive through it to deliver a TFL in open space that made me golf clap.
Safeties
- Cole Wisniewski, Texas Tech (6’4″, 220 lbs)
Unfortunately, one of those aforementioned dropped interceptions was at the hands of Wisniewski, and that nearly deleted him from this list after I’d placed a green circle around him following a fantastic pass break up in the first quarter that prevented a touchdown in the flat. What helped me move past that is the fact that, as a senior at NDSU, prior to transferring to the Red Raiders in 2025, Wisniewski tied the Missouri Valley Conference record with eight interceptions that season, matching an NDSU school record that has stood for more than 70 years.
I’ll treat the dropped INT at the East-West Shrine Bowl as an aberration based upon his history of takeaways, and give him due credit for stout coverage skills in Frisco on Tuesday, as well as being one of the better tacklers on the field — rarely taking the wrong angle or being caught out of position.
Honorable mention:
- James Thompson, Jr. – Illinois (6’5″, 301 lbs.)
You love to see a player having regained his aura after suffering a major injury, and Thompson falls into that category. He’s now multiple seasons removed from a ruptured Achilles in 2021, getting progressively better every season since and finding his groove at Illinois. It was Thompson making his presence felt in the East-West Shrine Bowl before anyone else — powering forward for a sack to start the game and then delivering an impressive tackle for loss on the running back, and I hate that we couldn’t see more of him after he left the game ahead of halftime with an apparent injury but, thankfully and hopefully, it’s one that didn’t appear serious.
