All 12 months lengthy we’ve appeared on the rookie class and given previews and evaluations on every participant for each sport of the season. Now let’s look again the season in its entirety and breakdown every rookie and the way they carried out. Let’s proceed with third-round cornerback Shavon Revel Jr.
Season stats- Snaps: 334, Whole Tackles: 35, Deal with for loss: 1, Receptions Allowed: 21, Reception Share: 67%, Go Breakups: 3, TD Allowed: 2 , Passer Score: 119.7, Penalties: 5
Revel’s rookie 12 months in Dallas was at all times going to be sophisticated, but it surely ended up being even more durable than anybody wished for. Lower than a 12 months earlier than he performed an NFL snap, he tore his ACL at East Carolina and missed most of his remaining school season, going into the draft as a first-round expertise with a serious medical purple flag. Dallas nonetheless spent a Day 2 decide on him and anticipated him to be a part of the long run at exterior nook, however the mixture of that damage and the Cowboys’ cornerback depth points meant his first season turned a trial by hearth somewhat than a sluggish ramp-up.
The fundamental numbers present the workload and the wrestle. PFF has him with a 35.2 general grade and a 34.6 protection grade for 2025, ranked 122nd out of 123 graded cornerbacks. He performed over 330 defensive snaps, most of them as an out of doors starter as soon as he was activated, and completed with 35 whole tackles, no interceptions, and eight missed tackles. In protection, he allowed 21 catches on 31 targets for 295 yards and two touchdowns on the 12 months, with quarterbacks posting a score properly into triple digits after they threw at him.
What makes the 12 months extra irritating is that there have been clear flashes early that hinted at a smoother path. His NFL debut in opposition to the Raiders was nearly textbook for a younger nook with 18 protection snaps, one goal, zero reception allowed for zero yards and a clear deal with. His first three video games, he allowed solely 5 catches for 61 yards on 89 protection snaps, which is the form of effectivity you’ll fortunately stay with from any starter, by no means thoughts a rookie coming off main knee surgical procedure. However as accidents elsewhere pressured Dallas to lean on him, his function jumped shortly.
By late November, he had performed no less than 62% of the defensive snaps in each sport however his debut, and he was recurrently matched with high receivers in a secondary that wasn’t getting constant assist from the move rush. That’s when the wheels got here off for Revel with huge cushions on third down, late reactions to breaks in his zone, and repeated points enjoying the ball along with his again turned, which confirmed up in back-to-back weeks because the season drew on.
The bodily storyline issues right here. Revel missed the complete offseason program, coaching camp and preseason whereas ending his ACL rehab, then sat out the primary 10 regular-season video games earlier than debuting in Week 11. By the point he was on the sphere, he was not a typical rookie, he was a rehabbing participant being requested to step straight into heavy NFL snaps with little or no stay soccer within the earlier 15 months. His Christmas Day outing in opposition to Washington was instance of how that appeared with poor tackling and run-defense sub-grades, he was focused six instances and allowed 4 catches for 84 yards, after which he left the sport after a blow to the pinnacle. He was positioned into the concussion protocol the subsequent day successfully ending his season with one week left.
The larger concern is what this sort of 12 months can do to a younger participant’s confidence. His season was a piece in progress or higher but, a conundrum. He ought to ideally have spent this complete 12 months rehabbing and easing into spot obligation, but it surely’s honest to say the Cowboys’ depth points pressured him onto the sphere sooner than what was finest for his improvement. As soon as he was thrust right into a starter’s workload, the numbers and the tape say he struggled with too many completions, too many missed tackles, and a concussion on the finish of the 12 months that underlines how bodily demanding the 12 months was. The chance now isn’t just technical, it’s psychological. If Dallas needs him to be a part of the long-term reply at nook, 2026 needs to be about rebuilding his confidence and fundamentals with a full, wholesome offseason, somewhat than repeating one other season of trial by hearth.
