For the 2nd season in a row, Dallas Cowboys edge rusher Sam Williams is being targeted as a player who might not realize his full potential until he’s with a different team.
Williams, a 2nd-round pick (No. 56 overall) in the 2022 NFL Draft, could have done just that this offseason but chose to come back to the Cowboys on a 1-year, $2.5 million contract — a “prove it” deal that could hopefully lead to bigger riches in 2027.
Bleacher Report’s Kristopher Knox thinks it’s a decision the 6-foot-4, 260-pound Williams will come to regret, and the best thing for him might be a “change of scenery” via trade to the Chicago Bears or San Francisco 49ers.
“Dallas Cowboys edge-defender Sam Williams had the opportunity for a fresh start in free agency early this offseason. However, the 2022 second-round pick opted to return to Dallas on a one-year deal,” Knox wrote on July 25. “In retrospect, Williams may wish he had chosen a different path. While he obviously has some familiarity with the Cowboys—though they have a new defensive coordinator in Christian Parker — he may be short on playing opportunities. Dallas suddenly has a logjam of edge defenders. Rising star Donovan Ezeiruaku is back, and the Cowboys traded to add Rashan Gary to their edge rotation. They then used first- and third-round picks on Malachi Lawrence and Jaishawn Barham, respectively. Williams, who had 8.5 sacks in his first two seasons before suffering a torn ACL in 2024, has flashed promise. Landing with a team that has questionable edge depth would give him a better chance to reach his potential than staying buried on Dallas’ depth chart.”
Sam Williams Received High Praise in 2025
Williams was singled out by Pro Football Focus as the NFL’s “Most Improved’ edge rusher in the 2nd half of the 2025 season, and his performance probably led to him exceeding his market projection of a 1-year, $2.3 million contract from Spotrac.
“The play of edge defender Sam Williams over the course of the season was one of few bright spots for the Cowboys,” PFF’s Thomas Valentine wrote. “Williams was ineffective early on with a 39.9 PFF grade — 117th out of 118 edge defenders … From Week 10 onward, Williams earned an 80.6 PFF grade, the 11th-best among edge defenders. Williams recorded just nine pressures in eight games, but also accrued 10 stops and forced a fumble. His 74.7 PFF run-defense grade was also 13th at the position, and no one had a more improved grade in the second half of the season than Williams.”
Williams played in all 17 games in 2025, including his first 5 career starts. The Cowboys finished 30th in the NFL in team defense as they went 7-9-1 overall and missed the playoffs for the 2nd consecutive season.
Career Derailed by Catastrophic Knee Injury
Williams had 8.5 sacks through his first 2 seasons before he suffered a season-ending ACL tear and partial MCL tear during training camp in 2024 and missed the entire season.
The Athletic’s Jon Machota predicted Williams as a breakout player for the Cowboys in 2025 — he might have just been one year (or half year) off.
“Williams holds the top spot here because his size and athletic ability are ideal for being an elite edge rusher,” Machota wrote. “The 2022 second-round pick just hasn’t been able to put it all together. His breakout season was supposed to be last year, but a season-ending knee injury in training camp put everything on hold.”
Williams’ career almost went off the rails several different times before he was selected by the Cowboys in the second round (No. 56 overall) of the 2022 NFL draft.
In high school, he was expelled for having a knife on school grounds. After transferring from Northeast Mississippi Community College to Ole Miss, he was suspended in July 2020 after an arrest for felony sexual battery but reinstated after the charges were dropped.
Williams put together a season for the ages in 2021 with 57 tackles, 16 TFL, 4 forced fumbles and one fumble returned for a touchdown — he also set the school single season record with 12.5 sacks.
He followed that with a stunning performance at the NFL scouting combine, where he checked in at 6-foot-4 and 261 pounds, ran the 40-yard dash in 4.46 seconds, and registered a 36-inch vertical jump.
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