Caleb Downs knew it wasn’t good. He just didn’t realize it was that bad.During a recent podcast interview, the Dallas Cowboys rookie defensive back joked about how he discovered that Dallas allowed an NFL-worst 30.1 points per game last season.“I was like, ‘Thirty points a game?’ I was like, ‘OK. We gotta do (something),’” Downs said on the St. Brown Podcast with Detroit Lions wide receiver Amon-Ra St. Brown and former NFL wide receiver Equanimeous St. Brown. “We’re going to get it right. We got some people on defense.”Downs’ Ohio State Buckeyes allowed an NCAA-low 12.9 points per game in 2024 and 9.3 points per game in 2025.“He has all the tools,” Cowboys defensive tackle Quinnen Williams said of Downs. “He has all the things that you want for a guy to come in and make an immediate impact. He’s humble. He’s ready to learn.”“He’s a dynamic player,” Cowboys left tackle Tyler Guyton added. “Caleb is a f–––ing dog, man.”Downs is one of the key pieces tasked with turning things around. Joining him are new defensive coordinator Christian Parker, veteran defensive tackles Williams and Kenny Clark and outside linebacker Rashan Gary. Downs mentioned that group while explaining to the St. Brown brothers why the Cowboys will be better in 2026.“Ninety percent of this defense and defensive staff has been turned over,” Williams said following the Cowboys’ organized team activities last Thursday. “The guys we’ve brought in from coaches to players has been unbelievable. The scheme itself, you got to see around the league, a lot of people that run this same scheme have had unbelievable success.“You have the Rams, (Broncos), Eagles and the Seattle Seahawks kind of run a similar scheme, the New England Patriots kind of run a similar scheme. All of the top defenses in the league kind of run this scheme. I’m super excited with the way (Christian Parker) runs it, (how) meticulous he is, the details.”It’s difficult to accurately evaluate an NFL defense in a modern-day OTA practice. There is no tackling to the ground. If a defender is in position to make a play and it’s a 50/50 ball, they have to allow the receiver to make the catch. The design is to get prepared for training camp without sustaining any notable injuries.But several players who are in the team facility on a regular basis said they can see the differences, including those on offense.“It’s annoying,” Cowboys star wide receiver CeeDee Lamb said. “It’s been annoying to prepare against. But obviously seeing it in practice every day, it’s kind of unique. Just seeing the different guys communicate and be able to understand and take what they learn from the meeting room and being able to easily translate it on the field. It’s good to go against. It’s very tricky.”Dallas added safety Jalen Thompson in free agency and will be looking for him to make in impact in the secondary. (Mark J. Rebilas / Imagn Images)Thursday’s practice was the first open to reporters. Some of the things that stood out included Downs getting the majority of his work as the starting nickel defensive back. Recently signed safety Jalen Thompson and veteran cornerback DaRon Bland worked off to the side on resistance cords, which meant more first-team work for veteran safety P.J. Locke and third-year corner Caelen Carson. The first-team inside linebackers were Dee Winters and Shemar James. DeMarvion Overshown is expected to start Week 1, but he was not in attendance for personal reasons.Most notable at the line of scrimmage were Williams, Clark and Gary. Clark said the attention to details has stood out to him in the new defensive system. The move from a 4-3 to 3-4 scheme shouldn’t be a problem for the trio as Clark and Gary had success in that scheme while in Green Bay. Williams was in a 3-4 scheme in college.“The film speaks for itself,” Gary said. “But man, I’m a dog. I play with a lot of effort, cause a lot of pressure. I don’t think nobody like to go against me. I’m just bringing the same energy, same hustle, same mentality.”The pass rush will be a question mark until it is on display in games. Micah Parsons is no longer around, so the plan is to get quality contributions from a number of edge rushers, including Gary, Donovan Ezeiruaku, first-round pick Malachi Lawrence, Sam Williams, Tyrus Wheat, James Houston and Marist Liufau. The Cowboys totaled only 35 sacks last season, which was bottom-10 in the league. They were one of the NFL’s best in 2024, finishing with 52.“I think some of the best pass-rushing teams I know we’ve faced, don’t have necessarily one guy,” Cowboys coach Brian Schottenheimer said. “It’s easier to shut one guy down. One elite guy, you can pay a lot of attention to. It’s better off when you look at Denver and obviously (Nik) Bonitto put up big numbers, but I mean they were getting (seven-plus) sacks I think from (four) different guys. I really do think it’s more of the unit. And that’s what we’re excited about with the depth that we feel that we have.”Speaking of Denver’s pass rush, which led the NFL with 68 sacks last season, the Cowboys are hoping one of the Broncos’ former coaches, Brandon “BT” Jordan will also help in that area. The recently added pass-rushing specialist was mentioned several times by different players last Thursday.“I think I can be better at pass rushing,” Williams said. “I think I can change up some of my game, change up some of my footwork. Having BT Jordan here is a blessing for sure. He’s one of the best in the business at perfecting pass rush. I know I definitely need that. Just to be better at pushing the pocket, pass rush and getting the quarterback on the ground is the thing I think I can take a better step at this year.”Ezeiruaku said Jordan’s teaching style involves breaking down a player’s film, teaching different techniques and then showing them how those techniques work in games.“He’s done it in the past, helping defensive line rooms get over that hump,” Ezeiruaku said. “He did it the last two years in Denver. … He breaks pass rush down to a science. It’s kind of like he’s got the secret formula.”There won’t be any tackling of Dak Prescott or any other Cowboys quarterback in OTAs. That won’t happen in minicamp or training camp, either. But the 2026 Cowboys defense seems to be confident that by the end of camp it will be ready to put a much-improved defense on display.Going against what should again be one of the NFL’s top offenses should help. And that’s the gap that needs to be closed if Dallas has any chance at returning to the playoffs for the first time in three years.“I’m not gonna compare to last year,” Schottenheimer said. “Last year just didn’t work, and we know that, and it’s for different reasons, and that falls on me more than anybody else as the head coach. But I’m thrilled with the way these guys teach, the way these guys explain, the way these guys focus on fundamentals.“I think you would be remiss standing up here if you didn’t talk about the disguise element of it. The system that CP’s bringing to us, based off from Vic Fangio and Vance Joseph and guys like that that have been involved, they make you work post-snap. And that’s a big part of it.“The less movement that the defense does, it tells the (opposing) quarterback less information, so therefore, he’s trying to process it at different times, and that allows the pass rush to get home, which is why I think you see teams like Denver that base out of this system, get a number of sacks. It’s not just that the pass rush is elite, it’s that the quarterbacks are confused. … And I think that that’s been really fun for me to see.”