About 45 of the 53 players we knew entering the NFL’s official cutdown day. But the Dallas Cowboys’ initial roster cuts still had surprises.One that should not come as a surprise is undrafted rookie wide receiver Camden Brown. Almost every year it feels like the Cowboys have a somewhat unknown wide receiver turn heads in training camp. George Farmer, Andy Jones, Lance Lenoir, Jon’Vea Johnson, Dennis Houston, Jalen Moreno-Cropper and Traeshon Holden immediately come to mind.This year, that player was Brown. The difference, however, is that Brown was much better than all of those others. He not only flashed early in camp, he flashed every day. And then he did the same in the preseason, catching six of nine targets for 166 yards and two touchdowns in the three games.The Cowboys are already loaded at wide receiver with CeeDee Lamb, George Pickens, Ryan Flournoy, KaVontae Turpin and Jonathan Mingo, but it’s not a surprise that they decided to not risk losing Brown to another team.Top Plays from Saints @ CowboysHere are other areas that stood out from Sunday’s initial roster cuts.The biggest surprise not on the rosterJaydon BlueThe second-year running back entered training camp in the driver’s seat for the No. 2 job behind Javonte Williams. Blue had some highlight runs early in camp, showcasing his speed in space. He looked like the perfect fit to open up Dallas’ screen game. Blue and Williams seemed like they could be ideal complements to each other. There’s a reason why Dallas didn’t make any notable additions to the position in the offseason. But as camp went along, Malik Davis showed he deserved the No. 2 reps and never really looked back. It still seemed like Blue would be Dallas’ No. 3. And maybe that still happens if he clears waivers and returns on the practice squad.Jaydon Blue entered camp the frontrunner for RB2 but was left off Dallas’ initial 53-man roster. (Steven Bisig / Imagn Images)The biggest surprise on the rosterAmeer SpeedThe veteran cornerback had competition for this spot. Cornerback Caelen Carson, outside linebacker Tyrus Wheat and safety Alijah Clark are all a little surprising. But special teams is an important part of the game that wasn’t very good last year in Dallas. Perhaps Speed, Carson, Wheat and Clark could upgrade the coverage teams. However, some of them could just be holding roster spots until Dallas makes some other moves in the next 24 hours. Cornerback depth isn’t great. It would not be a surprise to see another move at the position. The Cowboys did that last year after initial roster cuts, claiming cornerbacks Reddy Steward and Trikweze Bridges off waivers.“These are hard decisions,” Schottenheimer said last week. “You’re affecting people’s lives and you’re trying to build a championship football team and these are big decisions. It’s not just who starts at this position or that position. It’s how does it all fit? And the one thing I think we’re all on the same page of is this statement, which is we want to build a great team and not just collect talent.”Did they do enough?The offensive line depth proved to be an issue throughout training camp and preseason. The Cowboys addressed that Saturday by trading a third-round pick and a sixth-round pick to the Pittsburgh Steelers for offensive tackle Broderick Jones, who was the 14th overall pick in 2023, and a fourth-round pick. That immediately signaled some future starting competition at best and a swing tackle option at worst. A few hours before roster cuts were officially announced, Dallas agreed to trade swing tackle Nate Thomas to the Houston Texas in exchange for a seventh-round pick. Depending on what Jones can offer, tackle depth could still be an issue. Starting right tackle Terence Steele hasn’t had a good training camp. Rookie offensive tackle Drew Shelton made the initial 53 but he has also struggled. It would not be a surprise to see another addition made along the offensive line.QB roomThe Cowboys would have preferred to have one player significantly outperform the other for the backup job, but that never really happened when factoring in all of training camp and the preseason. There were times early on when Sam Howell looked to be the guy. And then Joe Milton started putting it together and had two outstanding preseason games. Just as it looked like Milton was running away with the competition, he didn’t look as good in the preseason finale and Howell turned in his best showing.Cowboys coach Brian Schottenheimer said Friday night that the battle for the backup job was “neck and neck.” Clearly, he preferred to move forward with both. It’ll be interesting to see how that works itself out as the season starts. There aren’t that many practice reps available during the season for one backup let alone two. Howell could be the safer option right now, but Milton has the higher upside.Injured reserveTwo notable IR moves were also announced by the Cowboys. Outside linebacker Marist Liufau and rookie cornerback Devin Moore were both placed on the Reserve/Injured-Designated for Return list. Liufau suffered a fractured left forearm in Friday night’s preseason finale. He will likely have surgery this week. Moore, who was drafted in the fourth round, is dealing with a hip injury.Cowboys’ initial 53-man roster:Quarterback (3): Dak Prescott, Joe Milton, Sam HowellRunning back (3): Javonte Williams, Malik Davis, Hunter LuepkeTight end (3): Jake Ferguson, Brevyn Spann-Ford, Luke SchoonmakerWide receiver (6): CeeDee Lamb, George Pickens, Ryan Flournoy, KaVontae Turpin, Jonathan Mingo, Camden BrownOffensive line (9): Tyler Smith (LG), Tyler Booker (RG), Cooper Beebe (C), Tyler Guyton (LT), Terence Steele (RT), T.J. Bass (G), Ajani Cornelius (G), Broderick Jones (T), Drew Shelton (T)Defensive line (5): Quinnen Williams, Kenny Clark, Otito Ogbonnia, Jonathan Bullard, LT OvertonOutside linebacker (6): Rashan Gary, Donovan Ezeiruaku, Von Miller, Malachi Lawrence, James Houston, Tyrus WheatInside linebacker (4): DeMarvion Overshown, Dee Winters, Jaishawn Barham, Shemar James Cornerback (5): DaRon Bland, Shavon Revel, Cobie Durant, Caelen Carson, Ameer SpeedSafety (6): Caleb Downs, Jalen Thompson, Malik Hooker, P.J. Locke, Markquese Bell, Alijah ClarkSpecial teams (3): Brandon Aubrey (K), Bryan Anger (P), Trent Sieg (LS)