Cowboys corners Trevon Diggs, Josh Butler could provide much needed depth down the stretch

Just a few weeks ago, most Dallas Cowboy fans assumed Trevon Diggs would likely never suit up for the Cowboys again after being placed on injured reserve earlier in the season. But after a three-game win streak and the playoffs becoming a real possibility, it looks like Diggs will soon be back.

The secondary has dealt with its fair share of injuries this season with Caelen Carson now banged up again, DaRon Bland suffering a foot injury on Thursday against the Chiefs, Shavon Revel Jr. missing some snaps due to an issue with his left knee. The Cowboys had DaRon Bland, Reddy Steward, and Shavon Revel Jr. on the field for most of the game against the Chiefs, but the lack of depth behind the starting three is pretty concerning.

After releasing Kaiir Elam earlier in the week to add Malik Davis to the 53-man roster, the cornerback room is rather young and lacks experience. Behind Bland, Revel, and Steward, Trikweze Bridges and Corey Ballentine are the last cornerbacks on the active roster. As bad as the relationship seems between Diggs and the Cowboys, there is no denying that Diggs can help the Cowboys win this season more than Bridges and/or Ballentine. If healthy enough to play, the Cowboys need to get Diggs back on the field and back in the lineup down the home stretch.

Along with Diggs, Josh Butler has been on the PUP list since the start of the season – recovering from a torn ACL suffered last season. Butler was playing well in 2024 for Mike Zimmer’s defense before suffering the injury, and according to his most recent social media post he is pushing to get back on the field sooner rather than later.

With the Cowboys defense lacking proven depth and dealing with injuries at the cornerback position, getting Diggs and Butler back into the mix would help improve one of the Cowboys weakest units on the roster over the last month or two of the season. The Cowboys currently have two more IR-return spots left to use, so bringing back Diggs would mean that they would have spot remaining to bring a player back from injured reserve for the rest of the season. Since Butler is on the PUP-list, he does not count towards the return number, he would just need to be activated to the active roster.

At the end of the day, the Cowboys are set up pretty well on the defensive side of the ball. They have quality depth at defensive end, defensive tackle, linebacker, and safety, but the concern at cornerback is one worth upgrading and could help take the Cowboys defense to the next level as they continue to make a push for the playoffs.