DALLAS — Caleb Downs is the pick to win NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year in a survey of league executives and scouts that ESPN published Tuesday morning. Jeremy Fowler polled the group on eight awards ahead of Wednesday night’s season opener between the New England Patriots and Seattle Seahawks.
The Dallas Cowboys have big plans for Downs, Fowler wrote, and the rookie safety instantly becomes one of the most versatile players on the roster. Dallas will play him primarily in the slot, where Fowler wrote he can disrupt in the open field.
Sauce Gardner is the last defensive back to win the award. He took it in 2022 with 2 interceptions and 20 pass deflections. Ball production is a requirement, Fowler wrote.
“He will play in the middle of the defense so he will probably have some ball production and high tackle numbers,” an AFC executive said. “And if he helps turn around Dallas’ defense, he’ll be looked at as a catalyst.”
Rueben Bain Jr., Mansoor Delane, R Mason Thomas, and David Bailey also received votes. Bain went 15th overall to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Bailey was the second overall pick, by the New York Jets, after a season at Texas Tech. Delane went sixth to the Kansas City Chiefs, and Thomas went 40th to Kansas City in the second round.
NFL.com’s staff made the same pick a week earlier. Downs took five of the 18 votes on a ballot the site published Sept. 1, with Bain next at four.
Brian Schottenheimer On Where Caleb Downs Plays
Fowler asked Dallas Cowboys coach Brian Schottenheimer at training camp where Downs is best served on the field. Schottenheimer said “anywhere,” then pointed out that Downs can cover CeeDee Lamb up the seam.
Downs plays for first-year defensive coordinator Christian Parker, who runs a 3-4 front. Dallas hired Parker on Jan. 22, and at 34 he is the youngest defensive coordinator in franchise history. Parker spent 2021 through 2023 coaching defensive backs for the Denver Broncos and the past two seasons as passing game coordinator and defensive backs coach for the Philadelphia Eagles.
The defense Downs joined finished last in the league in passing yards allowed in 2025. Dallas ranked 30th in total yards allowed and gave up 511 points, or 30.1 per game, which ranked 32nd. The Cowboys fired defensive coordinator Matt Eberflus after the season.
Dallas signed safety Jalen Thompson and cornerback Cobie Durant in free agency and drafted Florida cornerback Devin Moore in the fourth round. Malik Hooker, P.J. Locke, DaRon Bland, and Shavon Revel Jr. are also in the secondary. DeMarvion Overshown moves inside to middle linebacker and will wear the green dot for Parker.
What Caleb Downs Did At Ohio State And Alabama
Downs landed on preseason all-rookie teams before playing a snap and was floated as a defensive rookie of the year candidate, executive vice president Stephen Jones said last week on DLLS Sports.
“I think Caleb Downs, it’s hard to exceed expectations because they were huge to start with,” Jones said. “But he’s certainly lived up to every expectation. He’s well beyond his years and going to be a great player for us.”
Downs went 11th overall in April. Dallas traded the 12th pick and two 2026 fifth-round picks to the Miami Dolphins to move up one spot. He signed May 1 for four years and $28,951,992, fully guaranteed, with a $17,515,992 signing bonus. He wears No. 13.
Downs spent his freshman season at Alabama in 2023, where he was the SEC Freshman of the Year and a second-team All-American. He transferred to Ohio State and played there in 2024 and 2025. In 2025 he won the Jim Thorpe Award and the Lott Trophy and was named Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year. He was a unanimous All-American in both seasons at Ohio State, and the Buckeyes won the College Football Playoff national championship in his first year there.
Across 44 college games, Downs recorded 257 tackles, 16 tackles for loss, and 6 interceptions.
Dallas opens the season Sunday, Sept. 13, at the New York Giants. Kickoff at MetLife Stadium is set for 7:20 p.m. CT on NBC.
