OXNARD, Calif. — Shavon Revel Jr. did not get much of a chance to compete for a starting job during his first NFL training camp. A year later, the Dallas Cowboys cornerback is making a real push for one.
Dallas listed Revel and Cobie Durant with an “or” designation opposite DaRon Bland on its first unofficial depth chart. Revel has spent the first few weeks of camp giving Dallas reasons to keep him in that competition.
He had four pass breakups during the Cowboys’ first padded practice Aug. 3. In Thursday’s practice, Revel got his hands on throws intended for Ryan Flournoy and George Pickens.
Tuesday brought another test when Dallas went to Woodland Hills for a joint practice with the Los Angeles Rams. Revel broke up passes against Puka Nacua and Davante Adams, including an end-zone throw that nearly became an interception.
Cowboys coach Brian Schottenheimer has seen more confidence from Revel this summer.
“He wants to be coached,” Schottenheimer said of Revel. “He’s the first guy in the room and asking good questions and there’s no mistaking why he’s playing with more confidence now than he was last year.”
Shavon Revel Jr. Finally Gets Full Offseason With Cowboys
Dallas took Revel 76th overall in the 2025 NFL Draft after a torn ACL ended his final season at East Carolina after three games.
That injury followed him into his rookie year.
Revel opened his first Cowboys camp on the non-football injury list and had another setback with the knee in Oxnard. His NFL debut did not come until Week 11 against the Las Vegas Raiders.
He appeared in 7 games, finishing with 35 tackles and 3 passes defensed.
“I missed a whole year and a half of football,” Revel explained. “People don’t understand that your technique and all that can really go away. The game can come at you fast when you get back on that field.”
There was no similar rehabilitation schedule hanging over him this offseason. Revel was able to go through the program with his teammates and arrived in Oxnard ready to practice.
Earlier in camp, he said he had also gone back and watched tape from his East Carolina days while trying to reconnect with the player he was before the ACL injury.
His physical traits have shown up again in camp.
Revel is listed at 6-foot-2 and has used his length at the line of scrimmage. Pickens has seen it across from him throughout the summer.
“I feel like him being that physical at the line of scrimmage can definitely deter a lot of receivers in the league,” Pickens said.
Pickens caught 93 passes for 1,429 yards and 9 touchdowns during his first season in Dallas. CeeDee Lamb gives Revel another established receiver to work against every day.
Those practices were on Revel’s mind after facing Nacua and Adams.
“That felt easy,” Revel said of going up against the Rams receivers, “because I’ve been doing it every day against — in my opinion, personally — the best receivers in the league and I felt that throughout this camp. When we played the Rams, I was like ‘Damn, this is easy. It’s nothing because I’m guarding these guys every single day.'”
Nacua led the NFL with 129 receptions last season and finished with 1,715 receiving yards. Adams enters the year with 1,017 career catches, 12,633 receiving yards, and 117 touchdowns.
Revel still came away from the joint practice with plays against both of them.
Dallas Cowboys Want More From Shavon Revel Jr. Away From The Line
One of his better reps against Los Angeles came after Nacua initially got behind him.
Nacua used a double move to create separation, and Matthew Stafford put the ball downfield. Revel recovered and got a hand in to break up the pass.
“My game is to make receivers run around me,” Revel said, “because I’m a long, fast guy and can catch up with pretty much anybody.”
The Cowboys have not spent camp only working on what Revel already does well.
Schottenheimer has wanted him to become more comfortable playing off the receiver and in zone coverage. Some of the work has centered on when Revel needs to use his speed instead of immediately creating distance from the receiver.
“Well, that’s not how we teach it,” Schottenheimer explained. “There’s a tempo element, then there’s a get-out element, then you got to turn and run. So I think it’s all the little details that he’s been diving into from the time we came back for the offseason program.”
Revel is getting those reps in a secondary that has changed around him.
Durant signed with Dallas in March after four seasons with the Rams. He played all 17 games last season and had 3 interceptions. Caelen Carson is also back, while rookie Caleb Downs has been taking nickel reps inside.
Bland remains at the other outside spot after playing 12 games last season.
The group is now working under defensive coordinator Christian Parker, the Cowboys’ fourth coordinator in four seasons. Dallas allowed a franchise-record 511 points in 2025 and finished last in the NFL at 251.5 passing yards allowed per game.
Revel has spent this camp competing for a bigger part in whatever comes next.
“To be honest, there’s confidence across the board,” Revel said. “I’m not coming out here with confidence, it’s just trusting my technique. Trust my technique, trust the what the coaches are installing in me, and just take it and get better every day.”
Dallas practices again Friday before traveling to Seattle. The Cowboys open the preseason against the Seattle Seahawks at 7 p.m. CT Saturday at Lumen Field.
