As the 2025 regular season approaches, it’s fair to say the Dallas Cowboys have only three defensive starters firmly locked in: edge rusher Micah Parsons, cornerback DaRon Bland, and defensive tackle Osa Odighizuwa.
This opens the door for others to step up and make a strong case for a starting role — and rookie inside linebacker Shemar James could be one of those surprise standouts.
Right now, the Cowboys’ inside linebacker group is among the weakest in the league, making it a prime spot for competition. If James performs well in training camp, he could emerge as a sleeper pick for a starting job.
Standing 6-foot-1 and weighing 222 pounds, James was taken in the fifth round (152nd overall) of the 2025 NFL Draft out of Florida.
What makes him especially notable is his age — at just 20 years old, James is one of the youngest players in the NFL and could make history if he earns a place on the 53-man roster this fall
James Only Played 3 Seasons of College Football
James only played 3 seasons of college football. He was named to the All-SEC Freshman Team in 2022 and started the first 8 games in 2023 before he needed surgery to repair a dislocated kneecap. In his one full season as a full time starter in 2024, he had 64 tackles, 4 TFL, 2.0 sacks, 3 pass deflections, one forced fumble and one interception.
In an interesting study of the razor thin margins draft picks are judged on, James ran the 40-yard dash in 4.69 seconds at the NFL scouting combine. For his height and weight, that’s a tad behind what would be considered elite — were James to have run it in 4.59 seconds it would have likely propelled him into the third or fourth round.
NFL draft analyst Lance Zierlein projected James to be selected in the sixth or seventh round in his pre-draft assessment.
“James flashes speed but has never really developed the recognition and response talent to chalk up playmaking production,” Zierlein wrote “He has some twitch in his movement and does a nice job of working past blocks, but he might not be able to anticipate with enough consistency to play ahead of NFL blocking schemes. James is athletic in space and can play special teams, but he might never be more than an average backup.”
Cowboys Endured Devastating Setback at LB in 2024
One of the few bright spots for the Cowboys last season was the performance of second-year inside linebacker DeMarvion Overshown, who emerged as a potential breakout player after missing his entire rookie year in 2023 due to a torn ACL.
Unfortunately, in Week 14 against the Cincinnati Bengals, Overshown sustained a devastating knee injury, tearing his ACL, PCL, and MCL in his right knee late in the game. At the time of the injury, he ranked second on the team in total tackles.
While there’s still a slim possibility that Overshown won’t return to action in 2025, he recently shared that his target is to come back by Week 13 for the Cowboys’ Thanksgiving Day matchup with the Kansas City Chiefs.
