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Malachi Lawrence, the Dallas Cowboys' newest edge rusher, is signed, practicing, and ready to go for his rookie season. After a brief delay in negotiations the 2026 first round defensive end is ready to hit the ground running for Dallas in 2026. But what exactly does that mean?
Rookie pass rushers rarely break into the NFL at full force. Unlike cornerbacks, running backs and linebackers, edge rushers typically take time to become impactful. The Cowboys’ much heralded rookie rusher from 2025, Donovan Ezeiruaku, only posted two sacks in his first year. This despite playing all 17 games, starting nine, and coming off a 16.5 sack season at Boston College.
Lawrence, 6-foot-5 and 270 pounds, certainly looks the part of dominant edge rusher. His sack total at UCF never exceeded 7.5 in a single season but he has the physical traits to be a double-digit sack master in the NFL. As a first-round draft pick, that’s essentially what the Cowboys are expecting, the only question is when are they expecting it.
James Pearce Jr. achieved double-digit sacks in his rookie season last year. In 2021, the Cowboys Micah Parsons surpassed that threshold his rookie year as well. In 2019 it was Maxx Crosby and Josh Hines-Allen, 2018 Bradley Chubb, and 2016 Joey Bosa. That’s not many rookies over the last decade.
2025 was considered an extremely strong class for edge rusher, yet no one but Pearce even touched six sacks. It wasn’t disappointing either because rookies typically struggle in the sack department. Jared Verse, arguably the NFL’s best young pass rusher, has accumulated the third-most pressures in the NFL since being drafted, but he only has a combined 12 career sacks.
Creating pressures is hard enough, but turning the pressures into sacks requires finishing power and that takes a little time.
Lawrence shouldn’t be expected to live up to his first-round status in Year 1. If sacks are what we’re counting he may not even reach that mark in Year 2. But if the scouting department did their job and Lawrence puts in the work, there’s no reason to think he won’t be impactful early in his career and there’s no reason to think double digit sacks aren’t in his future.
History tells folks to be patient.
You can follow Reid on X @ReidDHanson and be sure to follow Cowboys Wire on Facebook to join in on the conversation with fellow fans!
This article originally appeared on Cowboys Wire: What Cowboys can expect in Year 1 from 1st-round edge Malachi Lawrence
Continue reading...
Rookie pass rushers rarely break into the NFL at full force. Unlike cornerbacks, running backs and linebackers, edge rushers typically take time to become impactful. The Cowboys’ much heralded rookie rusher from 2025, Donovan Ezeiruaku, only posted two sacks in his first year. This despite playing all 17 games, starting nine, and coming off a 16.5 sack season at Boston College.
Lawrence, 6-foot-5 and 270 pounds, certainly looks the part of dominant edge rusher. His sack total at UCF never exceeded 7.5 in a single season but he has the physical traits to be a double-digit sack master in the NFL. As a first-round draft pick, that’s essentially what the Cowboys are expecting, the only question is when are they expecting it.
James Pearce Jr. achieved double-digit sacks in his rookie season last year. In 2021, the Cowboys Micah Parsons surpassed that threshold his rookie year as well. In 2019 it was Maxx Crosby and Josh Hines-Allen, 2018 Bradley Chubb, and 2016 Joey Bosa. That’s not many rookies over the last decade.
2025 was considered an extremely strong class for edge rusher, yet no one but Pearce even touched six sacks. It wasn’t disappointing either because rookies typically struggle in the sack department. Jared Verse, arguably the NFL’s best young pass rusher, has accumulated the third-most pressures in the NFL since being drafted, but he only has a combined 12 career sacks.
Creating pressures is hard enough, but turning the pressures into sacks requires finishing power and that takes a little time.
Lawrence shouldn’t be expected to live up to his first-round status in Year 1. If sacks are what we’re counting he may not even reach that mark in Year 2. But if the scouting department did their job and Lawrence puts in the work, there’s no reason to think he won’t be impactful early in his career and there’s no reason to think double digit sacks aren’t in his future.
History tells folks to be patient.
You can follow Reid on X @ReidDHanson and be sure to follow Cowboys Wire on Facebook to join in on the conversation with fellow fans!
This article originally appeared on Cowboys Wire: What Cowboys can expect in Year 1 from 1st-round edge Malachi Lawrence
Continue reading...
