Getty

Shavon Revel Jr. #27 of the Dallas Cowboys

It’s not entirely fair to slap hefty expectations on Dallas Cowboys cornerback Shavon Revel after a rookie season that was flawed at every turn. Dallas picked Revel in the third round of the 2025 draft as a good-value flier on a player who had suffered a torn ACL during the previous season at East Carolina, Revel showed enough promise that he probably would have been picked higher, if not for the injury.

But Revel had a setback while he was recovering from the knee surgery in late July, as training camp was heating up. The Cowboys had been hopeful that Revel would be ready for Week 1, and even after the re-injury, it was reported he would need eight weeks to get back. Instead, he did not debut for the Cowboys until November 17, nearly 16 weeks after the setback.

And, as anyone who watched those final weeks of the Cowboys knows, it did not go well for Revel. It was at a point when the defense went from struggling to completely unraveling, which is not a great situation for a rookie.

Shavon Revel Struggled After Injury

Even with that note, Revel still struggled badly. He allowed three touchdowns in just seven games, and gave up a passer rating of 126.1. At Pro Football Focus, he was rated with a grade of 35.2, which was No. 112 out of the 112 corners PFF graded last season.

But the hope is that, now healthy and working with new defensive coordinator Christian Parker–who arrived with a great reputation for developing cornerbacks–Revel’s potential can be unlocked. The problem, though, is that the Cowboys need to get better fast, and if Revel gets a shot at the starting job, he will have free-agent signee Cobie Durant right behind him.

Cowboys Big Battle: Shavon Revel vs. Cobie Durant

In the view of former Cowboys receiver Jesse Holley, Durant vs. Revel will be one of the better camp battles as the Cowboys prepare to start their offseason program. Revel needs to prove himself quickly, Holley said, because the Cowboys won’t wait around to find out if he can play.

Speaking on the “DLLS Cowboys” podcast, Holley said, “Cornerback. You can really go right corner and left corner. For real, for real. It is going to be, OK, Shavon Revel, what are you? I do think Revel is going to get the first chance at bump. But Cobie Durant? He is going to be nipping at those heels. I think with Christian Parker coming in, he is going to be like, ‘I don’t have time, I don’t have time to carry that dead weight. I need to go right now. My name is on this.'”

Cowboys Watching CBs Closely

Ideally, the Cowboys will come out with a depth chart that has DaRon Bland on one side and Revel on the other. Bland, an All-Pro two years ago, struggled last season with injuries and was not himself when he played. But the Cowboys know what he can do when healthy, which is different from Revel’s situation.

Said Holley: “For me, with Revel, if he can play close to what the potential was coming out of ECU because, we just haven’t seen it. We have seen some of DaRon Bland. We know what is in there for DaRon Bland. We know DaRon Bland, if healthy, he can take away the football. The biggest unknown is Revel. When he got on the field last year, it didn’t look good. Whether that’s because he was still hurt, I don’t know.”