Dallas Cowboys Stock Watch: Week 5 risers & fallers
The Dallas Cowboys secured a crucial win on Sunday Night Football against the stingy Pittsburgh Steelers defense.
Despite further injury woes on Sunday, the team managed to overcome their mistakes and a short-handed roster to improve their record to 3-2.
Here are the Cowboys' stock risers and fallers from their gritty Week Five win.
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Stock Fallers
Tyler Guyton, OT
Tyler Guyton certainly wasn’t terrible while on the field, but the Dallas Cowboys' offense appeared to perform much better when he was sidelined due to injury.
With Tyler Smith at left tackle and T.J. Bass at left guard, Dallas was able to run the ball more efficiently and provide better protection for their quarterback.
Guyton has always been viewed as a project, so it will be interesting to see if the Cowboys choose to bench him if his performance continues to falter.
Terrence Steele, OT
Terence Steele managed to overcome a rough first half, which included giving up a sack and committing multiple penalties.
He certainly hasn’t returned to the player he was before tearing his ACL. Given the contract Dallas awarded him, all of Cowboys Nation is hoping to see improvement from Steele. It’s worth noting that there’s an exit clause in his contract for 2026 if he is unable to regain his previous form.
Luke Schoonmaker, TE
This stock drop centers on UDFA Brevyn Spann-Ford rather than Luke Schoonmaker's performance. Spann-Ford recorded two catches for 20 yards on three targets, while Schoonmaker managed just one catch for eight yards on two targets.
It’s impressive to see an undrafted rookie making plays on primetime television, but it raises concerns when he outperforms Schoonmaker, who was selected in the second round by the Cowboys in 2023.
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Risers
Linval Joseph, DT
Linval Joseph had his best game yet as a Dallas Cowboy, stepping up when the team needed him most.
The 35-year-old defensive tackle recorded two solo tackles and a sack that resulted in a forced fumble.
Despite playing only 22 snaps, Joseph finished with the highest PFF grade among Cowboys players, achieving an impressive score of 89.8.
Rico Dowdle, RB
Rico Dowdle delivered the best game of his NFL career, as well as the best performance by a Cowboys running back in over a year.
Aside from his goal-line fumble that nearly cost the Cowboys the game, Dowdle had an almost flawless outing.
He recorded 20 carries for 87 yards, along with two catches for 27 yards and a touchdown. It’s clear that he has established himself as the number one running back in the Cowboys' offense.
Jourdan Lewis, CB
Jourdan Lewis finished with the second-highest PFF grade on the Cowboys, earning an impressive score of 85.5. He has arguably been the Cowboys' best player during their two-game win streak.
In the game, Lewis recorded only one tackle, but he also had a crucial pass deflection and sealed the victory with a fumble recovery.
Typically, when a cornerback has just one tackle, it indicates strong performance, and Lewis’s effort is even more notable considering he was matched up against the Steelers' top target, George Pickens, who managed only three catches for 26 yards on seven targets.
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