Dante Fowler Jr. Returns to Cowboys Ready to Lead After Career Year originally appeared on Athlon Sports.
After spending last season with the NFC East rival Washington Commanders, defensive end Dante Fowler Jr. returned to the Dallas Cowboys on a one-year, $8 million deal this offseason.
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“It feels amazing to be back, I’m definitely happy to be here in Dallas,” Fowler said as minicamp gets underway at The Star. “I’m ready to get going with the guys for sure.”
In 2024 with the Commanders, Fowler had a career year with 10.5 sacks, 39 tackles, 14 tackles for loss, and an interception returned for a touchdown.
Fowler credits his time with the Cowboys in 2022 and 2023 as a reason for his 2024 breakout season.
“It was pretty big, just to be able to go out there and show the people that I’m still here and be able to produce at a high level,” Fowler said. “I felt really confident going into this season especially with these past two years getting to work from coach [Aden Durde], Micah [Parsons] and [DeMarcus Lawrence] with the D-line group that we had.
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“I definitely took a lot from that and learned a lot from these past couple of years and took that to Washington and just put it all out there and let my work show for itself.”
Fowler could potentially thrive in a Dallas defense now coordinated by Matt Eberflus. Fowler is preparing to be a valuable veteran presence for young defensive ends like Marshawn Kneeland, Sam Williams, and Donovan Ezeiruaku.
“Being that vet that can lead on the young guys, lead by a good way, try to develop them in a good way, lead by being an example,” Fowler said. “Just going there and setting the tone for my defense and getting wins and sacking the quarterback.”
With a maybe-loaded defensive line room that can potentially come at opposing offenses in waves, Fowler should be on tap for another productive NFL campaign.
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This story was originally reported by Athlon Sports on Jun 10, 2025, where it first appeared.