Cowboys countdown to kickoff: #91 Tyrus Wheat

We’re continuing our countdown to the opening game of the Dallas Cowboys 2023 regular season. Each day we’ll present a new player whose jersey number represents the countdown to opening day. Today is number 91.

DE Tyrus Wheat
Born: 8th December 1999 (23) - Amite, Louisiana
College: Mississippi State Bulldogs
Draft: 2023, UDFA, Dallas Cowboys

2022 Stats: (College)
Snaps: 736
Tackles: 53
Pressures: 38
Sacks: 6
TFL: 11
Defensive Stops: 23
Penalties: 1

College:
Tyrus Wheat played three years at Mississippi State at outside linebacker after transferring from Copiah-Lincoln Community College in 2020. His first year playing for the Bulldogs he had five sacks, 30 tackles, six tackles for loss, one interception, two pass breakups and two forced fumbles. He led the Bulldogs in 2021 with 10.5 tackles for loss while also recording eight sacks. He also intercepted a pass and had two pass breakups. In 2022 Wheat recorded 53 tackles, 10.5 for loss with a team-high six sacks, one interception and two pass breakups. His efforts earned him a second-team All-SEC honor.

Cowboys Oulook:
The biggest plus going for Wheat is his strength and versatility which seemed to be a common theme with this year’s Cowboys draft class. His range and aggression will serve him well in his rookie year to make a push for a practice squad position. Right now his biggest hurdle is his instincts and becoming more fluid at the position, which at linebacker is a huge must. No doubt Dan Quinn could find a definitive role for Wheat to maximise his abilities as a clog-and-cover strong side linebacker, he just needs to sharpen his game on the small stuff and in doing so he could end up becoming a great value player. It’s all dependent on how quickly he can pick things up.

Projected 2023 stats:
Snaps: 30
Tackles: 2
Pressures: 3
Sacks: 0
TFL: 1
Defensive stops: 3

The big question:
Does Tyrus Wheat make the final 53-man roster or take a practice squad position? Give us your answer in the comments.

Photo by Justin Ford/Getty Images