Cowboys 2025 rookie report: Reviewing Shemar James
All year long we’ve looked at the rookie class and given previews and reviews on each player for every game of the season. Now let’s look back on the season in its entirety and breakdown each rookie and how they performed. Let’s continue with fifth-round linebacker Shemar James.
Season stats- Total Snaps: 542, Total Tackles: 91 TFL: 2, Missed Tackles: 7, Sacks: 2, FF: 1, Targets: 37, Receptions: 35
James’ rookie season was a bit of a rollercoaster, but by the end of it he looked improved more than his early usage suggested. On the year he played in 14 games and finished with 91 total tackles, two sacks, two tackles for loss and one forced fumble. PFF’s final numbers were harsh but it boils down to his early season struggles. He earned a 39.9 overall grade with a way below-average run defense grade of 38.2, and coverage of 40.9, but he did earn a strong 71.3 pass-rush grade.
The way his role changed over the season is important context. He opened the year as a non-factor, ruled inactive for the first three games before finally dressing in Week 4, but exploded in Week 5 with 15 tackles against the Jets, leading the team that day and setting a franchise rookie record. For a few weeks after that he was a clear bright spot, starting games, flying to the ball and giving a bad defense some energy.
Then came the lull as offenses started picking on Dallas’ linebackers which was when James’ run fits and angle issues showed up. His defensive snaps dipped and there was a middle stretch where he was active but used mostly on special teams or in small packages instead of playing every down. The trend was easy to spot as his Week 7 snaps peaked at 66 total snaps, which then over the subsequent weeks became less and less all the way to Week 14 where he featured in just six defensive plays.
By December, the rest of the linebacker room had struggled badly enough that the coaches went back to him. He started six games overall, including a Christmas Day win over Washington and the finale against New York where he was back to full time snaps. He still had tackling problems and some rough reps in coverage, but his late-season tape looked calmer and more under control than his early starts. The simple outlook going into 2026 is that James has the range and toughness Dallas wants, he’s already carried a starter’s workload, and if he can clean up his tackling and run fits, he has a real chance to lock down a job in a linebacker room that badly needs help.
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