Who Should the Cowboys Head Coach Choose to Wear the Green Dot in 2026?
The Dallas Cowboys coaches have multiple ways to communicate with players, such as during timeouts or huddles. However, there is one method that is very selective: the “green dot.” These are a couple of helmets that can directly communicate with the staff, receiving calls before the play clock reaches 15 seconds or when the snap occurs. The dot is worn by the quarterback on offense, and on defense, it’s usually the linebackers. Since there is only one dot available to be used for offense and one for defense, the question then becomes, “who should wear it?”’ There are some choices that have been thrown around, such as Jalen Thompson, though Brian Schottenheimer, head coach of the Cowboys, said at rookie minicamp, “...It might be Thompson, it might be Dee Winters, it might be whoever. At the end of the day, I have my favorite, but I’m not going to share it with you.”
Schottenheimer, saying he has a favorite, as well as throwing out multiple names, helps obfuscate their choices. Defensive coordinator Christian Parker added some further details, saying that the Cowboys may have a favorite, but they plan to train multiple defenders to wear the green dot, giving them time to figure out who should shoulder that responsibility. It is honestly a very subtle and brilliant move that would be praised by Vince Lombardi. Given Dak Prescott’s experience and being an ‘alpha dog’ according to Chief Operating Officer Stephen Jones, it’s evident that one of the green dots should go to Prescott; he would be an excellent signal-caller.
The defense, on the other hand, has some players who could be chosen as the other wearer of a green dot. While Dallas’ versatile safety was already outed as one of the candidates, that doesn’t mean he’s set in stone. Parker did say they had time to figure out who was the best player for the green dot. However, the veteran tackler would absolutely be the best pick to bear that responsibility. He has experience as a playmaker with versatility; both traits are perfectly suited for working with the coaches to lead the others.
