After showing up down the stretch of 2024, Marist Liufau has to prove himself to a brand new coaching staff who brought in their own fixers.
The Cowboys had a few missions when entering the 2024 draft, in what threatened and proved to be the final one for head coach Mike McCarthy. Dallas had to find multiple players for the offensive line and they'd have loved to find a successor for defensive end DeMarcus Lawrence. The front office did both, the latter by bringing in Marshawn Kneeland and the former by virtue of trading back in the first round before selecting Tyler Guyton to then own two third-round selection.
The Cowboys used one on now center Cooper Beebe, and the other on Notre Dame linebacker Marist Liufau. The team, having signed free agent Eric Kendricks to run new DC Mike Zimmer's defense, needed a third linebacker to add to the mix. Signs were pointing positive that DeMarvion Overshown would be able to return from his summer 2023 ACL injury, but that was far from assured in April 2024. The team didn't know what they would be getting back, and linebacker was a need.
Low and behold, Liufau was everything they could've imagined and more, eventually earning the green dot from Zimmer to take the calls from the sidelines and disseminate the info to the rest of the defense. That's a lot to ask of a rookie, but Liufau did the job, and well. If one would think a player of that caliber mental makeup would take off in their second season in the league, they may have been prescient.
Liufau has been a wonder for the Cowboys through 2025 camp, so much so that the new free agent additions brought in to lead new new DC Matt Eberflus' scheme, will have to make way for him to take the lead sooner rather than later.
Rundown
Position: Lunebacker
Age: 24
Height: 6-foot-2
Weight: 239 pounds
Hometown: Kalihi, HI
High School: Punahou (Honolulu)
College: Notre Dame (College Highlights)
Draft: 2024 Third-round pick (No. 87 overall)
Contract: Four-year contract (2024), $5.7 million
2025 Base Salary: $1 million | Cap Hit: $1.3 million
Career Earnings: $1.75 million (per Over The Cap)
Profile
Liufau will be fighting for snaps against offseason additions Kenneth Murray and Jack Sanborn. Sanborn was a rotational LB for Eberflus in Chicago and was one of those signings new coordinators love to bring with them from a previous stop. Murray was acquired via trade, as a sideline-to-sideline player with high draft pedigree. Liufau looks like he could be the best of both worlds, once he knows enough of the new defense.
Once Overshown returns, it will be interesting to see how Eberflus configures the top four backers. His return and Liufau's ascension could coincide with each other to change how the second level of the Dallas defense looks in the second half of the season.
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This article originally appeared on Cowboys Wire: Dallas Cowboys player profile: No. 35 LB Marist Liufau
Category: Football
