Cowboys defender wins prestigious national award; Dallas roster now boasts past 3 winners

· Yahoo Sports

The Cowboys' James Houston has a new position officially listed next to his name for 2026, with the team moving to a 3-4 scheme and his previous role as a defensive end now being classified as that of an outside linebacker.

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Now Houston also has a new résumé line item to go along with his updated job description.

The 27-year-old veteran, entering his second season in Dallas, was named the Black College Football Pro Player of the Year over the weekend. Somewhat incredibly, he's now one of three men on the Cowboys' current defensive roster to have won the prestigious award.

Houston started his college career at Florida and played three years there after redshirting as a true freshman. While he didn't turn in particularly noteworthy stats as a Gator, it was his transfer to Jackson State for his final year at the college level that truly put him on the NFL radar.

In the Tigers' 2021 season under head coach Deion Sanders, Houston logged 70 tackles, including 24.5 tackles for loss and 16.5 sacks, and added seven forced fumbles and an interception en route to first-team All-SWAC honors in Jackson State's remarkable 11-2 season.

That Jackson State coaching staff, understandably, got a special shout-out during Houston's acceptance speech at the Black College Football Hall of Fame’s festivities over the weekend in Atlanta.

"Thank you all for supporting me. Thank you all for nurturing me," Houston said. "Jackson State, you guys have literally been a second home to me, and I'm just so happy that I got to seize the opportunity of being there and take everything away from it that I got."

Indeed, it was Houston's performance in that lone season with the Tigers that got him selected by the Lions in the sixth round of 2022's NFL draft. Despite a blistering start to his pro career- notching sacks in each of his first four games- Detroit released Houston during the 2024 campaign.

After three games with the Browns that same season, the Cowboys signed Houston during 2025's training camp. He quickly established himself as a key rotational piece along the Dallas defensive line. Appearing in all 17 games last season, the Fort Lauderdale native recorded 35 tackles, 5.5 sacks (to place second on the team), 13 QB hits, six tackles for loss, a forced fumble, and a fumble recovery.

That production becomes even more impressive when you consider that Houston played on just 27% of the Cowboys' total defensive snaps. (He was top-10, however, for the Dallas special teams unit.)

The last three winners of the Black College Football Pro Player of the Year Award are current members of the Cowboys defense. Houston joins 2024 winner Markquese Bell (Florida A&M) as well as offseason acquisition and 2025 winner Cobie Durant (South Carolina State).

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This article originally appeared on Cowboys Wire: OLB James Houston wins national award; Cowboys boast past 3 winners

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