The Dallas Cowboys have made a complete turnaround defensively under coordinator Dan Quinn, and it's led to them leading the NFL in turnovers the last two seasons.

A major reason why has been the rise of the safety position, and former sixth-round pick Donovan Wilson has been at the forefront.

Sports Illustrated deemed Wilson the Cowboys' most underrated player heading into the 2023 season. 

"Last year, we tabbed Malik Hooker as Dallas’s most underrated player. This year, it’s a player in the same position room. I don’t know how Dan Quinn gets his safeties to play like every down is their last, but Wilson and Hooker have such an edge to their game. Watch Wilson against the Bengals last year and you’ll find him toppling Joe Mixon in the backfield or dragging down Hayden Hurst in the open field to save a first down. But Wilson’s true value may be as a pass rusher. On 30 designed blitzes last year, he had five sacks. In a division with mostly semimobile or nonmobile quarterbacks, the ability to both create additional pressure and wrangle more athletic quarterbacks like Jalen Hurts is valuable. This, on top of 101 tackles with a miss percentage below 10% and an opposing quarterback completion percentage of 51%. For a player on a $7 million per year contract, that’s eye-opening value."-SI.com

Wilson is coming off his best season yet.

The 101 tackles he racked up in 2022 were a career-high (led the Cowboys) and the five sacks, the 87.1 pass-rush grade, and the 72.9 run-defense grade he registered were his top marks as well. Also, Wilson racked up an interception, two pass breakups, two forced fumbles, and a fumble recovery which led to a three-year extension worth $21 million back in March.

The former Texas A&M Aggie is one of the Cowboys' most versatile defenders as he took 404 snaps in the box, 357 at free safety, 99 in the slot, 79 on the defensive line, and 20 as a boundary corner last year.

The only bugaboo Wilson has had is injuries that derailed his rookie campaign in 2019 and his 2021 season, which probably explains why he doesn't get talked about as one of the top safeties because consistency plays a big part in that. However, Wilson laid the groundwork for what he can do in 2020 when he recorded 71 tackles, two interceptions, three pass breakups, three forced fumbles, two fumble recoveries, and 3.5 sacks.

Wilson is proof that it doesn't matter where a player gets drafted, it's about how you play when you get the opportunities, and he's taken full advantage.

Cowboys’ investment in once forgotten position has paid off

It’s worked wonders.

Feature image via Jeffrey Becker-USA TODAY Sports