The Dallas Cowboys beat the Indianapolis Colts in Week 9, and the snap counts from Sunday’s win say plenty about some key players. The headliner is the total and complete benching of a rookie who started the season as a de facto starter on the Cowboys defense.

There’s also a running back trending up, a wide receiver No. 3 race that ended in a near tie, and a special teams ace whose value is impossible to miss. Here are my six biggest Week 9 snap count takeaways.

LB Jaishawn Barham’s demotion hits new low

Cowboys rookie linebacker Jaishawn Barham played three snaps against Indianapolis. That’s a 5 percent snap count, the fewest of any Dallas player who took the field on defense.

This is what we call a trend. Barham averaged more than 47 snaps over the Cowboys’ first six games. Then he played 21 snaps against the Philadelphia Eagles, 16 against the Arizona Cardinals, and now a season-low three in Indy.

That happened even with Dallas down linebacker DeMarvion Overshown and outside linebacker Malachi Lawrence. Lawrence matters here because the Cowboys have talked about using Barham on the edge at times as a versatile chess piece. They didn’t on Sunday.

Could it have been a matchup decision? Maybe. The Colts only had one goal-to-go situation all game, and the Cowboys have liked how Barham attacks downhill in those spots. But the bigger picture is that Dallas doesn’t think the third-round rookie is ready for a big role. They like what he brings physically and athletically. They want him to see the field better and make better decisions.

Barham was involved in some of Arizona’s biggest plays a week earlier, including Tyler Allgeier’s big game. Both Barham and Shemar James struggled to adjust to the Cardinals’ motion and left gaps open.

The most recent commentary from Christian Parker on Barham was about him having some “50 dates moments.” That is to say, I don’t think the Cowboys dislike Barham or his upside. They threw him to the wolves in Week 1 and beyond, and now they’re playing the patient game while leaning on James for stability at middle linebacker.

Still, this is essentially his second demotion. The first came when James was awarded the green dot. Now Barham isn’t even a rotational player.

RB Tyler Goodson’s role keeps growing

For the second consecutive game, running back Tyler Goodson played at least 25 percent of the offensive snaps. This time, he had the carries to go with them, averaging more than 6 yards per attempt.

He hit that mark despite getting banged up for a portion of the game, so the number could have been higher. It was also his third straight game playing at least 20 percent of the snaps.

If you ask me, Dallas should keep feeding him. Running it as a committee with Javonte Williams would keep Williams fresher and give the offense more of the Goodson juice that has been tough to ignore lately. Don’t be surprised if his snap share starts inching closer to 50 percent as the season goes on.

Wide receiver No. 3 ended in a near tie

Without George Pickens, head coach Brian Schottenheimer said the biggest game plan adjustment was moving CeeDee Lamb around so he could line up where Pickens usually does. Lamb went on to post a 195-yard performance.

As for wide receiver No. 3, it was a 50-50 split. Jonathan Mingo played 31 snaps and undrafted rookie Camden Brown played 29. Mingo drew three targets, while Brown had none. Offensively, Dallas seems to view them as equals.

Lamb (94%) and Ryan Flournoy (97%) were clearly the top two. Hopefully this one doesn’t matter much once Pickens is back.

OLB James Houston steps up on the edge

With Lawrence out, the Cowboys turned to James Houston as their No. 3 outside linebacker. Rashan Gary led the room at 70 percent, Donovan Ezeiruaku played 50 percent while dealing with a knock, and Houston logged 48 percent. Von Miller was next at 30 percent.

The pressure numbers won’t show it, but Houston flashed and won some reps. Miller was limited production-wise. With Lawrence on injured reserve, expect Houston at No. 3 with a side of Miller at No. 4.

Marist Liufau is a core special teamer

Marist Liufau was eased in on defense with only seven snaps. On special teams, however, he posted a team-high 82% snap count, tied with Alijah Clark and Juanyeh Thomas.

That explains why the Cowboys seemed so confident Liufau would make the roster before his preseason injury. It also matters for the safety room. Jalen Thompson is the top candidate to return from injured reserve, and Markquese Bell looks like the odd man out if Dallas needs to cut a safety. Thomas and Clark have the edge.

Broderick Jones and the jumbo package

Broderick Jones played seven snaps: five run plays and two pass plays. That’s down from nine against Philadelphia and 15 against Arizona but still a part of the gameplan. 

The Cowboys aren’t ditching the jumbo packages anytime soon. The key is keeping things balanced so Jones entering the game doesn’t telegraph the run. They did a better job of that in Week 8, with six pass plays out of his 15 snaps.

We’ll see if Dallas gets more creative with him from here.