Former Jets star Quinnen Williams dominates in Cowboys debut

Quinnen Williams wasted no time showing why the Dallas Cowboys gave up two premium draft picks to pry him away from the New York Jets.

Making his Cowboys debut on Monday Night Football against the Las Vegas Raiders, Williams racked up 1.5 sacks, already more than the lone sack he recorded in eight games with the Jets this season. The sacks were not Williams’ only action in the backfield, as he also tied his career high with five quarterback hits.

Williams led the way in a dominant showing by the Cowboys, who cruised to a 33-16 victory in Las Vegas.

While it’s too early to say that Williams has single-handedly saved Dallas’ defense, as the Raiders’ offensive line is pitiful, his debut showed how much of a difference-maker he could be for a Cowboys team that has long lacked elite pass-rush talent on the interior. Williams’ five quarterback hits against Las Vegas are already tied for the most in a game by a Cowboys defensive tackle since the stat was first tracked in 2006.

The former third overall pick can also help salvage a sputtering Dallas run defense. The Cowboys, who rank 23rd in yards allowed per rush attempt (4.7), held the Raiders to just 27 rushing yards on 2.3 yards per attempt. Williams had four tackles in the prime-time triumph.

Out in New Jersey, the Jets are surely unsurprised by Williams’ effort. These are the types of dominant games he enjoyed frequently across his seven seasons in green. They just didn’t receive as much national attention since he was on a laughingstock Jets team. Now that he graces the national spotlight in Dallas, the entire football world is learning how much of a game-wrecker the Alabama product has always been.

Jerry Jones must be feeling great about the Williams trade so far, but it will take many years for us to fully understand the ramifications of the deal. The Jets received a 2026 second-round pick and a 2027 first-round pick in exchange for Williams’ services. Until New York uses those selections, and we can see those players’ careers pan out, the impact of the deal will remain “TBD.”

It is important to note that the 2027 first-rounder from Dallas will be the better selection between Dallas’ first-round pick and Green Bay’s first-round pick, which the Cowboys acquired in the Micah Parsons deal. This is a key condition that could dampen the Cowboys’ return for trading their best player to a conference rival.

In the meantime, the Jets’ defensive tackle unit sorely misses Williams. In two games since trading “Big Q,” no Jets defensive tackle has recorded a sack. Third-year defensive tackle Mazi Smith, a former first-round pick of the Cowboys whom the Jets acquired in the Williams deal, has been a non-factor.

The lone bright spot on the Jets’ interior is 24-year-old Jowon Briggs, who has exploded since the Williams trade. Despite not recording a sack, Briggs has racked up 11 total pressures in two games since Williams’ exit, an incredible number for a player who was added primarily to stop the run.

Still, there’s no replacing Williams, a three-time Pro Bowler and former first-team All-Pro. The Jets will miss him, both over the next seven games and in the coming years.

But if the Jets can use the assets yielded by Williams to find a franchise quarterback and build an elite offense around him, they will benefit from the trade in the long run.

As per usual when a trade like this is made, it’s up to Jets general manager Darren Mougey to maximize the draft picks. Monday night reminded New York that they traded a known superstar for a collection of lottery tickets. If those tickets come up empty, the Jets will rue trading one of their most likable and productive defensive stars in franchise history.

However, the Jets were 1-7 with Williams this season, and they had failed to win more than seven games in any of his seven years with the team. They weren’t going anywhere fast with him and Sauce Gardner on the roster, so it made sense to take a pair of lucrative packages that could raise the franchise’s long-term ceiling, particularly offensively, which is where the Jets have been held back for the past 15 years.

We’ll have to revisit this deal in five years. For now, all Jets fans can do is shed a proud, tearful smile as they watch their lovable homegrown star perform his patented sack dance with a star on the side of his helmet.