DAL Dallas Cowboys · DB· #13

Caleb Downs

Age
21
Height
6'0"
Weight
210 lbs
College
Ohio State
Drafted
2026, No. 11 overall (DAL)
Experience
Rookie

42

Overall grade

47th of 50 safeties

Among the weakest

below average; 50 is average

Grades updated Rechecked every few hours on game days

The read

Caleb grades below average among safeties so far, with no number far from the middle.

Written from his numbers, not from film. 5 games are behind the season figures.

How he stacks up

Every graded stat at a glance, against all the safeties in the league.

  • Yards allowed per target7.117th of 50small sample
  • Passes defended per target10%22nd of 50small sample
  • Missed tackles10%59th of 84small sample
  • Passer rating allowed11748th of 50small sample
  • Completion rate allowed90%49th of 50small sample

Left is the worst at his job, right is the best, and the line down the middle is average. The bubble is his percentile: 90 means better than nine in ten qualifying safeties. Faded bars are still small samples.

How he has progressed

Where he has ranked among safeties after each week, and every game behind it.

WorstMiddleBestrecent12345Week 2: 60th percentileWeek 4: 65th percentileWeek 5: 67th percentile67th

Season rank holding near the 67th percentile since Wk 2.

The line is his season-to-date rank among players at his position after each week, from 100 (the best) to 0 (the worst). It rises when he passes other players, not when he has one big game. Early weeks are noisier because fewer plays are behind them. The shaded weeks are the recent stretch.

Yards allowed per target game by game
WeekOpponentThat gametargetsSeason rank after
1vs NYG5.01–
2vs WAS7.2560th pct
4vs HOU10.0365th pct
5vs TB0.0167th pct

Lower is better for this stat. One game is a small sample: a single stat over 3 targets can swing on a handful of plays. Shaded rows are the recent stretch.

The numbers, in context

Each one against every safety with at least 10 targets. Right on the strip is better.

Yards allowed per target

Above typical

7.1lower is better

17th of 50 safeties · top 34%

The yards the receiver he is covering gets each time he is targeted. Fewer is better.

The box score: Interceptions are rare and say little about the hundred plays where he is just covering.

Does it show up in winning? Across 35 games league-wide, a good or bad game on yards allowed per target from a safety has not lined up much with his team winning (64% wins in the best third, 64% in the worst).

Last 2 games: 7.5 (4) vs 6.8 before

Small sample: could move a lot · 10 targets · true level likely 2.2 to 12.0

Passer rating allowed

Among the weakest

117lower is better

48th of 50 safeties · bottom 6%

The passer rating of quarterbacks throwing at him. 158.3 is perfect for the passer, so lower is better for the defender.

The box score: Not in the box score.

Does it show up in winning? Across 35 games league-wide, teams won 73% of the time when their safety was in the best third on passer rating allowed, and 36% when he was in the worst third.

Last 2 games: 101 (4) vs 128 before

Small sample: could move a lot · 10 targets · true level likely 89 to 146

Completion rate allowed

Among the weakest

90%lower is better

49th of 50 safeties · bottom 4%

The share of passes thrown at him that are completed. Fewer is better.

The box score: Not in the box score.

Does it show up in winning? Across 35 games league-wide, teams won 82% of the time when their safety was in the best third on completion rate allowed, and 27% when he was in the worst third.

Last 2 games: 100% (4) vs 83% before

Small sample: could move a lot · 10 targets · true level likely 71% to 109%

Passes defended per target

Typical

10%

22nd of 50 safeties · top 44%

How often a pass thrown at him ends with him breaking it up. A cornerback does this far more often than he intercepts.

The box score: Passes defended are counted, but never against how often he was tested.

Does it show up in winning? Across 35 games league-wide, teams won 82% of the time when their safety was in the best third on passes defended per target, and 46% when he was in the worst third.

Last 2 games: 0% (4) vs 17% before

Small sample: could move a lot · 10 targets · true level likely -9% to 29%

Missed tackles

Below typical

10%lower is better

59th of 84 safeties · bottom 31%

The share of his tackle chances he missed. Fewer is better.

The box score: Tackle totals reward the player who gets the most chances, not the one who finishes them.

Does it show up in winning? Across 144 games league-wide, a good or bad game on missed tackles from a safety has not lined up much with his team winning (50% wins in the best third, 44% in the worst).

Last 2 games: 15% (13) vs 6% before−9.5grade points downWithin the noise

Small sample: could move a lot · 31 tackle chances · true level likely 0% to 19%

How he plays

Tendencies: how his game differs from the safeties around him. These are not better or worse, only different, and often say as much about the offense or defense he plays in as about him.

Depth of passes at him

Style

7.2 yds

Is thrown at underneath, more than most safeties. A typical one is 9.7 yds.

How far downfield the passes thrown at him travel on average. It shows whether he is tested deep or underneath, which is a role, not a grade.

Small sample: could move a lot · 10 targets

Playing time

He has played in 5 of his team's 5 games with snap counts, on the field for about 98% of the team's defensive plays when he plays.

Each column is a game: the share of his team's defensive snaps he played. 80% means about 8 of every 10 plays. “Out” means he did not play; a question mark means snap counts are not posted yet. Shaded games are the recent stretch.

Game by game

Every game this season: how it ended for his team, how much he played, his box score, and the advanced numbers from that one game. One game is a small sample, so read the right-hand columns as a snapshot, not his level.

Caleb Downs game by game
GameResultSnapsTklSoloAstTFLSacksPressPBUIntMissedYds/targetRating againstComp % againstPBU/target
Wk 1 vs NYGL 20–2888%6420110015.088100%0%
Wk 2 vs WASW 37–20100%7430001007.213680%20%
Wk 3 vs BALL 31–34100%330000000––––
Wk 4 vs HOUW 34–30100%54100000010.0108100%0%
Wk 5 vs TBL 16–24100%3120000020.079100%0%

The box score

The traditional totals, with where each ranks among safeties. A total rewards volume, which is why the advanced numbers above matter.

Caleb Downs box score totals
StatTotalRank
Tackles2423rd of 50
Solo tackles1618th of 50
Assisted tackles832nd of 50
Tackles for loss026th of 50
Sacks12nd of 50
Pressures111th of 50
Passes defended132nd of 50
Interceptions020th of 50
Missed tackles38th of 50

Players with a similar profile

The safeties whose grades are closest to his across the same stats. Similar means similar numbers, not the same style of play.

Ranks are among players at the same job who have enough plays to be graded. Grades and rankings come from play-by-play, charting and snap-count data, so they cannot see blocking, route running or assignments. See how the grades work.

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Data: nflverse play-by-play, CC BY 4.0. Also FTN charting, Pro Football Reference advanced stats, snap counts and injury reports, all through nflverse. Calculations and charts by Raiders Rundown.