OXNARD, Calif. — Kenny Clark says the work is already starting to show. In his first training camp on the west coast, the veteran defensive tackle said he is building chemistry with Quinnen Williams while the Dallas Cowboys try to turn an already crowded interior line into something that can hold up deep into the regular season.
Clark said the defense is getting better with every practice and that the energy and confidence are showing up every day. That matters now because he and Williams spent only six games on the field together during the 2025 regular season, leaving the offseason and training camp as their first real chance to sort out how the pair fits together. Clark said he is using the time to learn Williams' game and make the combination work before the season starts to count.
For Clark, the appeal is obvious. He called Williams a dog and said he does things the right way, adding that he has not played with a defensive tackle like him in his entire career. Clark said Williams has the leverage, bend, ankle flexibility and hand use that can force offenses to change their plans. He said the Cowboys need Williams to keep drawing double teams so the linebackers can work over the top, and he hopes opponents slide protection his way so Clark can get more one-on-one chances.
That is also where the fit gets tricky. Clark said he does not want to get in the way of Williams' rushes, even as he makes clear that Williams is the kind of interior player who can tilt a game by demanding extra attention. The Cowboys are counting on depth at defensive tackle later in the season, and Clark pointed to Otito Ogbonnia, Jonathan Bullard, Jay Toia and LT Overton as part of that room. He said Bullard can play all three positions and called Ogbonnia a big body in the interior rotation.
Clark can also lean on a simple advantage as he settles in: he said he can go back to his home nearby and get treatment and workouts from his personal team. That should help as he enters his 11th season and tries to make the pairing with Williams sharper before the games start mattering more. Brian Schottenheimer said most of Dallas' starters will likely not play in the preseason, which leaves training camp as the clearest window for Clark and Williams to keep building the kind of timing the Cowboys will need later.
