Dallas Cowboys defensive end Taco Charlton didn’t quite hit the ground running at the start of his rookie year. However, he felt he began to figure some things out at the tail-end of the season and believes he can carry that over this season to play a much bigger role on the Cowboys defense.

“The beginning wasn’t as good as I wanted it to go, but at the end I started to hit my stride,” Charlton said per Jon Machota of the Dallas Morning News. “It’s starting to all come together. The season had to end, which was bad for me because I really started to get in my groove. Now I can start fresh, and really think I can have an impact and help this team win games.”

Charlton, the team’s first-round pick last year, played just under 40 percent of the team’s defensive snaps and finished with three sacks and 19 tackles as he played behind veterans DeMarcus Lawrence and Tyrone Crawford.

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The Cowboys have a decent amount of depth at the defensive end position this year. Apart from Charlton, Lawrence, and Crawford, they also have the likes of Charles Tapper, Kony Ealy, Datone Jones, Jihad Ward, and rookie Dorance Armstrong Jr. all vying for playing time.

But as a first-round pick, Charlton will get every opportunity to earn a lot more playing time. And if he can continue to make strides like he did at the end of last season, it may not be long before he makes that position his own.