Dallas Cowboys: Jeff Heath Ideal Replacement For Wilcox, not Church

The Dallas Cowboys are hoping they can replace the now-departed Barry Church with someone internally. Here’s why Heath isn’t that guy.

The Dallas Cowboys have seen their share of free agents leave in free agency. The exodus has caused quite the ruckus ‘round these parts. This has prompted executive vice president Stephen Jones to explain at recent this week’s owners meeting, “There is a little bit of method to the madness here.”

One position specifically addressed by Stephen Jones was that of strong safety which was recently vacated by Barry Church. Barry Church’s role typically kept him in the box playing more in run-support than center field coverage.

The biggest problem is Barry Church’s old role as an in-the-box safety may not be playing to Jeff Heath’s strengths.

It’s that role that many, including Jones, are pegging Jeff Heath for in 2017.

But when looking into the demands of Church’s safety spot further, and comparing it to Jeff Heath’s skill set, the match doesn’t appear to be made in heaven.

"“You saw him play,” Jones said of Heath. “He made what normally would have been the game-winning play if we don’t have a tough call, and that comes with our game. He had a huge sack in the game. He theoretically had two picks. He was making plays. I think if you turn on the tape and watch that, there are a lot of people who wonder why isn’t that guy starting, you know, in terms of making plays on the ball and that type of thing.”"

There’s no question that Cowboys fifth-year safety, Jeff Heath, had an exceptional game against Green Bay this past postseason. It’s that game that cause many of us to fall victim to a recency effect rather than judge his full body of work.

Not too long ago Jeff Heath was Cowboys Nation’s favorite player to hate. His broken coverage and poor angles made him a regular guest star on the oppositions’ highlight reels. Not since his big game against Green Bay did anyone outside of The Star really see Heath as a viable starting option.

Job Responsibilities

The Dallas Cowboys generally run a one-gap attack defense. This often requires sole gap responsibility to each player in the box – strong safety included. As someone who was a reliable tackler but pedestrian in coverage, Barry Church fit this role excellently. Jeff Heath – we’re not too sure…

Last season, Jeff Heath played 265 snaps (up from the 210 snaps he played a season before). Of his 265, 220 were in coverage and 38 were against the run. Pro Football Focus gave Heath a 76.4 score on his 2016 performance. While he didn’t play enough to be included in their rankings, his score would have placed him at No. 54 in the NFL.

54^th in the NFL isn’t great but it does illustrate marked improvement for Jeff Heath, who only a season before was given a 57.1 score (which would have ranked him 81^st out of 89 against last season’s players).

Improvement is critical for Jeff Heath. The undrafted free agent came to the Dallas Cowboys younger than most. Now, entering his fifth NFL season, Heath is only 25-years old. In other words, the window is still very much open in his development.

The biggest problem is Barry Church’s old role as an in-the-box safety may not be playing to Jeff Heath’s strengths.

The biggest improvement we’ve seen in Heath is his awareness in coverage. He always knew his assignments (something that endured him to the Dallas Cowboys coaching staff) but recently he’s been more comfortable, more aware, and more confident. His “2” picks in the playoffs also show his ability to make plays on the ball. Something this defense sorely needs.

Against the run, he hasn’t shown the same amount of development. His technique is sound and his power is real, but he has a few to many “whiffs” to feel comfortable with. Especially in Rod Marinelli’s 1-gap defense that doesn’t offer backup to gap assignments.

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Last season, his run defense was his weakest element of his game. His 55.3 PFF score placed him at the very bottom of the NFL. Barry Church, on the other hand, had an 85.1, good enough for 13^th in the NFL. Considering run defense is the primary responsibility of the Cowboys’ in-the-box safety, ability here cannot be ignored.

"“Obviously we feel good about what Jeff can do, Jones said. “At the same time, he obviously knows he’s going to be coming in here and he’s going to have to compete.”"

The Good News

As stated earlier, Jeff Heath is still very young at 25. He’s also progressing positively as a player. Perhaps working closer to the line in Barry Church’s role will reduce the open field tackles that he’s traditionally struggled with. Maybe working in traffic is just what he needs to best utilize his playmaking skills.

Frankly, we just don’t know until we see it. What we do know is that up until now, Heath’s skills say he doesn’t appear to be an ideal replacement for Barry Church. But there’s always room for playmakers and if Heath can build on his most recent playoff game, there’s a spot for him on the defense.

Next: Dallas Cowboys 7-Round Mock Draft (Cowboys Score Big)

Jeff Heath is not a shoe-in for Barry Church’s vacated position and the Dallas Cowboys are clearly going to bring in additional competition before handing the all-important starting role out. But at face value, Jeff Heath appears to be a much better fit for the part-time safety role J.J. Wilcox just left open than the in-the-box role Barry Church left.

Just another fun thing to watch develop this offseason!

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