Dallas Cowboys: The missing links on offense and defense

The Dallas Cowboys head into preseason game two with some missing links, some might have been found, others, not so much.

In preseason game one there were some things to love about the depth of the Dallas Cowboys. It looks like Rico Gathers could be a huge weapon on offense, provided he can continue to improve his blocking.

Rod Smith and Alfred Morris look like they can help with the running back depth if Ezekiel Elliot is suspended for any amount of time. Kellen Moore even didn’t look too bad and appears like he could be a decent NFL backup. And Brice Butler, Andy Jones, and Brian Brown could all be depth at wide receiver.

Cause for concern?

There are some concerns for the Dallas Cowboys: The defense looked poor early in the game. Sure, the linebacking corps didn’t play starters, the secondary was a patchwork of rookies and young players, and the defensive line was a mashup. But the lack of a pass rush and the missed plays in the secondary should give some pause heading into preseason game two.

There is a long way to go so let’s be fair and very clear about this. This was preseason game one of five and training camp has really just started. No one should base how the Dallas Cowboys will do in the regular season off of preseason. However, there are a few things to look for in game two. I am pretty sure the coaches will be paying attention to the same things.

Defensive line

The first thing the Dallas Cowboys need to look for is a pass rush. Again, even though there were some missing players and it was a mashup of players along the defensive line, they were playing against backups themselves.

Yet, they still couldn’t muster much of a pass rush. Taco Charlton was missing for most of the game and without a few highlights here and there from Charles Tapper, the lack of pressure on the quarterback should give pause to fans. Rod Marinelli should be able to get some pressure when the starters are in the game, but I would look for some different rotations in game two.

Secondary

This brings up the secondary. As we all know the secondary and the pass rush work hand in hand. There were a lot of missed reads, tackles, and poor coverage in the secondary in the first game. Some of this can be blamed on the lack of pressure, however, they didn’t do the pass rush any favors by allowing fairly easy throws to be completed. With all of the rookies in the secondary I would look for a ton more playing time for them in game two. I also wouldn’t be surprised a little more playing time for the defensive starters as a whole.