With Matt Eberflus moving on and Christian Parker leading the defense with cash-cow rookie Caleb Downs, there's a lot to look forward to with the new Dallas Cowboys defense. One ranking from Warren Sharp, who specializes in statistics, ranked the Cowboys at No. 17 in best front sevens in the NFL.
It's easy to see why this defense has gotten so much better. They drafted Downs, an All-American from Ohio State who can do it all. But Jerry Jones did a lot of work in the offseason to correct Dallas' worst defense of all time.
The Cowboys built their new identity off of stopping the run, with their big guys up front, Kenny Clark and Quinnen Williams. Now, they have Dee Winters, the former 49ers linebacker who's at the peak of his career, and DeMarvion Overshown, who's trying to make a bounce-back campaign. The rotation looks like it's going to be killer, but being at No. 17 on Sharp's front seven list shows the offense doesn't have to worry about much.
Cowboys' middle-of-the-pack front seven shows Dak Prescott doesn't need to be a hero
It was Week 2 last season against the Giants when the Cowboys needed Dak Prescott and Brandon Aubrey to be heroes. The defense made Russell Wilson look like Patrick Mahomes, and there was no stopping the Giants' offense at all. The Cowboys ended up winning in overtime, 40-37, but there were more questions even after a clutch win.
Even though the G-Men ended up at 4-13, they vastly improved their offense, but it doesn't excuse the defense nearly collapsing in a game that had no business being in overtime.
Weeks later, it became clear the defense was a total catastrophe, and Prescott needed all the help on the other side of the ball. The Joneses ended up trading for Williams, signaling a complete haul dedicated to stopping the run. They couldn't get any pressure last season, which led the Cowboys to draft Malachi Lawrence and sign Rashan Gary.
Donovan Ezeiruaku is supposed to leap in the right direction, as he was just named to Pro Football Focus' All-Breakout team on defense. He finished his rookie season with 40 total tackles, nine tackles for loss and two sacks.
Jaishawn Barham from Michigan is going to be a rookie, so there shouldn't be any super-high expectations, but he's a guy who plays every play like it's his last, and he's got a motor that Parker can easily work with.
With the Cowboys' offense among the best in the league, they no longer have to worry about playing cardiac football down the stretch in the fourth quarter. Even if the Cowboys were ranked No. 20 in the front seven, they would still be respected as a serious playoff contender.
But being in the middle of the pack changes all of that. The front seven doesn't even include Downs, arguably the best player in the draft. Cobie Durant, DaRon Bland and Shavon Revel will round out the rest of the CB room, and this defense is already looking miles better than last year.
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