The Dallas Cowboys may have landed one of the steals of the NFL Draft when they took Donovan Ezeiruaku out of Boston College. Unfortunately, they haven't used him to the extent of his powers just yet.
With Dante Fowler Jr. returning to Arlington and Sam Williams anchoring the pass-rush unit, the rookie defensive end has been nothing more than a rotational piece. Moreover, he's played fewer snaps than Marshawn Kneeland.
Donovan Ezeiruaku Needs More Playing Time
Despite the lack of playing time, Donovan Ezeiruaku has logged four pressures. That's good for a 15.4 percent pressure rate, which, according to Steve Patton, is the second-highest among all rookie pass-rushers, trailing only Abdul Carter.
Of course, he's not the biggest defensive end out there, which is the only reason why he fell to No. 44 in the draft despite his impressive résumé. He's looked overmatched by bigger and stronger offensive tackles at times, but he will only get better with more opportunities.
Marshawn Kneeland has been less than impressive so far this season. Despite playing eight more snaps than Ezeiruaku (83 to 75) and playing at least 40 percent of defensive snaps in all games, he's logged just seven total tackles (four solo), three tackles for loss, and one QB hit. The rookie, on the other hand, has logged three QB hits so far.
Ezeiruaku needs to bulk up and get stronger to match up with the physicality of the pros, but his technique and instincts are remarkable. He won the Ted Hendricks award in college, which is given to the best defensive end in the nation, and he led his conference in both tackles for loss (21) and sacks (16.5) in his final year in college.
Jerry Jones admitted that his team needed to do a better job of putting pressure on the quarterback, which is something Micah Parsons was pretty good at. Ezeiruaku is no Micah Parsons, but the upside is clearly there.
Kneeland is also a former second-round selection, so it's not like the Cowboys should give up on him altogether. But if they're not going to bench a veteran like Fowler or an extension candidate like Williams, he might be the odd man out in the equation.
Perhaps the best course of action will be to shut down James Houston IV altogether, so both Kneeland and Ezeiuraku can get more snaps. But with the rookie out of Boston College getting more playing time by the week, one thing's for sure: He needs to be on the field more often.