CFZ Brief Roster Evaluation - Defense

[Jumbo075]

Starting with defense:

DE - Cowboys have two starters in Parsons and Lawrence. Armstrong and Fowler were blocking the development of draft pick Sam Williams, a 2nd round pick. Also the Cowboys have Golston and Fehoko.

DT - Cowboys have recent 1st and 3rd round picks to start in Smith and Odighizuwa. Lawrence can also play inside, and both Golston and Fehoko can also rotate inside in place of Odighizuwa. It is sink or swim for Mazi Smith, and the Cowboys need another big body to back him up.

LB - Cowboys brought in Kendrick, and have Clark and Overshown coming back. They need more depth.

CB - two All-Pro starters who have each led the NFL in interceptions - Diggs and Bland. Strong veteran savy nickleback in Lewis, but small and slow. Two young backup players in Wright and Scott, plus Mukuamu can back up in the slot.

Safeties - long term contracts in place for starters in Wilson and Hooker. Bell, who started at LB a year ago, can take over the Kearse role, with strong depth with Thomas and Mukuamu - may be the deepest position group on the defense.

Bottom line: the Cowboys have prepared well to lose the players they lost on defense. Draft picks - high draft picks - are in place to take over the roles occupied by departed players. Depth and youth are needed at Linebacker and defensive tackle. But it isn’t unreasonable for the Cowboys to place a demand on recently drafted players to step up and contribute more. A lot of naysayers may be surprised with how well the Cowboys defense plays if recent draft picks start living up to their potential.

 

[gimmesix]

Starting with defense:

DE - Cowboys have two starters in Parsons and Lawrence. Armstrong and Fowler were blocking the development of draft pick Sam Williams, a 2nd round pick. Also the Cowboys have Golston and Fehoko.

DT - Cowboys have recent 1st and 3rd round picks to start in Smith and Odighizuwa. Lawrence can also play inside, and both Golston and Fehoko can also rotate inside in place of Odighizuwa. It is sink or swim for Mazi Smith, and the Cowboys need another big body to back him up.

LB - Cowboys brought in Kendrick, and have Clark and Overshown coming back. They need more depth.

CB - two All-Pro starters who have each led the NFL in interceptions - Diggs and Bland. Strong veteran savy nickleback in Lewis, but small and slow. Two young backup players in Wright and Scott, plus Mukuamu can back up in the slot.

Safeties - long term contracts in place for starters in Wilson and Hooker. Bell, who started at LB a year ago, can take over the Kearse role, with strong depth with Thomas and Mukuamu - may be the deepest position group on the defense.

Bottom line: the Cowboys have prepared well to lose the players they lost on defense. Draft picks - high draft picks - are in place to take over the roles occupied by departed players. Depth and youth are needed at Linebacker and defensive tackle. But it isn’t unreasonable for the Cowboys to place a demand on recently drafted players to step up and contribute more. A lot of naysayers may be surprised with how well the Cowboys defense plays if recent draft picks start living up to their potential.

I think the front office is looking at DE like you are. I don't know if that's the truth, though. Williams may simply not be as good as Armstrong and Fowler, which is why he couldn't earn playing time over them. Fehoko and Golston are both bigger ends who don't have the get-off as pass rushers that is needed, but could help us to be stronger against the run. I do think we could see them rotating in on early downs and then Parsons and Williams being the ends in the nickel with Lawrence moving inside. We'll see how that works out.

No matter how we slice it at DT, the Cowboys are putting it on last year's first-round pick to get the job done. If he doesn't, we're going to be hurting in the middle. Odighizuwa is a really good rotational DT, but has trouble maintaining consistency against the run because of his size and hasn't proven be the ideal penetrator you want at 3.tech.

 

[Jumbo075]

I think the front office is looking at DE like you are. I don't know if that's the truth, though. Williams may simply not be as good as Armstrong and Fowler, which is why he couldn't earn playing time over them. Fehoko and Golston are both bigger ends who don't have the get-off as pass rushers that is needed, but could help us to be stronger against the run. I do think we could see them rotating in on early downs and then Parsons and Williams being the ends in the nickel with Lawrence moving inside. We'll see how that works out.

No matter how we slice it at DT, the Cowboys are putting it on last year's first-round pick to get the job done. If he doesn't, we're going to be hurting in the middle. Odighizuwa is a really good rotational DT, but has trouble maintaining consistency against the run because of his size and hasn't proven be the ideal penetrator you want at 3.tech.

Remember the Cowboys lost two defensive tackles to free agency - Hankins and Gallimore. I agree it is an area of weakness they must address during the draft.

 

[Hawkeye19]

This defense is weak at the worst place: right up the middle.

Paper thin depth and a change of coordinator and philosophy don’t help either.

If they stay healthy, the secondary is clearly the strength of the D— but this front 7 looks dismal as teams will double/triple team Micah and force other guys to step up which looks dubious at best.

 

[plymkr]

Zimmer was the coach when we had Deion, K Smith, Woodson and Marion with a weaker front 7. Zimmer had success with using his secondary to delay the passer by a half second or a second and that helped the pass rush. Even with Zimmer’s scheme and experience with a great secondary and a weak front 7 we need some DTs. Hopefully some June 1 cuts or TC cuts will help us since our FO is stubborn with not using FA.

 

[doomsday9084]

At the beginning of the season, I guarantee you that the Cowboys will have a full roster. No one is debating that.

The problem or concern is the quality of the depth. Sure the Cowboys may "have" guys like Gholston and Clark and Mazi but if they play like they did last year and are forced into big roles, the defense is going to suck.

 

[jazzcat22]

DT and LB biggest needs. But we all know that.

I can also seeing them draft another DE, probably in the 5th. They seem to like to do that. Then tell us they got value.
Seems they been doing that for the past 20 years. Armstrong is the only one that worked out so far. And then, he never became a starter. They brought in some FA's, and used a rotation.

Not concerned so much with the secondary, but I can see them drafting a CB or S or both, possibly late rounds. Unless Gilmore returns.
Use Bell at his true S position, and draft a LB.

They have too many needs as well on defense. Yes, just as on the OL, they will rely upon recent draft picks to step up.
I just hope they do not rely upon that too much, and do a depth draft / future type thing again.

They need to come away with 3 starters or a very strong contribution from their 1st 3 picks, regardless if offense or defense.

 

[noshame]

Starting with defense:

DE - Cowboys have two starters in Parsons and Lawrence. Armstrong and Fowler were blocking the development of draft pick Sam Williams, a 2nd round pick. Also the Cowboys have Golston and Fehoko.

DT - Cowboys have recent 1st and 3rd round picks to start in Smith and Odighizuwa. Lawrence can also play inside, and both Golston and Fehoko can also rotate inside in place of Odighizuwa. It is sink or swim for Mazi Smith, and the Cowboys need another big body to back him up.

LB - Cowboys brought in Kendrick, and have Clark and Overshown coming back. They need more depth.

CB - two All-Pro starters who have each led the NFL in interceptions - Diggs and Bland. Strong veteran savy nickleback in Lewis, but small and slow. Two young backup players in Wright and Scott, plus Mukuamu can back up in the slot.

Safeties - long term contracts in place for starters in Wilson and Hooker. Bell, who started at LB a year ago, can take over the Kearse role, with strong depth with Thomas and Mukuamu - may be the deepest position group on the defense.

Bottom line: the Cowboys have prepared well to lose the players they lost on defense. Draft picks - high draft picks - are in place to take over the roles occupied by departed players. Depth and youth are needed at Linebacker and defensive tackle. But it isn’t unreasonable for the Cowboys to place a demand on recently drafted players to step up and contribute more. A lot of naysayers may be surprised with how well the Cowboys defense plays if recent draft picks start living up to their potential.

Yep
The same guy who built this defense is now building a entire team in Wash.
I hate it.

 

[jazzcat22]

Yep
The same guy who built this defense is now building a entire team in Wash.
I hate it.

After that GB game and his defense against some of the better offense. I am not concerned what he does in Washington.

 

[noshame]

After that GB game and his defense against some of the better offense. I am not concerned what he does in Washington.

The green bay game?
Maybe you could expand your view to include the pile of hot garbage he inherited and turned it into a top unit. The players loved Quinn and played hard for him. They found out prior to the GB game he was leaving and decided to show their frustration.
If you enjoyed the GB game you'll love this season.

 

[jazzcat22]

The green bay game?
Maybe you could expand your view to include the pile of hot garbage he inherited and turned it into a top unit. The players loved Quinn and played hard for him. They found out prior to the GB game he was leaving and decided to show their frustration.
If you enjoyed the GB game you'll love this season.

I stand by what I say.
Yes he turned the defense around. But against better offenses, or even some mediocre ones, they seemed to disappear. As in that GB game.

Why does Micah fade and disappear in the games late in the season, as well, playoff games?
Why does he not make big plays in those games. Is it him, or how DQ switches things up on how use him in a game plan.

 

[Hawkeye0202]

Starting with defense:

DE - Cowboys have two starters in Parsons and Lawrence. Armstrong and Fowler were blocking the development of draft pick Sam Williams, a 2nd round pick. Also the Cowboys have Golston and Fehoko.

DT - Cowboys have recent 1st and 3rd round picks to start in Smith and Odighizuwa. Lawrence can also play inside, and both Golston and Fehoko can also rotate inside in place of Odighizuwa. It is sink or swim for Mazi Smith, and the Cowboys need another big body to back him up.

LB - Cowboys brought in Kendrick, and have Clark and Overshown coming back. They need more depth.

CB - two All-Pro starters who have each led the NFL in interceptions - Diggs and Bland. Strong veteran savy nickleback in Lewis, but small and slow. Two young backup players in Wright and Scott, plus Mukuamu can back up in the slot.

Safeties - long term contracts in place for starters in Wilson and Hooker. Bell, who started at LB a year ago, can take over the Kearse role, with strong depth with Thomas and Mukuamu - may be the deepest position group on the defense.

Bottom line: the Cowboys have prepared well to lose the players they lost on defense. Draft picks - high draft picks - are in place to take over the roles occupied by departed players. Depth and youth are needed at Linebacker and defensive tackle. But it isn’t unreasonable for the Cowboys to place a demand on recently drafted players to step up and contribute more. A lot of naysayers may be surprised with how well the Cowboys defense plays if recent draft picks start living up to their potential.

IF is a key word........they haven't lived up to their potential so far and god knows we needed it last season. Just me, but the FO has not prepared well to lose the players they have lost.

DE........To have seen DLaw's contract? No way he's playing us this season w/o some adjustment in his contract.
https://www.spotrac.com/nfl/dallas-cowboys/demarcus-lawrence-14443/
DE.......Sam Williams IS NOT an upgrade over Armstrong. As matter of fact, I don't trust Sam start......way too undisciplined. He's Randy Gregory 2.0.

DT....... I'm not as concerned about Smith as most coz Zim will try to use him as the John Randle of his D. They could have resigned Hankins for a ham sandwich but passed. So we need a big DT ( Even Parsons demanding one ).

LB........I think we will be ok here since we have signed Kendrick

CB.......Bland is a liability playing outside unless he's in zone coverage. Yes we get Diggs back but what about the other side since it appears Gilmore isn't coming back.

S.........Bell makes this the strongest unit on the D

Sidenote.......IF FO has planned well or was truly motivated to upgrade

*** Why have they not restructured and used some of the $40-50M cap money available?
*** What is the resolution to Dak's massive cap hit? or his extension? These are questions a well-organized team would have answered BEFORE the start of free agency. Why........coz I can promise you a GM owner would have demanded, especially considering the impact on the team. Guess what, Jerry seems clueless w/o a sense of urgency. It's almost like his heart, mind and ego are all playing games with each other (lol). Remember his last public statement ..." we don't need Dak's extension to have a competitive team" and to double down on this, we are in the 3rd wave of free agency and they have not restructured one contract ( band-aide of Dak's).

Seriously, does this sound like a team well prepared to upgrade the one that lost to the Packers?

 

[noshame]

I stand by what I say.
Yes he turned the defense around. But against better offenses, or even some mediocre ones, they seemed to disappear. As in that GB game.

Why does Micah fade and disappear in the games late in the season, as well, playoff games?
Why does he not make big plays in those games. Is it him, or how DQ switches things up on how use him in a game plan.

Well, check points allowed, because that's all that matters. And defensive points scored.

 

[shabazz]

Here's my summation. They will be run on with impunity like the last couple seasons.

The march toward a rebuild and better draft position for 2025 continues

 

[RonWashington]

Chris Braswell round 2 Bama LB after an OL round one . Braswell added to Kendrick plus Overshown return makes the position competitive .

 

[Whyjerry]

Starting with defense:

DE - Cowboys have two starters in Parsons and Lawrence. Armstrong and Fowler were blocking the development of draft pick Sam Williams, a 2nd round pick. Also the Cowboys have Golston and Fehoko.

DT - Cowboys have recent 1st and 3rd round picks to start in Smith and Odighizuwa. Lawrence can also play inside, and both Golston and Fehoko can also rotate inside in place of Odighizuwa. It is sink or swim for Mazi Smith, and the Cowboys need another big body to back him up.

LB - Cowboys brought in Kendrick, and have Clark and Overshown coming back. They need more depth.

CB - two All-Pro starters who have each led the NFL in interceptions - Diggs and Bland. Strong veteran savy nickleback in Lewis, but small and slow. Two young backup players in Wright and Scott, plus Mukuamu can back up in the slot.

Safeties - long term contracts in place for starters in Wilson and Hooker. Bell, who started at LB a year ago, can take over the Kearse role, with strong depth with Thomas and Mukuamu - may be the deepest position group on the defense.

Bottom line: the Cowboys have prepared well to lose the players they lost on defense. Draft picks - high draft picks - are in place to take over the roles occupied by departed players. Depth and youth are needed at Linebacker and defensive tackle. But it isn’t unreasonable for the Cowboys to place a demand on recently drafted players to step up and contribute more. A lot of naysayers may be surprised with how well the Cowboys defense plays if recent draft picks start living up to their potential.

Parsons a DE now? When did that happen? A traditional 4-3 DE? Welp that’s not going to work.

 

[DuncanIso]

Starting with defense:

DE - Cowboys have two starters in Parsons and Lawrence. Armstrong and Fowler were blocking the development of draft pick Sam Williams, a 2nd round pick. Also the Cowboys have Golston and Fehoko.

DT - Cowboys have recent 1st and 3rd round picks to start in Smith and Odighizuwa. Lawrence can also play inside, and both Golston and Fehoko can also rotate inside in place of Odighizuwa. It is sink or swim for Mazi Smith, and the Cowboys need another big body to back him up.

LB - Cowboys brought in Kendrick, and have Clark and Overshown coming back. They need more depth.

CB - two All-Pro starters who have each led the NFL in interceptions - Diggs and Bland. Strong veteran savy nickleback in Lewis, but small and slow. Two young backup players in Wright and Scott, plus Mukuamu can back up in the slot.

Safeties - long term contracts in place for starters in Wilson and Hooker. Bell, who started at LB a year ago, can take over the Kearse role, with strong depth with Thomas and Mukuamu - may be the deepest position group on the defense.

Bottom line: the Cowboys have prepared well to lose the players they lost on defense. Draft picks - high draft picks - are in place to take over the roles occupied by departed players. Depth and youth are needed at Linebacker and defensive tackle. But it isn’t unreasonable for the Cowboys to place a demand on recently drafted players to step up and contribute more. A lot of naysayers may be surprised with how well the Cowboys defense plays if recent draft picks start living up to their potential.

Good stuff.

Mazi worries us some. but maybe we pick up another DT in the draft?

 

[Risen Star]

We are loaded for bear.

 

[MyFairLady]

Armstrong and Fowler were blocking the development of draft pick Sam Williams

Now I have officially heard it all. Sam Williams is an absolute turd who should have been cut two years ago.

The defense crumbled like a stale cookie last year. This year is looking even worse. I appreciate the optimism but I prefer to be more realistic. We need to purge the losers and bring in a massive wave of hungry young players.

 

[Creeper]

Starting with defense:

DE - Cowboys have two starters in Parsons and Lawrence. Armstrong and Fowler were blocking the development of draft pick Sam Williams, a 2nd round pick. Also the Cowboys have Golston and Fehoko.

DT - Cowboys have recent 1st and 3rd round picks to start in Smith and Odighizuwa. Lawrence can also play inside, and both Golston and Fehoko can also rotate inside in place of Odighizuwa. It is sink or swim for Mazi Smith, and the Cowboys need another big body to back him up.

LB - Cowboys brought in Kendrick, and have Clark and Overshown coming back. They need more depth.

CB - two All-Pro starters who have each led the NFL in interceptions - Diggs and Bland. Strong veteran savy nickleback in Lewis, but small and slow. Two young backup players in Wright and Scott, plus Mukuamu can back up in the slot.

Safeties - long term contracts in place for starters in Wilson and Hooker. Bell, who started at LB a year ago, can take over the Kearse role, with strong depth with Thomas and Mukuamu - may be the deepest position group on the defense.

Bottom line: the Cowboys have prepared well to lose the players they lost on defense. Draft picks - high draft picks - are in place to take over the roles occupied by departed players. Depth and youth are needed at Linebacker and defensive tackle. But it isn’t unreasonable for the Cowboys to place a demand on recently drafted players to step up and contribute more. A lot of naysayers may be surprised with how well the Cowboys defense plays if recent draft picks start living up to their potential.

Goldston has shown nothing at DE, or DT for that matter. Fehoko is a complete unknown and probably belongs at DT with some added weight. Sam Williams has shown flashes of ability but is more likely to do something stupid to cost Dallas 15 yards. Maybe he matures and comes back next year ready to start. We'll see, but overall they are really undermanned at DE, which is why I think Jerry is going to draft a DE in round 1, if someone falls 24. I can see Jerry draft Chop Robinson just to have to Penn St. bookends.

The lack of size at DT for Dallas is staggering. Mazi is supposed to beef back up to his usual weight but what do we know about his ability? He did not look good last year but that could be because some idiot convinced him to lose 30 lbs during the season. Carl Davis did not show anything last year. He looks like he has a short bull rush, then nothing. DT is another position lacking size and depth. I think the Cowboys will address this late in the draft and pick up another Bohanna type guy.

Without size in the middle of the line, the LBs are going to struggle.

They are good enough at CB. Diggs, Bland and Lewis should be okay. If someone get hurt, the backups are JAGs. I have my eye on Bland. Sure he had the record for pick 6s last year and lots of INTs but he also showed at times he can be toasted. He seems to excel and cutting off outside routes, but loses on most other pass routes. I think I would look at drafting or signing another CB just in case.

The Cowboys have enough at safety. I think we need to see more Juanyeh Thomas. But they have a few guys I think can hold their own.

This defense is going to live and die by what they have on the defensive line. The missing ingredient for this defense has been an impact DT for a long time. Wilkins would have been perfect for Dallas playing alongside Lawrence and Parsons. But since he wanted more than lunch money Jerry just ignored him.