Matt Eberflus has a history of quick defensive turnarounds

[KJJ]

And our offense too.

The offense has had its issues but that side of the ball has been far better especially in the playoffs than our defense. We’ve had some great offenses that led the league in scoring. Fans can say what they want about Dak and the offense but nothing has cost us more in the playoffs than our defense. We could have easily beat the Packers in 2014 but our defense got shredded by a one legged Aaron Rodgers. We could have beaten them in 2016 but our D choked with the game on the line. We could have beat the Rams in 2018 but we got gashed for over 200 rushing yards. Our defense has been a huge problem. Our DL
routinely gets manhandled in big games.

 

[Hawkeye0202]

We could have beat the Rams in 2018 but we got gashed for over 200 rushing yards.

What's crazy is LVE and Jayden Smith played lights out during the regular season but McVay burned their a____es over and over with simple misdirection plays. I remember Smith saying they were forced to use their "eyes" after the game.
But you are right, say what you will about Dak, and even Romo but our defense has always played poorly during the postseason.

 

[KJJ]

What's crazy is LVE and Jayden Smith played lights out during the regular season but McVay burned their a____es over and over with simple misdirection plays. I remember Smith saying they were forced to use their "eyes" after the game.
But you are right, say what you will about Dak, and even Romo but our defense has always played poorly during the postseason.

The defense has consistently failed to make critical stops in the playoffs, which has put a lot of pressure on Dak and the offense. Our run D has been pathetic! What we haven’t done well offensively in the playoffs is run the ball. Everything gets put on our passing game.

 

[Praxit]

...give us couple of championships, and I'll be content for next 10 yrs. .

 

[fivetwos]

What's crazy is LVE and Jayden Smith played lights out during the regular season but McVay burned their a____es over and over with simple misdirection plays. I remember Smith saying they were forced to use their "eyes" after the game.
But you are right, say what you will about Dak, and even Romo but our defense has always played poorly during the postseason.

There’s just always going to be a way for better staffs to exploit the holes Dallas leaves.

I almost don’t think the powers that be even watch the games, as the weaknesses are quite clear and they do next to nothing to fix it. Same process again and again.

The frustrating part is not losing, it’s the refusal to learn from mistakes and do all you can to fix them.

Keep loving them corners Jerry.

 

[TequilaCowboy]

I see Eberflus as an above average NFL DC who is fully capable of running a good defense, but he isn’t some miracle worker. He will need the horses.

The way this roster is built, they are going to need one or two seventh round DTs to step up or they won’t be able to stop anyone who commits to the run.

Will that be HIS fault, or the philosophy of the FO who continue to think that position isn’t important?

If the shopper buys bologna what can you expect the cook to prepare, certainly not an exclusive meal.

 

[Pass2Run]

As much as that might be true let's not leave out the fact that port might zimmer that side of the ball was absolutely decimated by injuries he pretty much was playing with a lot of practice squad players literally there were entire groups that were destroyed.. So yeah he comes in and has only one offseason to try to change a lot of things it didn't help that everybody got injured...

We just gotta hope for a healthy season so that way we get to see what it really is supposed to look like because Mike Zimmer was unfairly judged by trying to patch together a defense the entire year... All the while we also didn't have much on offense either I mean the whole year you could throw away and say it was due to injuries sounds like an excuse but it's a fact..

I expect this defense to be better if They can stay healthy.. Health is like your 12th man, having that luck to be healthy as your 12th man for most teams is big plus...

Zimmer is a great defensive coach. You can plug and play him anywhere as DC, and he's going to be better than average, especially as a guy who can get things rolling fast. Like you said, injuries didn't help.

 

[Plankton]

As big of an issue as the lack of heft and talent at DT is the inability of the Cowboy defensive ends to consistently set edges against the outside run. There's too much hero ball being played, and Parsons consistenly runs himself out of position by screaming in toward the quarterback, and not maintaining his gap responsibility. Dante Fowler has had that problem his entire career. The ends need to learn how to play with grit and discipline, and without that, it's as large of a problem as the interior players are and have been.

 

[FaSho]

My biggest concern is that we have been drafting corners who can play man-to-man for years now to fit Quinn's defense. Are they going to be able to adjust to playing zone? I would love for someone to tell me Diggs and Bland will flourish in a zone scheme.

I can see Bland being a good zone corner, just based on the reads he's made on some of those pick-6s, but I don't really know anything lol

 

[pansophy]

Either Diggs nor Bland has been very good at press man coverage. They are both better in off coverage. You can play press in man and in zone, and you can play off in man or zone. Diggs and Bland both excel in playing off, reading the QB and route. That’s why they both get INTs. I think they will excel in off zone coverage.

I hope this is true.

 

[NotForLong]

4 since 2020 !! I know Nolan is easy to forget, but I'm sure that's tough on the players too we're always being hard on some of these players like Mazi, I mean you keep getting a different defensive coordinator that changes everything kind of hard to improve...

I get Jerry seems cheap and free agency and What not but don't get it twisted he does allow his coordinators to pick players in the draft and free agencies, and I know that ME has got a lot of these players IE 2 DTS in the draft and that confusing trade up for that FL LB james.. That has to be Eberflus, I mean who in the world would trade up for a linebacker like that unless they knew something most of us didn't know you know that he could fit his defense.. I'm pretty sure he must have slipped a note or was banging on a table to go up and get that guy he seemed slow he doesn't seem like somebody you would trade up to go after like that wouldn't have fell down to them anyway but I'm betting he wanted him he targeted him....

And I guarantee the Sanborn and Murray pickups at linebacker were also him. And I'm sure his assistants you got white cotton brought over Solomon Thomas.. So, I know we didn't get any brand name guys but he's grabbing players that I believe is going to fit his system especially Sanborn the linebacker from Chicago going to run his stuff just like Kendricks ran Mike stuff last year so he should have a good start with all this time between now and game one to get his defense installed...

Great insight. I concur 100%

 

[CowboysFaninHouston]

It’s hard to believe but the Cowboys will be experiencing their third defensive coordinator in three seasons. From Dan Quinn in ‘23 to Mike Zimmer in ‘24 and now Eberflus in ‘25. Eberflus will be the 9th Cowboys DC since 2000. Stability has been hard to find.

Honestly though, I think based on his past performance, Eberflus could be an improvement. Look at his prior performance as DC in Indianapolis:

• As the colts DC from 2018-2021, ME turned Indy’s defensive ranking from a lowly 30th in 2017 to a top 10 defense in 2018. And didn’t have a ton of talent to work with.
• Eberflus improved the Colts rushing defense from 26th in 2017 to 8th in 2018, allowing just 3.6 ypc, and did not allow a single 100-yard rusher all season.
• In 2019, the colts again ranked 11th in total defense and ranked 7th in rushing yards given up, and gave up only 8 rushing TDs all season.
• In his first year as HC in Chicago, the bears led the league in INTs.

Eberflus wants to use pressure to force TOs and utilizes more zone coverages in the secondary than we’ve seen last few years. His defenses have historically been good to excellent against the run. Lord knows we haven’t seen that around here in a loooong time.

None of us know yet of course what Matt Eberflus will be able to do with this defense. We still need some help at DT and maybe LB. But it’s hard to overlook the fact that Eberflus had instant positive impact with the colts.

Excited to see if Matt Eberflus can do a similar turnaround in Big D as he had in Indy his first year.

he has never had this sorry bunch to deal with. Mazi!? and who else? Sam Williams? Who are his LBs? who are the safties? and three, not one, not two, but Three CBs coming off major injuries.

and Micah does what Micah does. protect his brand. turn it on when he wants to. disapper when he doesn't feel like it. he is the Dak of defense. only shows up for games that don't matter or against lesser opponents. runs his mouth. runs his podcast.

 

[GimmeTheBall!]

It’s hard to believe but the Cowboys will be experiencing their third defensive coordinator in three seasons. From Dan Quinn in ‘23 to Mike Zimmer in ‘24 and now Eberflus in ‘25. Eberflus will be the 9th Cowboys DC since 2000. Stability has been hard to find.

Honestly though, I think based on his past performance, Eberflus could be an improvement. Look at his prior performance as DC in Indianapolis:

• As the colts DC from 2018-2021, ME turned Indy’s defensive ranking from a lowly 30th in 2017 to a top 10 defense in 2018. And didn’t have a ton of talent to work with.
• Eberflus improved the Colts rushing defense from 26th in 2017 to 8th in 2018, allowing just 3.6 ypc, and did not allow a single 100-yard rusher all season.
• In 2019, the colts again ranked 11th in total defense and ranked 7th in rushing yards given up, and gave up only 8 rushing TDs all season.
• In his first year as HC in Chicago, the bears led the league in INTs.

Eberflus wants to use pressure to force TOs and utilizes more zone coverages in the secondary than we’ve seen last few years. His defenses have historically been good to excellent against the run. Lord knows we haven’t seen that around here in a loooong time.

None of us know yet of course what Matt Eberflus will be able to do with this defense. We still need some help at DT and maybe LB. But it’s hard to overlook the fact that Eberflus had instant positive impact with the colts.

Excited to see if Matt Eberflus can do a similar turnaround in Big D as he had in Indy his first year.

To my fave poster:
Blimey!
I seem to recall similar posts around this time of year for the past 30 years.

But, yes, it is fun to speculate on our chance for a good D.

 

[beware_d-ware]

Eberflus's defense is super vanilla, but it's also basically where the modern NFL is at. Lots of cover 6 and quarters. Rush 4, play 2 deep safeties, have your CBs play man-match and then fall back deep. You want to seal off the deep ball as much as you can even if it leaves really soft flats.

The goal, and I know you guys will hate this, is BBDB. Make the offense run the ball (less efficient than the average pass), or throw underneath passes (less efficient per pass than taking deep shots). Wait for the other team to screw up, or at least make them burn a lot of clock to score.

Kiffin, Dungy, and Lovie basically got the formula right 25 years ago. Carroll and now Vic Fangio just made tweaks to update the scheme once exploits started becoming popular.

Eberflus runs too simple of a variation for my liking, but he's not doing anything crazy. The biggest tweak between DQ's and Flus's coverages is that Quinn was very man-heavy, whereas Flus's guys play man for a few steps and then bail deep. I don't think it's going to be a crazy difference, and frankly, Diggs and Bland are the guys you want to have in deep zone. They've got very good ball skills.

 

[Risen Star]

You seem pissed about it, Bob.

 

[Rayman70]

That's good for Flus. Because if he doesn't turn that side of the ball around in short order, it might be a hard luck season of close losses and coming up short at the end of games. Just good enough to compete but not get over the hump when games matter. We will see.

 

[Ironicalicon]

It’s hard to believe but the Cowboys will be experiencing their third defensive coordinator in three seasons. From Dan Quinn in ‘23 to Mike Zimmer in ‘24 and now Eberflus in ‘25. Eberflus will be the 9th Cowboys DC since 2000. Stability has been hard to find.

Honestly though, I think based on his past performance, Eberflus could be an improvement. Look at his prior performance as DC in Indianapolis:

• As the colts DC from 2018-2021, ME turned Indy’s defensive ranking from a lowly 30th in 2017 to a top 10 defense in 2018. And didn’t have a ton of talent to work with.
• Eberflus improved the Colts rushing defense from 26th in 2017 to 8th in 2018, allowing just 3.6 ypc, and did not allow a single 100-yard rusher all season.
• In 2019, the colts again ranked 11th in total defense and ranked 7th in rushing yards given up, and gave up only 8 rushing TDs all season.
• In his first year as HC in Chicago, the bears led the league in INTs.

Eberflus wants to use pressure to force TOs and utilizes more zone coverages in the secondary than we’ve seen last few years. His defenses have historically been good to excellent against the run. Lord knows we haven’t seen that around here in a loooong time.

None of us know yet of course what Matt Eberflus will be able to do with this defense. We still need some help at DT and maybe LB. But it’s hard to overlook the fact that Eberflus had instant positive impact with the colts.

Excited to see if Matt Eberflus can do a similar turnaround in Big D as he had in Indy his first year.

I love your posts, man. You don't sunshine pump but you give me hope.

 

[Rayman70]

Considering what Zimmer was dealt with all the injuries, he had our defense competing hard. We were just out manned. Zim did a miraculous job looking back. But I think he needed to ride off into the sunset . It felt right. Change is sometimes good. We needed a younger DC to mesh with the influx of new guys. I like the new staff alot.

 

[Chasing6]

It’s hard to believe but the Cowboys will be experiencing their third defensive coordinator in three seasons. From Dan Quinn in ‘23 to Mike Zimmer in ‘24 and now Eberflus in ‘25. Eberflus will be the 9th Cowboys DC since 2000. Stability has been hard to find.

Honestly though, I think based on his past performance, Eberflus could be an improvement. Look at his prior performance as DC in Indianapolis:

• As the colts DC from 2018-2021, ME turned Indy’s defensive ranking from a lowly 30th in 2017 to a top 10 defense in 2018. And didn’t have a ton of talent to work with.
• Eberflus improved the Colts rushing defense from 26th in 2017 to 8th in 2018, allowing just 3.6 ypc, and did not allow a single 100-yard rusher all season.
• In 2019, the colts again ranked 11th in total defense and ranked 7th in rushing yards given up, and gave up only 8 rushing TDs all season.
• In his first year as HC in Chicago, the bears led the league in INTs.

Eberflus wants to use pressure to force TOs and utilizes more zone coverages in the secondary than we’ve seen last few years. His defenses have historically been good to excellent against the run. Lord knows we haven’t seen that around here in a loooong time.

None of us know yet of course what Matt Eberflus will be able to do with this defense. We still need some help at DT and maybe LB. But it’s hard to overlook the fact that Eberflus had instant positive impact with the colts.

Excited to see if Matt Eberflus can do a similar turnaround in Big D as he had in Indy his first year.

With legit DB's you should be able to focus on the run.

 

[quickccc]

It’s hard to believe but the Cowboys will be experiencing their third defensive coordinator in three seasons. From Dan Quinn in ‘23 to Mike Zimmer in ‘24 and now Eberflus in ‘25. Eberflus will be the 9th Cowboys DC since 2000. Stability has been hard to find.

Honestly though, I think based on his past performance, Eberflus could be an improvement. Look at his prior performance as DC in Indianapolis:

• As the colts DC from 2018-2021, ME turned Indy’s defensive ranking from a lowly 30th in 2017 to a top 10 defense in 2018. And didn’t have a ton of talent to work with.
• Eberflus improved the Colts rushing defense from 26th in 2017 to 8th in 2018, allowing just 3.6 ypc, and did not allow a single 100-yard rusher all season.
• In 2019, the colts again ranked 11th in total defense and ranked 7th in rushing yards given up, and gave up only 8 rushing TDs all season.
• In his first year as HC in Chicago, the bears led the league in INTs.

Eberflus wants to use pressure to force TOs and utilizes more zone coverages in the secondary than we’ve seen last few years. His defenses have historically been good to excellent against the run. Lord knows we haven’t seen that around here in a loooong time.

None of us know yet of course what Matt Eberflus will be able to do with this defense. We still need some help at DT and maybe LB. But it’s hard to overlook the fact that Eberflus had instant positive impact with the colts.

Excited to see if Matt Eberflus can do a similar turnaround in Big D as he had in Indy his first year.

Ditto for the OL coaching role.

That's one thing i believe could have a difference taking steps backwards - especially with our young OL guys