The common fan complaint about this team is its anemic pass rush. The common fan solution is that Marinelli should blitz more to compensate.
I tend to say that, too, but that is exactly the opposite of what Dallas should do.
Notice how blitzing is only really effective for teams that already have a good pass rush. When you can get pressure with four, it makes blitzers basically free runners, and the time in the pocket is almost nil. It looks overwhelming when teams like Seattle or Denver send extras.
Conversely, if the front four gets little push or edge rush, the lanes often don't open up for blitzers, and you get this big hair-drain plug of bodies that don't quite get there. That spells doom.
The Cowboys often send a linebacker or nickel back on the blitz, but they are getting picked up easily if a defensive lineman isn't getting pressure from that spot as well. It only seems to work about 25 percent of the time.
Marinelli is frustrated. Often, he's only rushing three lineman because that extra body is more useful to seal off inside receiver routes than they are banging their head against the wall rushing the passer. Mayowa is proving worthless, and Lawrence is average. He needs a counterpart. The best pass rusher on the team is, gulp, Orlando Scandrick on the blitz here and there.
This has got to be fixed in the offseason. Free agency and the draft needs to be solely focused on building that front four, first and foremost.
The good news is that there are guys here that I believe will be better pass rushers if a key player or two is added. Tyrone Crawford and David Irving are good, but there's nobody to take the double teams off of them. They need a hell-raiser.
If this is addressed by next season, holy moly, look out. This team could be a monster for half a decade or more.
