Been watching some Cowboys game rewinds.
What strikes me is that the Cowboys run defense is based on gap shooting almost as much as their pass rush is. There was a PFF article written about this years ago, but watching the tape, it is still in effect today.
https://www.profootballfocus.com/news/pro-just-how-good-was-the-dallas-cowboys-run-defense-in-2016
Basically, the D linemen play both the run and the pass pretty much the same way: they don't stack and shed blocks, they get upfield as fast as possible. Ideally, the D linemen either shoot the gap for a big play, or more often, they create traffic and disrupt the run enough for a LB to come in and finish it off. So DTs really don't need to sit down and anchor unless they get blasted by a double team off the snap (and Woods does a really good job holding up against these FWIW). They do need some strength when things break down into a wrestling match inside, but explosiveness comes first.
I don't know if I like this, because for one, running upfield like a chicken with its head cut off leaves our defense VERY vulnerable to traps and misdirection, and it outsources some of the DT's responsibility for stopping the play to the LBs and puts that extra burden on them. But for Hill, it's going to maximize his explosiveness and minimize his lack of power.
I'm starting to think it might be a little bit like LVE last year, where some people (including me) were concerned about his block shedding, but sort of misunderstood what our scheme was going to ask him to do. He wasn't going to be asked to stack and shed like an old school 3-4 ILB. Vander Esch was free to run in space and pick through traffic at Will, and if he did take on blockers, it was usually an open field one-on-one with some TE / H-back/ WR that he had 20-50 pounds on. In the same vein, Hill may not end up being the run D liability we think.
As a side note, I really recommend that any interested or bored fans take a look at Cowboys condensed games on Youtube. You can start following players instead of the ball when you already know how the game is going to go, and it can really give you some insight into our players past the usual stat sheet and PFF offseason talk.