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Coordinator Rod Marinelli has Dallas defense peaking at right time
Jean-Jacques Taylor
ESPN Staff Writer
FRISCO, Texas -- The Dallas Cowboys' defense was supposed to be a disaster this season, a joke if you will.
It struggled in 2015, finishing in the middle of the pack in points and yards allowed.
Then Dallas signed a couple of anonymous defensive linemen -- Cedric Thornton and Benson Mayowa -- as its big-ticket free-agency additions to a unit that finished last in the NFL in turnovers (11) and tied for 25th with 31 sacks.
Don't forget cornerback Orlando Scandrick began the season as the team's active sacks leader with 9.5.
Well, the 2016 Cowboys' defense is good, a testament to coordinator Rod Marinelli's unshakable belief in his scheme and motivational tactics.
These Cowboys led the NFL in run defense, allowing 83.5 yards per game, and finished fifth in points allowed at 19.1 per game.
It's not just because the team plays complementary football, a fancy way of saying the Cowboys' ruthlessly efficient ball-control offense keeps the defense off the field and that Dallas is usually playing with a lead.
"We're playing defense the right way," coach Jason Garrett said. "We play up to our standard of discipline and hustle and hitting and all of those things we try to preach each and every day.
"For the most part, we've done a good job of keeping scores down all year. We play good situational defense, but everything I just said we can get better at, and that's where our focus is."
Marinelli has the Cowboys' defense playing its best football entering the playoffs. We shouldn't be surprised. This has been building to a crescendo all season.
We're talking about a unit that has played much of the season without defensive end DeMarcus Lawrence, its best pass-rusher. The NFL suspended him for the season's first four games and a season-long back injury forced him to miss the final three games.
Cornerbacks Morris Claiborne (groin) and Scandrick (hamstring, foot) and safeties Barry Church (forearm) and J.J. Wilcox (quadriceps) have missed significant chunks of the season.
Those injuries provided players such as Mayowa, rookie cornerback Anthony Brown and Wilcox (before his injury) valuable playing time that will be useful when the playoffs start.
The Cowboys recorded 16 sacks and 10 turnovers in their past five games. The pass rush has improved significantly because David Irving, Mayowa and rookie Maliek Collins have each improved considerably during the season.
The Cowboys finished the season with 36 sacks, their most since 2011, when they recorded 42 (which included 19.5 by DeMarcus Ware). Mayowa, who entered the season with two career sacks, led the team with six this season.
Three others had at least four.
But the best thing the Cowboys did on defense this season is stop the run, every coordinator's first tenet to good defense. The Cowboys joined New England and San Diego as the only teams that didn’t allow a 100-yard rusher.
Between the offense creating big leads in the first half and their run-stopping ability, the Cowboys managed to make most teams one-dimensional.
They consistently stopped the run because they play with good technique and they play hard every snap. Marinelli tracks how often players loaf. Do it with any frequency and the bench awaits.
"The one statistic that doesn't come out, that nobody ever talks about or nobody ever keeps, is hustle, hitting and discipline," Marinelli said recently. "Those are the ones that are important to me.
"Anybody can pick up a stat sheet and talk about it. That's irrelevant. It's when you're really involved in the game and you see what we're trying to see -- that's what is relevant."
The secondary is also much improved over last season.
Brandon Carr has been good since moving back to right cornerback. Over three consecutive weeks, he covered Odell Beckham Jr., Mike Evans and Golden Tate. They combined to catch 14 of 24 passes thrown their way for 211 yards and a touchdown. Those players combined for 288 receptions, 3,765 yards and 26 touchdowns during the season.
Yes, Carr gave up a 61-yard touchdown to Beckham in a loss to New York, but that was only game-changing play he allowed in those three games.
Wilcox is probably the most improved player on the defense, and he provides a physical presence Dallas hasn't had since Roy Williams' glory days.
No longer is the Cowboys' defense dependent on the offense playing keep away to succeed.
It can stand on its own.
Jean-Jacques Taylor
ESPN Staff Writer
FRISCO, Texas -- The Dallas Cowboys' defense was supposed to be a disaster this season, a joke if you will.
It struggled in 2015, finishing in the middle of the pack in points and yards allowed.
Then Dallas signed a couple of anonymous defensive linemen -- Cedric Thornton and Benson Mayowa -- as its big-ticket free-agency additions to a unit that finished last in the NFL in turnovers (11) and tied for 25th with 31 sacks.
Don't forget cornerback Orlando Scandrick began the season as the team's active sacks leader with 9.5.
Well, the 2016 Cowboys' defense is good, a testament to coordinator Rod Marinelli's unshakable belief in his scheme and motivational tactics.
These Cowboys led the NFL in run defense, allowing 83.5 yards per game, and finished fifth in points allowed at 19.1 per game.
It's not just because the team plays complementary football, a fancy way of saying the Cowboys' ruthlessly efficient ball-control offense keeps the defense off the field and that Dallas is usually playing with a lead.
"We're playing defense the right way," coach Jason Garrett said. "We play up to our standard of discipline and hustle and hitting and all of those things we try to preach each and every day.
"For the most part, we've done a good job of keeping scores down all year. We play good situational defense, but everything I just said we can get better at, and that's where our focus is."
Marinelli has the Cowboys' defense playing its best football entering the playoffs. We shouldn't be surprised. This has been building to a crescendo all season.
We're talking about a unit that has played much of the season without defensive end DeMarcus Lawrence, its best pass-rusher. The NFL suspended him for the season's first four games and a season-long back injury forced him to miss the final three games.
Cornerbacks Morris Claiborne (groin) and Scandrick (hamstring, foot) and safeties Barry Church (forearm) and J.J. Wilcox (quadriceps) have missed significant chunks of the season.
Those injuries provided players such as Mayowa, rookie cornerback Anthony Brown and Wilcox (before his injury) valuable playing time that will be useful when the playoffs start.
The Cowboys recorded 16 sacks and 10 turnovers in their past five games. The pass rush has improved significantly because David Irving, Mayowa and rookie Maliek Collins have each improved considerably during the season.
The Cowboys finished the season with 36 sacks, their most since 2011, when they recorded 42 (which included 19.5 by DeMarcus Ware). Mayowa, who entered the season with two career sacks, led the team with six this season.
Three others had at least four.
But the best thing the Cowboys did on defense this season is stop the run, every coordinator's first tenet to good defense. The Cowboys joined New England and San Diego as the only teams that didn’t allow a 100-yard rusher.
Between the offense creating big leads in the first half and their run-stopping ability, the Cowboys managed to make most teams one-dimensional.
They consistently stopped the run because they play with good technique and they play hard every snap. Marinelli tracks how often players loaf. Do it with any frequency and the bench awaits.
"The one statistic that doesn't come out, that nobody ever talks about or nobody ever keeps, is hustle, hitting and discipline," Marinelli said recently. "Those are the ones that are important to me.
"Anybody can pick up a stat sheet and talk about it. That's irrelevant. It's when you're really involved in the game and you see what we're trying to see -- that's what is relevant."
The secondary is also much improved over last season.
Brandon Carr has been good since moving back to right cornerback. Over three consecutive weeks, he covered Odell Beckham Jr., Mike Evans and Golden Tate. They combined to catch 14 of 24 passes thrown their way for 211 yards and a touchdown. Those players combined for 288 receptions, 3,765 yards and 26 touchdowns during the season.
Yes, Carr gave up a 61-yard touchdown to Beckham in a loss to New York, but that was only game-changing play he allowed in those three games.
Wilcox is probably the most improved player on the defense, and he provides a physical presence Dallas hasn't had since Roy Williams' glory days.
No longer is the Cowboys' defense dependent on the offense playing keep away to succeed.
It can stand on its own.
