FRISCO, Texas – The Dallas Cowboys are one preseason game away from the start of the regular season. The Cowboys face the Panthers in their season opener on Sep. 9 in Carolina and the “hot boys “ are ready. The Cowboys defensive line has nicknamed themselves during training camp. Throughout the offseason, the Cowboys acquired several defensive ends to add dimension and depth at the position and help with pass rush.
DeMarcus Lawrence posted a picture on Instagram with his d-line teammates and commented “Hot Boyz SZN.”
With DeMarcus Lawrence, Randy Gregory, Antwaun Woods, Tyrone Crawford, Datone Jones, and Jihad Ward available in for rotation at the line of scrimmage and weak side linebacker Sean Lee and middle linebacker Jaylon Smith positioned behind, the Cowboys could have another “Doomsday Defense” on their hands with that kind of talent.
The Cowboys’ “Doomsday Defense” was the backbone of the Cowboys during the dynasty years of the late 1960s-1970s, who won two Super Bowls in VI and XII and played in three more in V, X, and XIII. The dominant defense included: Willie Townes, Larry Cole, Jethro Pugh, Bob Lilly, George Andrie, Ed Jones, Chuck Howley, Lee Roy Jordan, Dave Edwards, D.D. Lewis, Cornell Green, Mel Renfro, Mike Gaechter, Charlie Waters, Herb Adderley, and Cliff Harris. Many of the men from this list are in the Hall of Fame and the Cowboys’ Ring of Honor. It is often said, “championships are won with defense.” For those dynasty years, the defense played a critical role in the Cowboys getting to those Super Bowls and in the two they won.
At the Dallas Cowboys Kickoff Luncheon, the Chairman of the event and former Cowboys’ defensive tackle Tony Casillas commented on the current Cowboys D-Line “Seeing what I have seen from Randy Gregory, they have the opportunity to be really good. Now they have three guys that they can rotate in. I really don’t think we have seen this much talent with DeMarcus Lawrence, if he continues playing the way he has, this can be a really scary tandem and rotation at defensive end. This opens up a lot of opportunities for them. Something they have not had. “
The defensive players are feeling the excitement surrounding this group of guys to take the field in the upcoming 2018 season. Groups of elite players are hard to come by with free agency and the draft being what it is, but the Cowboys have a special set of players with unique skillsets to threaten opposing offenses around the league. The linemen have looked incredible in one-on-one pass protection drills and have had several quarterback pressures. The linebackers have looked smooth in blocking drills and have made significant tackles on key plays. The “Hot Boys” are ready to be unleashed!!!
