FRISCO, Texas – The Cowboys’ offense has struggled on the road, but the defense has held the team together and picked up the slack. Dallas’ defense has recorded eight sacks when blitzing quarterbacks in 2018 with a sack percentage of 14.6%, the third-highest rate in the league. Their defense has limited opponents from converting on critical plays this season, allowing only 21 plays of 20-plus yards through seven games, the fewest in the NFL. Against Dallas’ D, offenses have only been able to reach the end zone on 15.8% of drives, also the fewest in the league. Through eight weeks, the Cowboys have held the NFL’s top scoring defense with 123 points, the first time since 1982 with 114 points. The Dallas Cowboys have a third “Doomsday Defense” on their hands!
DeMarcus Lawrence is currently third in the league with 20.0 sacks since the start of 2017. He has amassed 5.5 sacks thus far in the 2018 season with a loss of 42 yards for opposing offenses. Over the course of his five-year career with the Cowboys, he has totaled 29.0 sacks and only needs one more to reach 30.0, to become the ninth player in team history to reach the milestone.
Byron Jones is quickly making a name for himself at the cornerback position. Jones is one of three corners in the league to limit opposing receivers to a catch percentage below 52% and not allow a passing touchdown in his direction. He has been an asset in the defensive backfield, beating receivers on man-to-man.
Leighton Vander Esch is quickly making a strong impact in the Cowboys’ defense. In the past when Sean Lee has been out with injury the defense has struggled without its commander, but this season with the strong presence of Vander Esch along with an unleashed Jaylon Smith in the lineup, the defesne is in a much better place. With seven regular season game starts under his belt, Vander Esch has recorded 42 total tackles, 12 assists, and one pass defend. In the week five game against the Houston Texans during Lee’s absence with a hamstring injury, Leighton made a tremendous contribution on the field with 11 tackles and two assists. He has made a smooth transition to the Pros from Boise State and is proving his worth as a first-round pick each time he steps on the field for America’s Team.
As the Cowboys’ head into week nine against the Tennessee Titans, Dallas needs another dominant performance by the hotboyz as they face new offensive coordinator Matt LaFleur and his signature staple: Play-action. LaFleur will be the new play caller for the Titans on offense this season. As the OC for the Rams’ last season, LaFleur played an intricate role in the turnaround of their offense from last to 10th in total offense in the league. He has worked with and benefited the production of quarterbacks Robert Griffin III, Matt Ryan, and Jared Goff. Now he will help Marcus Mariota and the Titans as they try to repeat another playoff victory this season and climb to first in the AFC South. The Cowboys and Titans are 3-4 with a must win battle on Monday Night!
