JJT: Cowboys LB Sean Lee playing his best football, when it matters most

Cotton

One-armed Knife Sharpener
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Cowboys LB Sean Lee playing his best football, when it matters most

Jean-Jacques Taylor, ESPN Staff Writer

IRVING, Texas -- If you choose to engage in the fantasy that the Dallas Cowboys will make the playoffs this season, then you must believe linebacker Sean Lee will be a dynamic player over the course of the last month of the season.

See, you can’t expect the Cowboys’ offense to be the epicenter of this unlikely playoff race in the raggedy NFC East, where every team is at least two games under .500. Without quarterback Tony Romo, reality says the Cowboys' offense is an abject unit averaging 18.5 points per game while committing 22 turnovers.

The defense, maligned for a lack of turnovers and sacks, is actually playing some of its best football right now. Dallas limited Washington to one touchdown, 260 yards of total offense and 15 first downs Monday night in a 19-16 win.

The Cowboys rank 11th in offensive points allowed with 19.5 per game, which would be outstanding if they didn’t rank last in turnovers forced (eight) and 23rd in sacks (23).

If the Cowboys are going to have any chance to make the playoffs, then their best players -- the guys who make the most cash -- must play their best football.

It all starts with Lee on defense, and he willingly accepts the responsibility the way any good leader would.

As a weakside linebacker, Lee is playing one of the three key positions -- the 3-technique defensive tackle and safety are equally important -- in defensive coordinator Rod Marinelli’s scheme.

Lee reminded us, once again, against Washington that he's capable of dominating a game. He finished with 13 tackles, two tackles for loss and a sack.

He made plays sideline to sideline, and chased others down from behind. Lee’s best play occurred on the first play of the fourth quarter -- and it fooled him at first.

On third-and-5 from the Dallas 30, Washington quarterback Kirk Cousins faked a run and threw a receiver screen to Jamison Crowder, who had a blocker in front of him and room to run.

Lee, aligned near the line of scrimmage, took four strides to the left and found himself a foot beyond the left hashmark before he realized Cousins was throwing the ball. He immediately sprinted in a straight line across the field and made a form tackle on Crowder for a 2-yard gain.

If Lee hadn’t made the tackle, Crowder would have gained at least 15 or 20 yards. Maybe he would've scored. Instead, the Redskins settled for a 46-yard field goal and a 9-6 lead.

“That was a remarkable play,” coach Jason Garrett said. “He reacts to the fake, then somehow, someway gets back over to where the ball is. He’s just a damn good player with great instincts and feel for the game. His preparation is off the charts. His intensity and love for the game is really unparalleled.

“I thought his performance against Washington was him at his best. When you look at the plays he made, he made so many different kinds of plays.”

Lee has played well all season, but he hasn’t been the consistent playmaking and dominant presence he has been in the past. Lee, who has a penchant for forcing turnovers, has 12 career interceptions but none since Week 2.

He had 16 tackles in a 20-10 win over Philadelphia. Since then he left two games with concussion-like symptoms and missed one game as a precaution.

With all the information we have about the long-term effects of concussions, two in one season is enough to concern any player and his family. Even a blue-collar linebacker from Pennsylvania, who knows how to play only one way.

His wife gave her blessing. So did his family.

“There are certain things you just aren’t going to be able to avoid,” Lee said earlier this month. “You have to tackle the right way and with the right form. If you try to play a different way, it’ll probably lead to more injuries.

“Obviously, there are risks playing this game, but you have to let it go and play.”

That mindset allows Lee to focus on playing instead of his health. Lee, who missed last season with a torn ACL, said he’s getting more comfortable playing weakside linebacker. It’s a new position, which means he’s still learning the scheme’s nuances.

“I’ve just been trying to learn when I can go fast and when I have to tempo things a little bit within the different defenses and different blitzes,” Lee said. “When you understand how teams attack us and what they want to do, you can play faster and the faster you play the more you're around the ball."

He’s making more plays, and it’s having an impact on his teammates. The Cowboys’ defense played one of its best games against Washington. The Cowboys gang-tackled and played with an intensity that hasn't always been there this season.

“It’s finding a way to get around the ball more and getting hits on the ball and if you do that you’ll get turnovers,” Lee said. “We have a standard defensively that we want to live by. We want to play a certain way no matter the situation because that’s what’s going to lead to wins."
 

UncleMilti

This seemed like a good idea at the time.
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It's a shame the PT Barnum clan refuses to upgrade our safeties....Marinellis D would be a lot better if there was 2 ballhawk/sure tacklers back there.
 

ravidubey

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Two dynamite performances from Lee on the road in the division, and the rest has been between meh and a dumpster fire thanks to his inability to stay on the field.

He's either getting concussed or gushing arterial spray from his lip.

Too bad the team needs him so badly. He represents yet another Jones shortcut.
 
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