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By Jon Machota 55m ago
With NFL free agency in its second week and the draft still planned for the end of April, we’re taking a look at the Cowboys’ roster to see where it has depth and where it still needs help.
How the linebackers performed in 2019:
This position was probably the biggest disappointment on last year’s roster. A group led by Leighton Vander Esch, Jaylon Smith and Sean Lee was expected to be one of the best units in the NFL and one of the Cowboys’ greatest strengths. Instead, Vander Esch and Smith didn’t make the same impact they did in 2018, and the entire defense became better known for missed tackles than game-changing plays.
Vander Esch got off to a slow start to his second season and then began dealing with a nerve issue in his neck. He didn’t play again after Week 11. Smith made his first Pro Bowl, as he tied for sixth in the NFL with 142 total tackles, but looked less than ideal in coverage. Lee played well down the stretch, filling in for Vander Esch and proving he still had some gas left in his tank after 10 NFL seasons. Lee finished second on the team in tackles with 86 and turned in one of the best performances of his career in a Week 15 win over the Los Angeles Rams.
The Cowboys had good depth at the position with key reserves like Joe Thomas, Justin March, Chris Covington, Luke Gifford and late-season addition (and former Super Bowl MVP) Malcolm Smith.
The future:
The Cowboys front office has said all offseason that they expect a full recovery from Vander Esch, who had neck surgery in January. The expectation was that he would be a full participant in the offseason program.
“He is 100 percent in my eyes,” Cowboys owner Jerry Jones said last month. “One-hundred percent. That situation was not in any way going to compromise him. There are aspects to it that you want to be aware of. But not from a standpoint of that he has to take something off his game or has to do something differently. It was just a rare thing that created that problem for him.”
There’s no reason why the combination of Vander Esch and Smith shouldn’t be one of the league’s best linebacker duos. They both have exceptional athletic ability that fits well with today’s style of play with more nickel and dime packages. Both linebackers showed incredible potential in 2018, making key plays in several big games.
Jones noted the lack of big games from key players when asked last month about why the team significantly disappointed last season.
“I just think we, at critical times — critical games — we didn’t meet the mark,” he said. “Across the board, we had top players that didn’t step up. And when I say step up, have big games against some of the better teams. And that has to do with why we have really, in the last two years, we’ve really made some pretty dramatic (coaching changes).”
The hope is that new defensive coordinator Mike Nolan and his veteran staff can spark the group. Nolan coached the Saints linebackers over the last three seasons. He coached the Chargers linebackers in 2015. Scott McCurley was hired to be the Cowboys’ linebackers coach in January. McCurley was a longtime assistant on Mike McCarthy’s coaching staff in Green Bay.
“I’m excited to start to build a relationship with them, to begin with,” McCurley said of Vander Esch, Smith and Lee. “They’re good people, and that’s where it’s all going to start with our relationship and how we build that relationship, the respect and the trust and all those things. Because on the football field, they’re talented. Across the board, their skills and skill set, we can work with that. And we can build and get them to grow. They’ve already accomplished a lot. We’re looking to build off of that. We’re looking to grow and get them better every day.”
How things could continue changing this offseason:
During McCurley’s time in Green Bay, the Packers went from a 4-3 defense to a 3-4, a transition the Cowboys have the personnel to make. The Saints were in a 4-3 defense with Nolan the last three years, but Nolan was part of a 3-4 scheme with the Chargers in 2015. Vander Esch and Smith have the ability to be inside linebackers in a 3-4 scheme. Lee was drafted to be an inside linebacker when the Cowboys were running a 3-4 defense in 2010.
McCarthy has said that he wants to be a four-down-lineman defense, but has also noted that the Cowboys will be multiple, looking for the best ways to get their top playmakers on the field.
In regards to the personnel, it should look very similar to last season. Vander Esch is under contract through the 2021 season and the Cowboys hold his fifth-year rookie contract option that could keep him signed through 2022. Smith is signed through 2025 but there is a potential out in his contract after the 2021 season. Lee re-signed on a one-year deal last week. The Cowboys also re-signed Thomas and March to one-year deals last week.
A potential sleeper candidate in the group is Gifford. He was an undrafted player they signed last year who suffered a left high ankle sprain during Dallas’ first preseason game at San Francisco. He returned to play on special teams for six games but then fractured his left arm in Week 15. The previous coaching staff thought a lot of his ability. It’s unlikely that Dallas would target a linebacker in the draft until maybe one of the final rounds.
The Cowboys need to be much better on special teams, and this group of linebackers will have a significant impact on improving that unit.
With NFL free agency in its second week and the draft still planned for the end of April, we’re taking a look at the Cowboys’ roster to see where it has depth and where it still needs help.
How the linebackers performed in 2019:
This position was probably the biggest disappointment on last year’s roster. A group led by Leighton Vander Esch, Jaylon Smith and Sean Lee was expected to be one of the best units in the NFL and one of the Cowboys’ greatest strengths. Instead, Vander Esch and Smith didn’t make the same impact they did in 2018, and the entire defense became better known for missed tackles than game-changing plays.
Vander Esch got off to a slow start to his second season and then began dealing with a nerve issue in his neck. He didn’t play again after Week 11. Smith made his first Pro Bowl, as he tied for sixth in the NFL with 142 total tackles, but looked less than ideal in coverage. Lee played well down the stretch, filling in for Vander Esch and proving he still had some gas left in his tank after 10 NFL seasons. Lee finished second on the team in tackles with 86 and turned in one of the best performances of his career in a Week 15 win over the Los Angeles Rams.
The Cowboys had good depth at the position with key reserves like Joe Thomas, Justin March, Chris Covington, Luke Gifford and late-season addition (and former Super Bowl MVP) Malcolm Smith.
The future:
The Cowboys front office has said all offseason that they expect a full recovery from Vander Esch, who had neck surgery in January. The expectation was that he would be a full participant in the offseason program.
“He is 100 percent in my eyes,” Cowboys owner Jerry Jones said last month. “One-hundred percent. That situation was not in any way going to compromise him. There are aspects to it that you want to be aware of. But not from a standpoint of that he has to take something off his game or has to do something differently. It was just a rare thing that created that problem for him.”
There’s no reason why the combination of Vander Esch and Smith shouldn’t be one of the league’s best linebacker duos. They both have exceptional athletic ability that fits well with today’s style of play with more nickel and dime packages. Both linebackers showed incredible potential in 2018, making key plays in several big games.
Jones noted the lack of big games from key players when asked last month about why the team significantly disappointed last season.
“I just think we, at critical times — critical games — we didn’t meet the mark,” he said. “Across the board, we had top players that didn’t step up. And when I say step up, have big games against some of the better teams. And that has to do with why we have really, in the last two years, we’ve really made some pretty dramatic (coaching changes).”
The hope is that new defensive coordinator Mike Nolan and his veteran staff can spark the group. Nolan coached the Saints linebackers over the last three seasons. He coached the Chargers linebackers in 2015. Scott McCurley was hired to be the Cowboys’ linebackers coach in January. McCurley was a longtime assistant on Mike McCarthy’s coaching staff in Green Bay.
“I’m excited to start to build a relationship with them, to begin with,” McCurley said of Vander Esch, Smith and Lee. “They’re good people, and that’s where it’s all going to start with our relationship and how we build that relationship, the respect and the trust and all those things. Because on the football field, they’re talented. Across the board, their skills and skill set, we can work with that. And we can build and get them to grow. They’ve already accomplished a lot. We’re looking to build off of that. We’re looking to grow and get them better every day.”
How things could continue changing this offseason:
During McCurley’s time in Green Bay, the Packers went from a 4-3 defense to a 3-4, a transition the Cowboys have the personnel to make. The Saints were in a 4-3 defense with Nolan the last three years, but Nolan was part of a 3-4 scheme with the Chargers in 2015. Vander Esch and Smith have the ability to be inside linebackers in a 3-4 scheme. Lee was drafted to be an inside linebacker when the Cowboys were running a 3-4 defense in 2010.
McCarthy has said that he wants to be a four-down-lineman defense, but has also noted that the Cowboys will be multiple, looking for the best ways to get their top playmakers on the field.
In regards to the personnel, it should look very similar to last season. Vander Esch is under contract through the 2021 season and the Cowboys hold his fifth-year rookie contract option that could keep him signed through 2022. Smith is signed through 2025 but there is a potential out in his contract after the 2021 season. Lee re-signed on a one-year deal last week. The Cowboys also re-signed Thomas and March to one-year deals last week.
A potential sleeper candidate in the group is Gifford. He was an undrafted player they signed last year who suffered a left high ankle sprain during Dallas’ first preseason game at San Francisco. He returned to play on special teams for six games but then fractured his left arm in Week 15. The previous coaching staff thought a lot of his ability. It’s unlikely that Dallas would target a linebacker in the draft until maybe one of the final rounds.
The Cowboys need to be much better on special teams, and this group of linebackers will have a significant impact on improving that unit.
