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Eberflus Report Week 5 - A Very Decent Week!
Signs of life have emerged with 5 sacks and 32 pressures. But still there is plenty to clean up moving forward for defense.
Bob Sturm
Oct 08, 2025
Here we go. Our objectives today will be:
OVERALL DEFENSIVE EVALUATION
To do this Eberflus report justice, we must offer a fair appraisal of the first four games.
They were absolutely, positively awful. Through four games against the Eagles, Giants, Bears, and Packers, the Cowboys defense played well enough to probably win none of them.
Their best game as a defense – at Philadelphia – featured an entire first half where they allowed a touchdown on every single drive. They finally got some stops in the second half, but when you start the season going “TD-TD-TD” in the first three drives, you probably do not deserve to win.
Then the Giants played the game of their lives. Look at this not-fun fact: The Giants lead the NFL in 20-plus air yard attempts. All 7 of their completions came in one game vs Dallas. They’re 0-for-15 on deep shots in the other four games.
Next were the Bears. The Bears young and erratic QB averaged 10.6 yards per pass, threw for four touchdowns, and was sacked zero times making him the first Cowboys opponent since 1973 and only the 2nd one ever to accomplish that feat (Rams QB John Hadl apparently pulled that off 52 years ago).
Finally, the Packers, where the Cowboys managed to give up 40 points, allow scores on each of Green Bay’s last five drives, and allow 489 yards, and somehow still not lose. In fact, they earned a tie in a game where any stop whatsoever probably would have given them a very hard earned win. Instead, they allowed 108 points in three weeks and held the following spots in the league’s defensive rankings:
You absolutely are not allowed to look down at any opponent if you are running 32nd in that many categories. If this was soccer, they would relegate you right out of the league to a lower level (Cowboys to the Big 12?) and while that will never happen, you should be humbled enough to not think you can “big brother” anyone – including Justin Fields and the New York Jets.
Lots of good things happened vs Jets
This team needed a slump-buster and they weren’t going to be picky about how it went down. And, to the credit of all involved, they were able to begin the 2nd 25% of the season with an opponent that is not nearly as scary as the Green Bay Packers were the week before. The Jets were above average in almost nothing – other than running the ball. Interestingly, enough, that was an issue. But, everything else? Pretty decent work!
Dallas allowed just 5.2 yards per play, had 5 sacks, and only allowed 4.6 yards per pass which was easily the lowest mark all year.
But, even better, I think there is context that should be considered, so let’s do it once we look at the Jets drive chart. I took the liberty to draw the green line late in the 3rd Quarter when George Pickens caught that long touchdown to make the score 30-3, Cowboys.
At that point, with Dallas up four touchdowns with only 19 minutes to play, the game was over. Garbage time remained and the Jets would have a chance to apply some cosmetics to this home game embarrassment against a defense who couldn’t stop anyone, but it would only be cosmetics.
So, during those first eight drives, the Jets had 43 plays in which they earned 10 first downs and 163 yards for a total of 3 points. 3.8 yards per play and 3 points when the game got to 30-3.
Now, I am not saying that garbage time is not important, but in a dead stadium against a dead team, the intensity will drop and the backups will play more.
Down the stretch, the Jets used those 19 minutes of garbage time to regain some stats:
32 plays, 217 yards, 15 first downs, and 19 points. An average of 6.8 yards per play.
So, yes, the Jets had 378 yards and 25 first downs. Both of those will get red marks this week on our data board below, but I think context tells you that they gained almost all of that when they were down four touchdowns and we just aren’t going to sweat that when the dogs are called off.
I am not here to say everything was perfect on Sunday, but comparatively speaking, it was a wildly positive day that we will attempt to build off of in our attempt to work this defense into the Top 20-25 defenses in the league in the final 12 games of the year.
Is that too much to ask? It might be, but let’s try.
The one major problem from Sunday
The following is a reel of the major issue from Sunday and I bet you already know what the reel will show.
But, let’s look at it.
0:00 - Jadeveon Clowney is completely washed out, Kenneth Murray with a poor attempt at a tackle for a linebacker, Trevon Diggs and Donovan Wilson both miss and Breece Hall is off to the races for 22 yards.
0:16 - Kenny Clark and Mazi Smith are walled off from a wide open gap right up the gut and Kenneth Murray has no hope to beat his block. Jack Sanborn must save this play and really doesn’t come very close and Hall is off again to the races, this time for 16 yards.
0:28 - Kenny Clark jumps in the A-Gap and that leaves Dante Fowler to close down on Hall, but he stands flat-footed. Mazi Smith is walked right out of the mix altogether. Again, Kenneth Murray has no interest in attempting to beat his block and Shemar James is too far away to make a play. Hall dances through a gigantic hole and goes for another 21 yards.
0:44 - Clark and Osa Odighizuwa have duo run right at them and the Jets walk them both right out of the screen. So, who else is here to help? My linebackers have no idea and Kenneth Murray jumps out of the way in one direction and Shemar James jumps the other way almost like they are dodging a car. I am wondering what Murray would say about these plays at this point. Each one is brutal and they are saved on this one because Liufau punches the ball loose, at least.
0:57 - I think we are seeing the pattern now. These linebackers – especially once Sanborn left – have no chance against the run and any opponent is going to see this and attempt to take advantage.
1:10 - This looks like all DT work here because if their G-C go untouched right to your linebackers, those smaller guys are in trouble. The DT’s have to do better than Thomas and Mazi here and they just don’t look like they are competing at a top level.
The best way to describe those six runs is “yikes!”
Forty yards over expectations? Oh my, that is rough.
The good news is that the passing game was contained pretty well.
And much of that is due to increased pass pressure which we assume is due to increased blitzing. 13 blitzes are quite a few, especially with much of it early on.
Feature Players: James Houston (again) and Marist Liufau
James Houston is a story and it is becoming a bigger deal each week. Yes, he is small and yes, he is limited. But, doggone does he make things happen. Check out this reel from his day of pressures and sacks.
Some guys just have a natural knack for getting through traffic and I believe Houston is a natural. His bend at 0:40 is magnificent and I just think he is forcing his way onto the field as this team cannot compete on defense without pass pressure and he is getting home as much as anyone.
Now, Marist Liufau:
Marist was a third-round pick in 2024 and I suppose it is possible that he doesn’t fit what the defense wants to do with all of the changes where he was picked for Mike Zimmer and now perhaps Eberflus isn’t feeling it. But, linebacker has been dire this year and I just need to see more. Is he great? Probably not. But, in this game he had three different splash plays and I wanted to show you that reel because you can see him getting to the ball and punching it loose and then breaking up a 4th down.
I want to see more because the vets they are playing are just not doing it for me.
Splash Plays - Week 5
Season leaderboard:
Additional Film Study
OK, let’s look at a few more plays – most of them good for the defense.
1Q - 7:50 - 3-7-DAL 7- J.Fields pass incomplete short right to B.Hall (D.Fowler).
This was a really nice job of defending a 3rd down in the deep red zone where Dante Fowler blocked the pass with his face mask. This is also the play where the wire cam might have kept Kenny Clark from a touchdown as you will see below:
Kenny was ready to run!
1Q - 3:05 - 3-5-DAL 43 - J.Fields pass incomplete short right [K.Murray].
Next possession and another 3rd down where Fields tries to extend the play to the right sideline and there great pursuit from Murray to get to him fast. He is poor against the run, but running to the sideline still reminds us of his work for Oklahoma once upon a time.
2Q - 11:04 - 2-5-NYJ 45 - J.Fields sacked at NYJ 31 for -14 yards (O.Odighizuwa).
This is probably as much a coverage sack as it is a huge win up front, but Osa absolutely destroys his man and gets home with strength and quickness. Nicely done for sure.
2Q - 2:27 - 1-10-DAL 23 - B.Hall left guard to DAL 13 for 10 yards (M.Liufau). FUMBLES (M.Liufau), RECOVERED by DAL-S.Williams at DAL 9.
We already talked about this, but it really is the play of the game. You have to generate takeaways, so when a player punches the ball out, we are going to make sure he gets his notice. Well done.
2Q - 0:48 - 2-10-NYJ 22 - J.Fields sacked at NYJ 15 for -7 yards (sack split by J.Houston and K.Clark).
Next drive, another big drive-killer by the defense which turned into another touchdown. This is a fine job with a stunt from the DTs and then Houston comes in to clean up Kenny Clark’s work. They need this violence when rushing and it makes all the difference to hit them hard and with suddenness.
3Q - 11:34 - 3-8-NYJ 43 - J.Fields sacked at NYJ 34 for -9 yards (S.Williams).
3rd and long and we are seeing more Sam Williams inside on these downs and he just destroys this poor RG 66-Joe Tippmann in front of him. The club move demonstrated some real high-level muscle there.
3Q - 5:21 - 4-1-DAL 47 - J.Fields pass incomplete short left to A.Beck (K.Murray)
Here is that 4th down stop where 41-Ezeiruaku and 35-Liufau are there in a hurry and cloud the vision and path of Fields to get the turnover on downs. Good speed and decisiveness to get home and end a drive.
Here is Statbutler.com’s snap info from Anthony Reinhard.
So, in their first game without Malik Hooker, they also lose Jack Sanborn. Linebacker is getting thin and safety has already been thin.
Carolina is next and this will be a real challenge for the defense, but every week is in this league. They have to continue to build on this. This was better, but as you now see, far from perfect. They have a lot of work to do.
Signs of life have emerged with 5 sacks and 32 pressures. But still there is plenty to clean up moving forward for defense.
Bob Sturm
Oct 08, 2025
Here we go. Our objectives today will be:
- Overall Defensive Evaluation - Not that bad!
- Lots of good things were seen vs Jets
- The one major problem from Sunday
- Feature Players: James Houston (again) and Marist Liufau
- Additional Film Study
- Splash Plays and Playing Time
OVERALL DEFENSIVE EVALUATION
To do this Eberflus report justice, we must offer a fair appraisal of the first four games.
They were absolutely, positively awful. Through four games against the Eagles, Giants, Bears, and Packers, the Cowboys defense played well enough to probably win none of them.
Their best game as a defense – at Philadelphia – featured an entire first half where they allowed a touchdown on every single drive. They finally got some stops in the second half, but when you start the season going “TD-TD-TD” in the first three drives, you probably do not deserve to win.
Then the Giants played the game of their lives. Look at this not-fun fact: The Giants lead the NFL in 20-plus air yard attempts. All 7 of their completions came in one game vs Dallas. They’re 0-for-15 on deep shots in the other four games.
Next were the Bears. The Bears young and erratic QB averaged 10.6 yards per pass, threw for four touchdowns, and was sacked zero times making him the first Cowboys opponent since 1973 and only the 2nd one ever to accomplish that feat (Rams QB John Hadl apparently pulled that off 52 years ago).
Finally, the Packers, where the Cowboys managed to give up 40 points, allow scores on each of Green Bay’s last five drives, and allow 489 yards, and somehow still not lose. In fact, they earned a tie in a game where any stop whatsoever probably would have given them a very hard earned win. Instead, they allowed 108 points in three weeks and held the following spots in the league’s defensive rankings:
- 31st in points allowed (out of 32 teams).
- 32nd in total yards allowed.
- 32nd in passing yards allowed.
- 26th in takeaways.
- 32nd in 3rd downs allowed.
- 32nd in explosive plays allowed.
- 28th in sacks.
You absolutely are not allowed to look down at any opponent if you are running 32nd in that many categories. If this was soccer, they would relegate you right out of the league to a lower level (Cowboys to the Big 12?) and while that will never happen, you should be humbled enough to not think you can “big brother” anyone – including Justin Fields and the New York Jets.
Lots of good things happened vs Jets
This team needed a slump-buster and they weren’t going to be picky about how it went down. And, to the credit of all involved, they were able to begin the 2nd 25% of the season with an opponent that is not nearly as scary as the Green Bay Packers were the week before. The Jets were above average in almost nothing – other than running the ball. Interestingly, enough, that was an issue. But, everything else? Pretty decent work!
Dallas allowed just 5.2 yards per play, had 5 sacks, and only allowed 4.6 yards per pass which was easily the lowest mark all year.
But, even better, I think there is context that should be considered, so let’s do it once we look at the Jets drive chart. I took the liberty to draw the green line late in the 3rd Quarter when George Pickens caught that long touchdown to make the score 30-3, Cowboys.
At that point, with Dallas up four touchdowns with only 19 minutes to play, the game was over. Garbage time remained and the Jets would have a chance to apply some cosmetics to this home game embarrassment against a defense who couldn’t stop anyone, but it would only be cosmetics.
So, during those first eight drives, the Jets had 43 plays in which they earned 10 first downs and 163 yards for a total of 3 points. 3.8 yards per play and 3 points when the game got to 30-3.
Now, I am not saying that garbage time is not important, but in a dead stadium against a dead team, the intensity will drop and the backups will play more.
Down the stretch, the Jets used those 19 minutes of garbage time to regain some stats:
32 plays, 217 yards, 15 first downs, and 19 points. An average of 6.8 yards per play.
So, yes, the Jets had 378 yards and 25 first downs. Both of those will get red marks this week on our data board below, but I think context tells you that they gained almost all of that when they were down four touchdowns and we just aren’t going to sweat that when the dogs are called off.
I am not here to say everything was perfect on Sunday, but comparatively speaking, it was a wildly positive day that we will attempt to build off of in our attempt to work this defense into the Top 20-25 defenses in the league in the final 12 games of the year.
Is that too much to ask? It might be, but let’s try.
The one major problem from Sunday
The following is a reel of the major issue from Sunday and I bet you already know what the reel will show.
But, let’s look at it.
0:00 - Jadeveon Clowney is completely washed out, Kenneth Murray with a poor attempt at a tackle for a linebacker, Trevon Diggs and Donovan Wilson both miss and Breece Hall is off to the races for 22 yards.
0:16 - Kenny Clark and Mazi Smith are walled off from a wide open gap right up the gut and Kenneth Murray has no hope to beat his block. Jack Sanborn must save this play and really doesn’t come very close and Hall is off again to the races, this time for 16 yards.
0:28 - Kenny Clark jumps in the A-Gap and that leaves Dante Fowler to close down on Hall, but he stands flat-footed. Mazi Smith is walked right out of the mix altogether. Again, Kenneth Murray has no interest in attempting to beat his block and Shemar James is too far away to make a play. Hall dances through a gigantic hole and goes for another 21 yards.
0:44 - Clark and Osa Odighizuwa have duo run right at them and the Jets walk them both right out of the screen. So, who else is here to help? My linebackers have no idea and Kenneth Murray jumps out of the way in one direction and Shemar James jumps the other way almost like they are dodging a car. I am wondering what Murray would say about these plays at this point. Each one is brutal and they are saved on this one because Liufau punches the ball loose, at least.
0:57 - I think we are seeing the pattern now. These linebackers – especially once Sanborn left – have no chance against the run and any opponent is going to see this and attempt to take advantage.
1:10 - This looks like all DT work here because if their G-C go untouched right to your linebackers, those smaller guys are in trouble. The DT’s have to do better than Thomas and Mazi here and they just don’t look like they are competing at a top level.
The best way to describe those six runs is “yikes!”
Forty yards over expectations? Oh my, that is rough.
The good news is that the passing game was contained pretty well.
And much of that is due to increased pass pressure which we assume is due to increased blitzing. 13 blitzes are quite a few, especially with much of it early on.
Feature Players: James Houston (again) and Marist Liufau
James Houston is a story and it is becoming a bigger deal each week. Yes, he is small and yes, he is limited. But, doggone does he make things happen. Check out this reel from his day of pressures and sacks.
Some guys just have a natural knack for getting through traffic and I believe Houston is a natural. His bend at 0:40 is magnificent and I just think he is forcing his way onto the field as this team cannot compete on defense without pass pressure and he is getting home as much as anyone.
Now, Marist Liufau:
Marist was a third-round pick in 2024 and I suppose it is possible that he doesn’t fit what the defense wants to do with all of the changes where he was picked for Mike Zimmer and now perhaps Eberflus isn’t feeling it. But, linebacker has been dire this year and I just need to see more. Is he great? Probably not. But, in this game he had three different splash plays and I wanted to show you that reel because you can see him getting to the ball and punching it loose and then breaking up a 4th down.
I want to see more because the vets they are playing are just not doing it for me.
Splash Plays - Week 5
Season leaderboard:
Additional Film Study
OK, let’s look at a few more plays – most of them good for the defense.
1Q - 7:50 - 3-7-DAL 7- J.Fields pass incomplete short right to B.Hall (D.Fowler).
This was a really nice job of defending a 3rd down in the deep red zone where Dante Fowler blocked the pass with his face mask. This is also the play where the wire cam might have kept Kenny Clark from a touchdown as you will see below:
Kenny was ready to run!
1Q - 3:05 - 3-5-DAL 43 - J.Fields pass incomplete short right [K.Murray].
Next possession and another 3rd down where Fields tries to extend the play to the right sideline and there great pursuit from Murray to get to him fast. He is poor against the run, but running to the sideline still reminds us of his work for Oklahoma once upon a time.
2Q - 11:04 - 2-5-NYJ 45 - J.Fields sacked at NYJ 31 for -14 yards (O.Odighizuwa).
This is probably as much a coverage sack as it is a huge win up front, but Osa absolutely destroys his man and gets home with strength and quickness. Nicely done for sure.
2Q - 2:27 - 1-10-DAL 23 - B.Hall left guard to DAL 13 for 10 yards (M.Liufau). FUMBLES (M.Liufau), RECOVERED by DAL-S.Williams at DAL 9.
We already talked about this, but it really is the play of the game. You have to generate takeaways, so when a player punches the ball out, we are going to make sure he gets his notice. Well done.
2Q - 0:48 - 2-10-NYJ 22 - J.Fields sacked at NYJ 15 for -7 yards (sack split by J.Houston and K.Clark).
Next drive, another big drive-killer by the defense which turned into another touchdown. This is a fine job with a stunt from the DTs and then Houston comes in to clean up Kenny Clark’s work. They need this violence when rushing and it makes all the difference to hit them hard and with suddenness.
3Q - 11:34 - 3-8-NYJ 43 - J.Fields sacked at NYJ 34 for -9 yards (S.Williams).
3rd and long and we are seeing more Sam Williams inside on these downs and he just destroys this poor RG 66-Joe Tippmann in front of him. The club move demonstrated some real high-level muscle there.
3Q - 5:21 - 4-1-DAL 47 - J.Fields pass incomplete short left to A.Beck (K.Murray)
Here is that 4th down stop where 41-Ezeiruaku and 35-Liufau are there in a hurry and cloud the vision and path of Fields to get the turnover on downs. Good speed and decisiveness to get home and end a drive.
Here is Statbutler.com’s snap info from Anthony Reinhard.
So, in their first game without Malik Hooker, they also lose Jack Sanborn. Linebacker is getting thin and safety has already been thin.
Carolina is next and this will be a real challenge for the defense, but every week is in this league. They have to continue to build on this. This was better, but as you now see, far from perfect. They have a lot of work to do.
