Jean-Jacques Taylor
ESPN Staff Writer
FRISCO, Texas -- You could spend hours scouring all types of statistical data and not find a single reason to support why the Dallas Cowboys' defense is holding opponents to 17.8 points per game.
The Cowboys give up 4.35 yards per carry, 21st in the NFL. And 5.86 yards per play, 23rd in the NFL. They have forced only 29 negative plays, tied for 27th in the NFL.
The Cowboys have allowed a 45.1 percent conversion rate on third down, 29th in the league. Their nine forced turnovers is tied for 12th and their 11 sacks rank 24th.
See?
The easy answer is to say the Cowboys' defense isn't on the field that much since their offense leads the league in time of possession at 33 minutes, 9 seconds per game. That limits the number of possessions for the opponent and protects the Cowboys' defense.
Too easy.
Perhaps the reason why the Cowboys' defense is having strong results is as simple as they’re tackling better. When you tackle well, drives end when they’re supposed to end because a runner didn’t break free and pick up a first down.
A runner didn’t escape the grasp of a defender and was tackled for a loss, setting up second- or third-and-long. A quarterback didn’t escape a sack, wrecking a drive.
Good tackling doesn’t necessarily show up in stats, but the cumulative effect is noticeable.
“Every team is going to have missed tackles and you want to keep missed tackles to a minimum,” coach Jason Garrett said. “At times this year, we’ve done a good job of that.
“Sometimes, we’ve tackled well in games and still had missed tackles. Our goal is never to have missed tackles. Minimize any kind of run and maximize the opportunity to take a guy to the ground.”
League rules permit a total of 14 padded practices during the season, with 11 of those conducted during the first 11 weeks of the season. Teams don’t use full-contact drills during the season, making it more difficult to simulate tackling during practice.
“We’re tackling more physically than we have,” Garrett said. “There are a lot of different ways you can work on tackling. It's one of the hardest things to work on in practice.
“We do a lot of drills at all levels of our defense. We want to be a disciplined team. Tackling has a lot to do with angles, having the pursuit and then the actual physical part of tackling is critical. The best defenses I’ve ever been around, the defenses I’ve ever seen are great tackling teams.”
The Cowboys are playing hard on defense and follow defensive coordinator Rod Marinelli’s mantra of sprinting to the ball on every play. He charts loafs, snaps when defensive players fail to play with maximum effort.
The Cowboys have a rotation they like on the defensive line and linebacker, so players stay fresh. Linebacker Sean Lee is the only member of the front seven averaging more than 50 plays per game.
“It’s not one guy making the tackle, it's the whole team making the tackle. Everybody has a role in that,” Garrett said. “The more hats to the ball, the better opportunity you have to tackle the guy, the better opportunity you have to punch the ball out and then create turnovers and takeaways as a result of that.
“That’s always something we emphasize and we can always do it better and better.”
ESPN Staff Writer
FRISCO, Texas -- You could spend hours scouring all types of statistical data and not find a single reason to support why the Dallas Cowboys' defense is holding opponents to 17.8 points per game.
The Cowboys give up 4.35 yards per carry, 21st in the NFL. And 5.86 yards per play, 23rd in the NFL. They have forced only 29 negative plays, tied for 27th in the NFL.
The Cowboys have allowed a 45.1 percent conversion rate on third down, 29th in the league. Their nine forced turnovers is tied for 12th and their 11 sacks rank 24th.
See?
The easy answer is to say the Cowboys' defense isn't on the field that much since their offense leads the league in time of possession at 33 minutes, 9 seconds per game. That limits the number of possessions for the opponent and protects the Cowboys' defense.
Too easy.
Perhaps the reason why the Cowboys' defense is having strong results is as simple as they’re tackling better. When you tackle well, drives end when they’re supposed to end because a runner didn’t break free and pick up a first down.
A runner didn’t escape the grasp of a defender and was tackled for a loss, setting up second- or third-and-long. A quarterback didn’t escape a sack, wrecking a drive.
Good tackling doesn’t necessarily show up in stats, but the cumulative effect is noticeable.
“Every team is going to have missed tackles and you want to keep missed tackles to a minimum,” coach Jason Garrett said. “At times this year, we’ve done a good job of that.
“Sometimes, we’ve tackled well in games and still had missed tackles. Our goal is never to have missed tackles. Minimize any kind of run and maximize the opportunity to take a guy to the ground.”
League rules permit a total of 14 padded practices during the season, with 11 of those conducted during the first 11 weeks of the season. Teams don’t use full-contact drills during the season, making it more difficult to simulate tackling during practice.
“We’re tackling more physically than we have,” Garrett said. “There are a lot of different ways you can work on tackling. It's one of the hardest things to work on in practice.
“We do a lot of drills at all levels of our defense. We want to be a disciplined team. Tackling has a lot to do with angles, having the pursuit and then the actual physical part of tackling is critical. The best defenses I’ve ever been around, the defenses I’ve ever seen are great tackling teams.”
The Cowboys are playing hard on defense and follow defensive coordinator Rod Marinelli’s mantra of sprinting to the ball on every play. He charts loafs, snaps when defensive players fail to play with maximum effort.
The Cowboys have a rotation they like on the defensive line and linebacker, so players stay fresh. Linebacker Sean Lee is the only member of the front seven averaging more than 50 plays per game.
“It’s not one guy making the tackle, it's the whole team making the tackle. Everybody has a role in that,” Garrett said. “The more hats to the ball, the better opportunity you have to tackle the guy, the better opportunity you have to punch the ball out and then create turnovers and takeaways as a result of that.
“That’s always something we emphasize and we can always do it better and better.”
