After further review: Discipline the key ingredient in Cowboys run defense turnaround

Discipline remains an issue for the Dallas Cowboys defense.

The Dallas Cowboys won a football game on Thursday and many people aren’t sure how to feel about that. Beating the New York Giants isn’t something that comes with a merit badge these days as they’ve won seven straight against them and 13 in a row in games played by Dak Prescott. Having this 20-15 game come down to the wire created a lot of uneasiness for Cowboys Nation.

Winning is nice, but how it goes down is what’s important, which is why we take a closer look at the game every week. There was a lot to unpack in this one, but today we’re giving all our attention to the incredible run defense the Cowboys displayed on Thursday night. It wasn’t just that the Cowboys only allowed 26 rushing yards in this game, which in itself is very impressive as you’d have to go back to the Rod Marinelli days to find a game where they allowed fewer. It was the fact that they did that after looking like a paper-bag run defense over the last two games. The extremely contrasting nature of what we witnessed needs explanation and that’s what we’ll try to do today as we see what we can learn after further review

OUTSIDE CONTAIN

The Cowboys had been roasted on the outside in each of the previous two games. Any time there was a play to the outside, the opposing offense was getting 10 yards down the field before they were even touched.

This type of tomfoolery wasn’t on display on Thursday. The Giants tried to go outside, but the Cowboys did a much better job having defenders patiently hang on the edge trying to drive the action back inside. You could see better awareness when the ball was snapped and they didn’t have defenders just anxiously attacking. They were patient and trusted their teammates to do their job. It’s only one game, and that one game was the Giants, but this is very promising.

GAP INTEGRITY

Discipline was the name of the game for the Cowboys run defense. Not only did they have guys on the edge staying home, but the linebackers played like a group in unison for the first time this season. Eric Kendricks, DeMarvion Overshown, and Marist Liufau did a great job sticking to their assignments. It’s hard to remain disciplined and run into a blocker when the ball is going somewhere else, but fighting the temptation to go rogue and go off course is crucial. Of course, it only happens if the other guys do their job and that was happening on Thursday. Far too often, the Giants’ ball carriers had nowhere to go with the ball.

MAZI SHOWS UP IN A BIG WAY

“It all starts up front” is what they like to say. The Cowboys’ interior defensive line has been an Achilles heel for them for many years with some really terrible play coming early this year. The team changed out Justin Phillips for Carlos Watkins, but continues to put their faith in second-year defensive tackle Mazi Smith.

On Thursday night, Smith had the best game of his career. He was getting to the shoulder of the Giants blockers, splitting double teams, and resetting the line of scrimmage. The Giants had limited choices for where they could run the ball thanks to a greatly improved performance by the Cowboys defensive tackles.

Smith has earned his share of criticism as his draft spot brings with it heavy expectations. While some have already started throwing dirt on this “draft bust”, the notion that he could develop into something meaningful for this defense remains on the table. This performance provides a tiny bit of fuel to that potential outcome.

DEMO IS SPECIAL

Smith wasn’t the only second-year defensive player to ball out on Thursday. DeMarvion Overshown continues to flash. After starting in Week 1, he came off the bench in Week 2 as the team tinkered with different alignments. He’s back to starting again and is coming off 59 defensive snaps (86%), a career-high, and the fifth most defensive snaps in the game on Thursday.

Overshown did a great job recognizing the play and accelerating to his spot. There was a time when he got to the outside before his blocker, causing the running back to stop in his tracks and completely change directions. He came off his blocks better, and once he gets going, you know how it’s going to end.

Overshown is starting to turn into a little bit of a disruptor for opposing offenses. His speed and length are really hard to escape from.

DONO IS A WILD CARD

The Cowboys’ safety play is still something Mike Zimmer is trying to figure out. The hopes that Donovan Wilson would flourish in the second cover safety role seemed a little too optimistic. However, that’s not to say that Wilson can’t have a key role in the defense. He did a great job filling gaps and shooting inside to help against the run. He’s essentially the team’s fourth linebacker in run situations. At the line of scrimmage is where he belongs and if he gets a free shot on someone, he’s going to make them feel it.

It’s still a hit-or-miss deal with Wilson. He’ll make splash plays, but he’ll also get ole’d if the runner makes any sudden movement. He had a chance to make a nice fourth-down stop against the Giants but got caught leaning too far inside.

MICAH IS REALLY GOOD AT FOOTBALL

The Cowboys’ edge took a bit hit with injuries to Micah Parsons and DeMarcus Lawrence and it’s scary to think about how the Cowboys’ defense will look without them. Both are so disruptive in the trenches. Even when they don’t make plays, they’re making plays.

Parsons has been neutralized in games as defenses plan against him, but there’s only so much that can hold up. Eventually, he will get you.