Dallas Cowboys

Dallas Cowboys Dynasty: The Missing Defensive Pieces

Updated Mar. 4, 2020 10:22 p.m. ET

Fansided, Dyllan Larson/FanSided via The Landry Hat

The Dallas Cowboys have a promising young nucleus to build the team around. Adding these defensive pieces could make them a dynasty.

Jan 15, 2017; Arlington, TX, USA; Green Bay Packers receiver Davante Adams (17) runs after a catch against Dallas Cowboys cornerback Morris Claiborne (24) in the NFC Divisional playoff game at AT&T Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Matthew Emmons-USA TODAY Sports

This is part 2 of a 2 part series showcasing what pieces are missing to make the Dallas Cowboys consistent Super Bowl contenders. Part 2 will focus on the offense.

The 2016 Dallas Cowboys defense was surprisingly good, exceeding any expectations for the season where average, or worse, was expected.

The Dallas defense, led by All-Pro linebacker Sean Lee, finished 14th in the NFL in yards allowed.

They were the NFL’s best run defense, giving up just 83.5 yards per game on the ground. In the base defense, Dallas consistently played all gap assignments properly and stopped their foes from having success in the run game.The lone significant weakness in the Cowboys run defense was their inability to stop inside runs when the opposing offense was in three wide receiver sets- especially out of shotgun.

One of the glaring was concerns was giving up 260 passing yards per game which put them in the bottom 10 in the league. Despite giving up a lot of passing yards, the Cowboys finished 5th in scoring defense- giving up 19.3 points per game.

There were major concerns regarding the pass rush through the majority of the season. In the final month of the season Dallas finally found consistency in getting pressure and accumulating sacks. The Cowboys finished in the middle of the pack with 36.0 sacks.

Dallas was towards the bottom of the league in forcing turnovers, finishing with 20 takeaways which ranked them 19th. There were glimpses of being a ball hawking defense like the 2014 version of the Cowboys, but there were also glimpses of the futile 2015 version of the Cowboys.

These are the pieces that I believe are missing and have been missing in recent years, and if successfully added could make this defense a consistent strength of the team instead of a liability…

Aug 1, 2016; Irvine, CA, USA; Dallas Cowboys linebacker Jaylon Smith (54) at training camp at the River Ridge Fields. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports

Dynamic Middle Linebacker

I believe that the Cowboys already have this player on the roster in the form of 2016 2nd round pick Jaylon Smith. As is well documented, Jaylon Smith had a severe knee injury in his final college game that included nerve damage.

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All indications are that Smith will be ready for the 2017 season and the Cowboys are optimistic that he will be a significant difference maker for the defense.

Having a dynamic middle linebacker that is an athletic freak with great size and football instincts changes the way opposing offenses game plan for a 4-3 Tampa 2 defensive scheme.

The middle linebacker is responsible for the center of the deep part of the field when in cover 2 defense, and having an athletic freak back there that can really cover some ground helps take away the seam routes down the middle of the field.

Jaylon Smith is a once in a generation type of talent. His effort and focus on rehab to come back from his injury is a great example of the character that this man child possesses. If he is near full health when the 2017 season starts, I get the feeling that it won’t be long before Jaylon Smith is a household name.

Texas A&M defensive end Myles Garrett is not only the top edge rusher in the 2017 NFL Draft, he is likely the top player in the entire draft. Mandatory Credit: Troy Taormina-USA TODAY Sports

Dominant Pass Rushers

When your team leader in sacks finishes the season with only 6.0, there is a strong possibility that you lack a consistent pass rusher.

Unfortunately, since the significant injuries to DeMarcus Ware in 2013 (which led to the Cowboys releasing him), the Cowboys have not had a dynamic edge rusher that strikes fear into the hearts of quarterbacks and coaches across the league.

Dallas has tried big name free agent acquisitions like Greg Hardy. Hardy was a terrible teammate and gave up on the Cowboys in 2015 after they lost in New York. He was a risk/reward move that didn’t pan out. It happens.

They have tried under the radar signings like Benson Mayowa. Mayowa did lead the team in sacks with 6.0 this season but that isn’t enough to scare defenses. Some teams have edge rushers that can get close to six sacks in a game.

They have tried drafting an elite weak side defensive end to be the disruptive force necessary for the Tampa 2 defense to be at its best in the form of DeMarcus Lawrence; Lawrence is now undergoing his second back surgery at the young age of 24 and has been riddled with injuries and has been far from a game-changer in the action he has seen. He has been at his best at the strong side defensive end position, and led the team in sacks in 2015. I wouldn’t count on Lawrence being the dominant pass rusher Cowboys fans have been waiting for.

Another risk/reward move that has burned the Cowboys to this point was drafting Randy Gregory in the second round of the 2015 draft. Randy seems to enjoy cannabis more than playing football and if you want to be part of something special in the NFL, it has to be your passion. Not sure we will ever see an elite Randy Gregory because his love for the game isn’t there.

There is the slightest chance that defensive end Charles Tapper, a fourth round pick out of Oklahoma in 2016, can become the elite disruptive force that this team needs. He missed all of 2016 with a strange fracture in his back that he had been living with and had strange paralysis-type issues after a training camp practice. Hopefully he is ready like the team has claimed they expect him to be for the upcoming season.

It is unlikely that Dallas is able to select any of the top three edge rushers in the 2017 NFL Draft-Myles Garrett out of Texas A&M, Tennessee’s Derek Barnett, and Solomon Davis from Stanford without trading away an awful lot to move up 20 or more spots in the first round.

Luckily for the Cowboys, this year’s draft is ridiculously deep at the defensive end position and there will be plenty of quality players to choose from in the first few rounds, as well as a couple of sleepers later on in the draft.