Cowboy Roundup: Standout rookie gets midseason honor, New defensive front scheme

Happy Thursday, Dallas Cowboys Nation. We are officially kicking off Week 10 of the NFL regular season in primetime with an AFC West showdown. While the rest of the league gears up for the start of a new week and the weekend, Dallas will be watching from the sidelines.

We've reached the Cowboys' bye week at a crucial time of the season, with Dallas needing a complete reset after back-to-back letdowns.

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Dallas is also welcoming two new star defenders who were acquired at the trade deadline, with former Cincinnati Bengals linebacker Logan Wilson and former New York Jets All-Pro defensive tackle Quinnen Williams joining the mix.

New York Jets defensive tackle Quinnen Williams celebrates after a win over the Buffalo Bills at MetLife Stadium | Chris Pedota, NorthJersey.com / USA TODAY NETWORK

Williams and Wilson will have a full week to get comfortable with their new team and integrate themselves into Matt Eberflus' defense.

While we wait to see what comes from The Star during the week off, let's take a spin around web and check out some of the news and headlines making waves online and across social media.

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Standout rookie gets midseason honor

Dallas Cowboys defensive tackle Kenny Clark celebrates with defensive end Donovan Ezeiruaku after a sack | Jerome Miron-Imagn Images

Dane Brugler of The Athletic shared his midseason All-Rookie rookie team, and standout pass rusher Donovan Ezeiruaku made the list as the runner-up at edge after a stellar start to his rookie campaign. Ezeiruaku leads the league in an impressive stat category.

"TruMedia tracks a 'splash' statistic, which compiles impact plays such as sacks, tackles for loss, turnovers, third-down stops, etc. — Ezeiruaku leads all rookies with 16 splash plays," Brugler writes.

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How to utilize three star defensive tackles

Dallas Cowboys defensive tackles Kenny Clark and Osa Odighizuwa react after a sack against the New York Giants | Raymond Carlin III-Imagn Images

Many are wondering how the Cowboys will use three highly-paid star defensive tackles, with Quinnen Williams, Kenny Clark, and Osa Odighizuwa all making over $20 million per year, but we saw a glimpse of how in Week 9 against the Cardinals.

Matt Eberflus began using more five-down fronts, which unlocked the pass rush and could be used a lot more moving forward. From Garrett Podell of CBS Sports:

"What Eberflus began to do more of in Week 9 against the Cardinals was five-down fronts, meaning five defensive linemen in the game along the line of scrimmage instead of the typical four. That switch yielded solid results for Dallas’ pass rush as the unit collectively tied the team’s single-game high in sacks with five against Arizona quarterback Jacoby Brissett, something the Cowboys also accomplished in Week 5 against Jets quarterback Justin Fields. Those five-down packages will be the primary way for Dallas to make sure all three of Williams, Clark and Odighizuwa get the level of playtime all three have become accustomed to."

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