New York Giants Week 10: Examining the Dallas Cowboys Defense

How much has the Cowboys' defense changed since that fateful Week 1 meeting?

Author:
Brandon Olsen
Publish date:
Nov 9, 2023 10:00 AM EST

In this story:

The first time these two teams faced off this season, the New York Giants offense was manhandled in every way by the Dallas Cowboys defense. How much of that Cowboys defense has changed? Let's run through it.

Personnel

The last time I wrote this preview, I mentioned three players on the edge as the main pressure cookers for this Dallas front: Micah Parsons, DeMarcus Lawrence, and Dorance Armstrong. Parsons and Lawrence are the primary players, with Armstrong rotating in mostly on passing downs, where either Lawrence comes out, or Parsons moves to an off-ball linebacker role.

This season, Parsons has 49 pressures, Lawrence has 25 pressures, and Armstrong has 17 pressures. Six of Armstrong’s pressures came in week one against the Giants on just 16 snaps as a pass-rusher.

The interior of this line features a heavy rotation between Osa Odighizuwa, Jonathan Hankins, Chauncey Golston, Neville Gallimore, and Mazi Smith. Hankins and Odighizuwa play the most snaps, especially on early downs, as the Cowboys' most versatile interior duo.

Expect to see Odighizuwa make an impact again this week after generating four pressures in week one with a Giants offensive line that’s been, well, you know by now.

Damone Clark and Markquese Bell will be the linebackers this week for Dallas, while Leighton Vander Esch is still on injured reserve. Bell has been a bright spot on this defense as a player who was initially a safety in the 2022 NFL Draft before Dallas moved him to linebacker. Still undersized, Bell’s been versatile and reliable so far, but he can get caught in traffic a bit in the box.

In the secondary, this group is missing Trevon Diggs after suffering a torn ACL earlier in the season. Still, DaRon Bland has stepped up in a major way as the ball-hawking cornerback on the outside opposite Stephon Gilmore.

Bland has four interceptions on the season, six passes broken up, and a passer rating allowed of 33.8 - meaning quarterbacks would have more success throwing the ball away or spiking it as opposed to throwing at the man covered by Bland.

This season, Jourdan Lewis has been having a rough year in the slot, allowing 1.54 yards per snap as the nickel defender, seventh-highest in the league. For comparison, Giants cornerback Adoree Jackson is allowing a league-worst 2.32 yards per snap.

Three safeties play frequently in this defense with Jayron Kearse, Malik Hooker, and Donovan Wilson. We’ll elaborate on that a bit more in the next section. Kearse, Hooker, and Wilson are a combination that gives opposing offenses fits where none of them are elite, but they all fill a role that slows opposing teams down mightily.

Scheme

Unsurprisingly, the Cowboys are doing exactly what Dan Quinn has always liked to do by creating havoc up front with their front four and adding another stand-up pass-rusher. This season, Parsons has been lining up over either guard spot and rushing the passer, putting just about every guard in the NFL in an impossible position.

With how athletic this Cowboys front is, Quinn has been running stunts more than every team in the NFL except the Green Bay Packers. These stunts have allowed the Cowboys to keep seven players in pressure and allow their front four to generate pressure without sacrificing coverage on the back end.

Coverage-wise, Quinn hasn’t changed, and he has no reason to. The Cowboys this season are running Cover 1 at the second-highest rate in the league, even more than the Giants, with Cover 3 as their zone preference. Those coverages make up over 75% of the Cowboys' defensive coverage calls.

Because of the three safety looks, this Cowboys' defense can go very light with dime looks. This allows them to play with three corners, three safeties, three linemen, and just Bell and Clark on the second level. The strong front, as well as versatile back grouping, is what allows Quinn to be aggressive but not exposed on every down.

The Cowboys' defensive line is so strong up front that it allows them to play light on almost every single down so that when offenses go with three-receiver sets, where most defenses go nickel, the Cowboys go dime. Having that kind of versatility just puts opposing offenses in no man’s land.

Nov 5, 2023; Paradise, Nevada, USA; New York Giants head coach Brian Daboll walks off the field after the Las Vegas Raiders defeated the Giants 30-6 at Allegiant Stadium.

What This Means for the Giants

There’s genuinely not much to say here. The Cowboys' defense is elite, and the Giants' offense is one of the worst in the entire NFL. The best approach is probably to work as much RPO game as possible against the Cowboys' aggressive defensive line.

It would be risky to go with 11 personnel, spread out the Cowboys' defense as much as possible, and try to get the ball out quickly. Work wide receiver screens, including an RPO approach where Tommy DeVito can either hand the ball off, keep it himself, or get the ball to a short route.

Have Jalin Hyatt, Darius Slayton, and Wan’Dale Robinson be the primary receivers, with Daniel Bellinger at tight end and Saquon Barkley at running back. It’s not an ideal approach, but having vertical threat, a blocking and reliable tight end, and a dynamic back gives you the best chance to put up points.

Final Thoughts

It's important here to sit back, take some deep breaths, and put on red zone because this game isn’t fun. With Tommy DeVito getting his first career start against this insane Cowboys defense, don’t expect to leave that game with a smile unless you’re looking forward to the draft.