Young Guns in the Secondary

The last three drafts have been crucial for the rebuilding of the Dallas Cowboys’ roster and this continues in the secondary. Over the last three years, they have acquired Anthony Brown, Jourdan Lewis, Chidobe Awuzie, and Xavier Woods through the draft. This alone has supplied Dallas with three starter-worthy corners and a talented safety. Add in veteran defensive backs Byron Jones and Jeff Heath and you have one hell of a secondary.

However, the key to this secondary surpassing expectations will be their utilization. It does not look like it will happen at the moment, but the best way to line up on that defense would be: Awuzie and Brown on the outside, Lewis in the slot, Jones at free safety and Heath/Woods at strong safety. This helps maximize everyone’s strengths and limits their weaknesses. Lewis stays dominant in the slot like he was last year. Brown uses his athleticism to match opposing wideouts. Awuzie is used as a strong press corner and Byron Jones roams free to create turnovers all over the field. If used like this, the Dallas secondary would be considered one of the best in football.

Why This Helps Them Compete

Creating turnovers is a paramount element of winning football games and this is only magnified in today’s passing league. Maximizing your time of possession is proven to help you win games, and it is one advantage of having a strong secondary. The young talent of this secondary rounds out this defense. If everyone meets expectations, it will be a top ten defense in football.

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