The Dallas Cowboys’ run defense has been laughable in 2020, to say the least. Much of that can be attributed to injury and simply a lack of production on the interior of the defensive line. Gerald McCoy, signed back in March, suffered a ruptured quadriceps in August; he was lost for the season and eventually released. Dontari Poe produced only seven tackles in seven games and didn’t log a single sack or quarterback hit before he was released in October.
This set up an opportunity for third-round pick Neville Gallimore to show what he could bring to the table. In the Cowboys’ tough 24-19 loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers last Sunday, Gallimore graded out as one of the best interior defensive linemen in the NFL in terms of run defense, run stops, and run stop percentage.
Neville Gallimore recorded his 2nd career start on Sunday and had a breakthrough performance as a run defender:
-Run Defense Grade: 80.7 (ranked 7th among DTs)
-Run Stops: 3 (ranked t-6th)
-Run Stop %: 18.8% (ranked t-5th)#Cowboys pic.twitter.com/z4DETfX7o4— PFF DAL Cowboys (@PFF_Cowboys) November 10, 2020
The Cowboys had their best outing of the year versus the run against Pittsburgh behind Gallimore’s breakout performance. They held the Steelers to only 46 yards rushing as a team on 18 attempts. Even though the Cowboys still rank 31st against the run, it was encouraging to see them render the Steelers offense so one-dimensional.
Gallimore didn’t see the field much early in the season, logging just 20 snaps in the first two games. After not recording a snap in Weeks 3 and 4, Gallimore has played at least 22 snaps in four of the last five games (17 snaps versus the Eagles in Week 8).
Slashing onto your timeline like Wolverine with @dmn_cowboys:
Film room: 3 things we learned from #Cowboys-Steelers, including how rookie DT Neville Gallimore flashed his immense upside.
READ: https://t.co/FxqCAVpC7n pic.twitter.com/iuJnXyvWWl
— John Owning (@JohnOwning) November 9, 2020
Gallimore’s combination of quickness and power is rare for a man who’s 6-foot-2 and 304 pounds. The duo of Gallimore and Antwaun Woods on the interior, coupled with DeMarcus Lawrence and Randy Gregory on the edge, may be the Cowboys’ best defensive line combination for the rest of the season.
The talented rookie now gets an extra week to prepare as the Cowboys are on their bye before hitting the road to face the Minnesota Vikings in Week 11. Gallimore will be needed more than ever. The Cowboys will be tasked with containing running back Dalvin Cook, who has rushed for nearly 400 yards and five touchdowns in his last two games.
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