The statistics- at least in several key categories- say the Cowboys defense is hovering right around the top of the NFL.
In points allowed, Dallas ranks third through five games. Sacks: tied for second. Turnover differential: tied for second. Passing yards allowed per attempt: tied for second. Rushing touchdowns allowed: tied for first.
But ask edge rusher DeMarcus Lawrence, and he’ll give a much simpler- and far more colorful- answer.
“We’re the best [expletive] defense in the league,” Lawrence said following Sunday’s 22-10 thumping of the Super Bowl champion Rams. “Point-blank, period.”
“Absolutely,” Dorance Armstrong agreed.
It’s hard to argue the point. The Cowboys have now held all five of their opponents to under 20 points each, something that hadn’t been accomplished in Dallas since the 1972 Doomsday squad.
Over this 4-1 stretch against the daunting offenses of Tampa Bay, Cincinnati, and Los Angeles, plus divisional rivals in New York and Washington, the Cowboys have let each foe find the end zone just once.
So what does that say about this unit?
“That we’re for real,” said linebacker Micah Parsons.
They’re so real, in fact, that Dallas- the league’s number one-ranked offense just last season- has suddenly garnered a reputation as a defense-first team, even within the building.
“They are definitely the straw that’s stirring this drink,” head coach Mike McCarthy said in his postgame remarks, using a phrase that was notably used by owner Jerry Jones to describe offensive workhorse Ezekiel Elliott not that long ago.
But this 2022 Cowboys defense is playing so lights-out that even Jones is shotgunning the Kool-Aid.
“It’s playing at an inspirational level,” the owner said Sunday. “[Coordinator Dan] Quinn and Mike have allowed that, the classic ‘let your players play in the best spots so that they can excel at what they do best.’ That’s what that defense is doing.”
And those players are well aware of what it means to the collective star when they take turns shining individually.
“People key on certain players, and it creates opportunities for other people,” Parsons explained. “When it’s your time to step up, you’ve got to step up and make plays.”
The Cowboys did that from the jump at SoFi Stadium on Sunday. On just the third play from scrimmage, Armstrong stripped Matthew Stafford while notching a sack; Lawrence scooped up the loose ball and raced 19 yards for a score, taking a one-touchdown lead 93 seconds into the game.
“That’s what we hold our head on. That’s our mindset every game,” Armstrong said of the group’s overpowering start out of the blocks. “We focus on that, and that’s what we want to do: start fast and control the tempo.”
Said Lawrence: “Going out each and every week and setting that tone, being able to instill fear into the other offense, going out there with that speed and that intensity: that’s what we’re all about.”
It worked to near-perfection in L.A. The Cowboys defense was on the field for nearly 19 minutes out of the game’s first 30, yet they carried Dallas into halftime with a 16-10 lead, having trailed by a single point for just 1:32 total.
But those lightning-fast starts to games and the hot streak to open the season have been building for a while in Dallas, dating back to last year.
“It’s been really cool just to watch it come together. You could really see at the end of last year that we had something really special,” McCarthy told reporters Sunday. “They’ve been doing this for quite some time.”
The coach credits not just the fact that so much of the defense has stayed together under Quinn for a second straight season, but that they’ve bonded with one another as well.
“Every team I know I’ve been a part of, the connection and the commitment in the locker room is the key. Everyone wants to talk about talent and experience, awareness, but the glue in what we’ve got going here,” McCarthy said, “is so true about these guys.”
And when it all comes together the way it has for the Cowboys defense to kick off their 2022 campaign, it’s downright fun to watch… and even better to be a part of.
“It’s a beautiful thing, to see your guys running around, making plays, having a good time,” Lawrence offered. “One thing we preach to each other is [that] we work so hard throughout the week, making sure we’re locked in on our details, now it’s time to come out here and party. So that’s what we did today: we came out here and partied.”
Lawrence & Co. will look to keep the good times rolling next week as they attempt to pull the plug on Philadelphia’s undefeated start to their season.
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