Francis Bernard promoted, why many are excited about his Cowboys prospects

The Cowboys promoted LB Francis Bernard to the active roster ahead of Sunday’s showdown with Cleveland.

An exciting Dallas Cowboys prospect is about to get his first real chance in a Dallas uniform. The club announced Saturday that rookie linebacker Francis Bernard had been promoted from the practice squad to the active roster, in time for the Cowboys Week 4 matchup with the Cleveland Browns.

The Cowboys utilized a roster clause that allows each team to call up two practice squad players the day before their game, with the condition that the players go back down to the practice squad the day after the game.

The Cowboys linebacker depth quickly went from a strength to a weakness, as they lost veteran Sean Lee before the season started, and Leighton Vander Esch after just one week. Both Lee (groin) and Vander Esch (collarbone) are set to rejoin the team this season, but their return isn’t expected in the next few weeks.

Jaylon Smith remains in his starting role, and rotational linebacker Joe Thomas has done an excellent job as an injury fill-in. That pairing played every single defensive snap against the Seahawks in Week 3; a sign that depth is much needed.

Why This Matters

Bernard is an instinctual, talented player, (draft guru Dane Brugler had a 4th-5th round draft grade on him) and the Utah prospect showed his potential during his strong training camp performance. Many believed Bernard was going to make the initial Cowboys roster, or be poached by another team LB-needy team after hitting the practice squad.

Here’s part of his writeup from our Player Profile from over the summer.

Bernard was a two-star recruit out of Herriman at running back, with just one offer on the table: Brigham Young University. His freshman season, which came after two years of missionary work in Atlanta, saw just a handful of snaps per game, and though he was generally productive, Bernard was asked to make the switch to linebacker the following year – a year in which he was ultimately suspended before the Cougars’ bowl game at season’s end.

There were two incidents that led to Bernard’s suspension and ultimately his leave from BYU. The first, and what led to his absence from the Poinsettia Bowl, is a routine noise complaint visit from the police that ended up with Bernard saying on video, “I swear on my life, if I see you, I will (expletive) strangle you until you (expletive) don’t breathe.” The second is an arrest for suspicion of DUI in October of 2017, the final straw.

He transferred to in-state rival Utah, and helped anchor a defense that propelled the Utes to an 11-win season. On the field, Dane Brugler had him graded as a 4th-5th-round prospect and summarized his play thusly:

The quarterback of the Utes’ defense, Bernard is a determined player with a violent mentality, seeing things quickly with enough athleticism to get the job done in pursuit. However, he must cut down on the missed tackles and develop his hand usage to properly stack, shed and make stops in the hole. Overall, Bernard needs to improve his take-on technique to earn a meaningful role in the NFL, but he is an aggressive run defender with promising reps in coverage, projecting as an NFL rookie backup who will eventually compete for starting reps.

Film

Forecast for Week 4

The majority of Bernard’s opportunities will likely come from special teams, but with the way this season is going the Cowboys need their backups to be ready for an increased role at a moment’s notice, especially at the linebacker position.

Linebackers Luke Gifford and Justin March each played over fifty percent of special teams snaps last week, but neither player was used to give Thomas or Smith a break on the defensive side of the ball.

It remains to be seen the level of opportunity the rookie will get this Sunday in Dallas, but the hungry Bernard will look to make the most of whatever snaps he’s given.

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