The turnaround for the Cowboys defense under coordinator Dan Quinn has bordered on the miraculous. A historically poor unit in 2020, they rebounded in Quinn’s first season to lead the league in takeaways and produce not only the NFL’s interception leader but also the Defensive Rookie of the Year.
So far in Quinn’s second season on the job, the defense is picking up where they left off, to the point that head coach Mike McCarthy this week referred to that group as “the thermostat” of the team, regulating games and keeping the offense within striking distance.
The difference is palpable for anyone who spent time watching the defenses in recent memory leading up to 2021.
But for Quinn, who was responsible for some of the most ferocious defenses in NFL history during his time in Seattle, what’s the difference between a solid defensive unit enjoying a good run and a group that can truly be defined as special?
“I would say there’s usually a moment or two in those first 10 or 12 games that you answer a challenge, you deliver on it. There’s something that says ‘Whoa,'” Quinn said Monday. “You don’t know what game it’s going to be; you’re not even sure who the opponent is. But there’s just a performance that says, ‘This is what this group is capable of.'”
So far, the 2022 Cowboys have proven themselves capable of some lofty rankings four games into the campaign. They rank seventh in total yards allowed per game, sixth in passing yards allowed per game, and are tied for sixth overall in turnover differential.
In several categories, they place in the top three: points against per game (third), third-down conversion percentage against (third), sacks (tied for second), and touchdowns allowed (first).
Four games is a relatively small sample size, but it’s the start of a very good trend. And this Cowboys defense has the chance to be in the conversation as some of Quinn’s Legion of Boom crews if those numbers stay high all season long.
“You usually see it stay consistent,” Quinn explained, “and the best teams I’ve been a part of kind of got better as it went. That’s usually a really good mark of an excellent defense- ones that continually get better. Because there’s always something that you’re working on, so if you keep stacking all these good things, by the time you get later in the season, you are hard to deal with. But there has to be one of those moments where you say, ‘Whoa. That’s the one.'”
Thinking back to his years in Seattle, Quinn singled out one of those moments. The 2014 Seahawks were the defending Super Bowl champs and took a 12-4 record and NFC West crown into the divisional round of the postseason versus Carolina.
Up by 14 but with the visiting Carolina Panthers on the doorstep of narrowing the gap to one score midway through the fourth quarter, Seattle safety Kam Chancellor picked off Panthers quarterback Cam Newton and returned it 90 yards for a monstrous game-sealing touchdown.
“I remember, at that moment, saying ‘That’s it. That’s what it looks like,” Quinn remembered. “That’s what championship defense can look like.”
This year’s Cowboys unit has provided several big defensive plays of their own. Trevon Diggs made a game-changing tackle on a key third down late in Week 2, and Micah Parsons was a force of nature against the Bengals. DeMarcus Lawrence exploded for three sacks in Week 3, and a Diggs interception thwarted a possible Giants comeback later in that same Monday night matchup. And it was Diggs again who punched away two fourth-down throws- while also grabbing another pick and holding Carson Wentz to a 0.0 passer rating against him- to preserve the win over Washington in Week 4.
All big moments that have helped the Cowboys climb to an improbable 3-1 mark. But has Quinn seen a “whoa” moment yet this year?
“Not yet,” he admitted. “Excellent and tough, but not the ‘whoa’ where it’s been to the space that I think we will get to. But the thing that I have seen is this connection to one another and the communication. When you have those parts right, and how hard these guys are willing to play for one another, that’s when you have the chance to do some really cool things.”
The kind of things that help create a legacy and maybe even define a champion.
“I’m looking forward to that ‘whoa’ moment.”
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