FRISCO, Texas – The Cowboys got back to their winning ways on Sunday against the Lions, highlighted by the return of quarterback Dak Prescott and the defense's remarkable performance by forcing five turnovers.
After head coach Mike McCarthy addressed the media on a variety of topics, he turned it over the Cowboys' coordinators and gave them to the floor to talk about all of the things they saw from their units in the win.
Here is what they had to say:
Defensive Coordinator Dan Quinn –
- Dan Quinn began his weekly Monday press conference with Jourdan Lewis and his season-ending injury he sustained on Sunday. He praised his leadership and how much he will be missed, while also reiterating that there is "a dude behind the injury" as well. Quinn however did not elaborate much on how Lewis' loss will impact the defensive back rotations moving forward, though.
- Quinn and Micah Parsons sat down last week together so that Quinn could remind Parsons that there is another level to his game. Quinn said he could tell when Parsons was frustrated or pressing on the field and that it was an "easy and cheap lesson that I didn't want to miss in the moment."
- The Cowboys were able to score all three of their touchdowns against the Lions on Sunday thanks to the defense's ability to create turnovers. Quinn said creating turnovers is not something that the defense does without reason, but rather "to play complementary football" and that "creating takeaways is also creating takeaways for the offense."
Offensive Coordinator Kellen Moore –
- Kellen Moore complimented both Ezekiel Elliott and Tony Pollard on Monday, specifically Elliott's physically running play and Pollard's big play ability. "We love what we have in both of those guys and the ability to utilize both of them." Pollard also had his highest snap count of the season at 41 according to Moore.
- When asked what he had since from Zack Martin and Terence Steele on the right side of the offensive line and how they have contributed to the running game, Moore said that getting the pair together on double teams is a big part of the running game. "Anytime you can get those two together on a defender... Good things are going to happen."
- Michael Gallup had just two targets and no catches in Dak Prescott's return on Sunday, and Moore took responsibility for the lack of targets in Gallup's direction. "That's on me… I feel like we have to find a way to get Michael going." Moore also said that Gallup can help improve the Cowboys struggles on third down this year as well.
Special Teams Coordinator John Fassel –
- John Fassel praised KaVontae Turpin's ability to do little things that can potentially lead to advantages later in both the kickoff return and punt return game. Fassel explained that during one of the first punts of the game Turpin didn't signal for a fair catch, thus "bumped [the Lions'] gunner down the field and away from the football."
- Rookie linebacker Damone Clark has been working his way onto the field this season as he recovers from back surgery. In the meantime, Fassel said Clark has been on scout team for the last "two or three weeks" along with several other players. Fassel characterized last Thursday's practice as near game level competitiveness.
