FRISCO, Texas — It was a strong Dallas Cowboys debut for veteran linebacker Eric Kendricks on Sunday in Cleveland, as the green dot and on-field leader of the Mike Zimmer defense accounted for nine total tackles, two sacks and an interception that helped power a strong overall defensive effort.
It could have been a different script for the tenth year veteran, as he could have very easily been gearing up to play Monday Night Football for the San Francisco 49ers in week one rather than suiting up for the Cowboys. However, a last minute change of heart spearheaded by a conversation with his former head coach in Mike Zimmer led Kendricks to Dallas.
One week in, the defense is already feeling the benefits of having him on board with his athletic and instinctual play on Sunday afternoon.
"I think that kind of showed in training camp," Mike Zimmer said. "He was flying around, he's still flying around. He's a very instinctive player, he's very smart. He helps guys get lined up. Eric's a good football player, and he always has been. I think he feels more comfortable in this system."
While Kendricks led the team in just about every notable defensive number on Sunday, it wasn't the stat sheet that he was chasing during the game.
"I chase a feeling, not statistics and I had a feeling," Kendricks said. "My feeling was that we were playing good defense. Stats will kind of lie in certain ways."
As the player who corrects and makes the most calls pre-snap for all 11 defenders, he didn't see Sunday as a perfect outing for the group, but certainly one that the defense can build on moving forward.
"We have a standard that we want to set on defense," he said. "[Sunday] was a stepping stone in that direction. At the same time, there's a lot of little stuff that we can correct going forward. Communication, ID'ing some of the plays, we can be more connected and do better."
It was also Zimmer's first game back on the sideline after a few years spent out of the league, and Kendricks saw a smooth transition for his long-time coach.
"It's a different crew now," he said. "We have different guys, different bodies. It's a different soul, but at the same time, the nucleus is the same. We will build off [Sunday]."
Building off of the success that the team had in week one will be a key motivation point for Kendricks moving forward, but it will also be addressed within himself as well. He saw the decision to come to Dallas back in March as an opportunity to bet on himself, and it's something he still is looking forward to cashing in on when it's all said and done.
"You have to trust yourself more than anybody," he said. "At the end of the day, I put the work in, I know the player I am to each team that I'm a part of. If people don't know by now, they're gonna know pretty soon."
