Scout’s Eye: Inside A Dominant Blocking Effort
There was a lot to like from a 31-6 win against Miami, and Bryan Broaddus sat down with the tape from Week 3 to review how the Cowboys looked in their Week 3 win.
One of my favorite Tyron Smith blocks is when he invites the defender up field, then clubs him further up the field with his right arm. It's such a violent move that has so much power that it stuns the defender. What's even better about the move is when the defender tries to redirect back to Ezekiel Elliott and Smith is waiting right there to finish him off.
When I watch Robert Quinn rush off the edge, it reminds me of the drill Rod Marinelli has the line do around the bags. Quinn is textbook with his technique. Swat the hands. Dip the shoulder. Explode flat to the quarterback and swipe at the ball. There were several snaps where he was right on top of Josh Rosen, just missing the ball by a fraction of an inch. He had to be feeling good in the game to play the number of snaps that he did and do it at such a high level the entire game.
These big Dolphins receivers had a hard time getting away from Byron Jones. I didn't feel like DeVante Parker or Preston Williams was going to beat him in the air, but man was he impressive in the way he was playing tight coverage. There were snaps where they tried to bully Jones on the route, but he was having none of that. His positioning was outstanding, and it gave Josh Rosen limited windows to work with.
I had a little laugh to myself watching this tape. Jason Witten and La'el Collins caught Taco Charlton on a double-team block, driving him five yards off the ball. After Ezekiel Elliott carried the ball for nice gain and then was tackled, Witten decided he was going to keep drive blocking Charlton down the field. He couldn't get away from Witten, who gave him one final shove at what I am sure was the echo of the whistle. I am sure Witten also said something to Charlton as he looked back at him at the end of the play.
Nice, steady game for Darian Thompson filling in for Xavier Woods. I thought this was an area where the Dolphins might attempt to take advantage of the Dallas defense, but Thompson was up to the task. His tackle of Kalen Ballage down on the goal line was impressive and showed some toughness. Not only did he defeat DeVante Parker's block down low, but he wrapped up Ballage before he had a chance to gain any momentum toward the goal line. His play forced the Dolphins to settle for an early field goal.
It's not often you see an option play run into the boundary, but Kellen Moore pulled it off. Usually, you want more room to allow the read to develop and give the back enough room to turn the corner. Prescott read Vince Biegel on the edge and got the ball to Tony Pollard, who did an outstanding job of reading the block of La'el Collins while also keeping his balance and lunging forward for the first down. Most backs would not have been able to turn the corner, much less keep their feet in order to finish the run. It was a well-executed play all around.
I said in my Final Thoughts column this week to keep an eye on the Cowboys running some twist stunts inside because the Dolphins had trouble sorting them out. Robert Quinn and Trysten Hill did a nice job of getting Christian Covington home on a pressure that flushed Rosen out of the pocket and forced an incompletion. Just like last week where Tyrone Crawford came tight to the penetrators for the sack, Covington was able to do the exact same thing for the pressure.
Outstanding play fake by Dak Prescott on his touchdown run. He managed to send the defense in one direction as he booted the opposite way. Prescott had Randall Cobb open initially, but Bobby McCain tracked back to him. His other option was Jason Witten in the flat, but Walt Aikens was in the area. With McCain's back to the play and Aikens too wide to get back inside for the tackle, it just opened up too nicely for Prescott not to carry the ball himself into the end zone.
It was a good rotation of linebackers in this game for the Cowboys. Joe Thomas not only took some snaps for Sean Lee, but he also took some for Jaylon Smith, as well. Thomas stepped up and filled the hole on Kalen Ballege with a powerful move that knocked the running back off his feet. Thomas was one-on-one in the hole and if he hadn't made that tackle, Ballege had a chance for a sizeable gain. The coaches appreciate Thomas' ability to line up and play all the linebacker position and play them well.
I didn't think it was one of the better games we've seen from Chidobe Awuzie, but what a play to rip the ball from Preston Williams' hands when it appeared he had a sure touchdown. Awuzie never turned back for the ball and didn't see it until it actually hit Williams' hands. It was only then that you saw Awuzie pulling on the ball with his right hand. Awuzie never allowed Williams to totally gain control of the ball, which is why I believe Brian Flores didn't challenge the ruling on the field. Instead, the Dolphins had to settle for another field goal instead of a touchdown.
I came into this game thinking Charles Harris was the Dolphins' best pass rushing threat, and after studying the film I still believe that's the case. But Harris wasn't a factor and that was in large part to the job that both Tyron Smith and La'el Collins did on him. Harris tried to rush from both sides and did it with little success. The only real pressure he got in the game was when he lined up at nose on a three-man line and beat Travis Frederick to his off-hand side. Frederick tried to snatch him quickly, but Harris was able to knock his hands away and put Frederick in a bind. Prescott tried to hang in there with a pass over the middle to Jason Witten, but Steven Parker knocked it away.
If Matt Haack was a right footed punter, Kavon Frazier would have had a blocked punt in this game. Frazier got a slow start off the snap but did a nice job of making up ground by beating Deon Lacey inside -- which put him right on top of Haack. Frazier was aware of how close he was to Haack and did a great job of turning his body to the side and angling himself in a way to stay off his leg. If he had completely laid out for the block, he likely misses the ball and ends up getting a roughing penalty. Instead, he made the smart play and allows the offense to keep possession of the ball.
