The Cowboys’ original plan with the No. 10 pick of the 2021 draft was to select either South Carolina cornerback Jaycee Horn or Alabama cornerback Patrick Surtain II. Of course, both of those players were off the board by the time Dallas was on the clock, so the club traded down and ultimately landed Penn State linebacker Micah Parsons, despite its existing LB depth.
All Parsons did was put together a remarkable rookie campaign in which he posted 13 sacks, 20 tackles for loss, and 30 quarterback hits while playing both linebacker and defensive end (just one game into the season, the Cowboys were forced to move Parsons to DE due to a DeMarcus Lawrence injury and Randy Gregory‘s placement on the reserve/COVID-19 list). His efforts earned him NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year honors, and he became the first player to ever win that award by unanimous vote. He also finished second to Steelers edge defender T.J. Watt in NFL Defensive Player of the Year voting.
On top of all that, Parsons hyperextended his knee during a joint practice with the Rams in August, and he played the entire 2021 season while suffering the effects of that injury. “It was at a point where I was like, ‘I’m in a position battle,'” Parsons said. “‘I’m going against Jaylon (Smith). The first game is coming up soon.’ I was like, ‘This is the worst time for this to happen'” (via Jon Machota of The Athletic (subscription required)).
Parsons added, “[i]t’s something that just kept lingering. When you hyperextend something, it needs rest. But I was like, ‘I can’t take no rest.’ The whole season I kept rehabbing, rehabbing, rehabbing so that way I could play in the games.” The 22-year-old also noted that while medication helped, he was in significant pain after games.
A fully-healthy 2022 campaign, along with natural progression and development, might allow Parsons to secure a DPOY nod next year; he will certainly be on the shortlist of favorites heading into the season. But the Cowboys will need to supplement their LB corps just the same. That above-referenced depth at the position is no longer a reality, with Leighton Vander Esch and Keanu Neal set for free agency and with Smith having been released in October.
Fellow LB Jabril Cox, a 2021 fourth-rounder, appeared in seven games last season — primarily in a special teams role — before suffering a torn ACL, which could put the start of his 2022 season in jeopardy.
Cowboys need to find a way to trade zeke and keep rebuilding their defense. Defense got a lot better last year just still not quite there to be a true contender
They lack that clutch gene. Zeke and Dak both don’t seem to have it, both are good at their jobs but both can’t just grab the bull by the horns and take games over.
Look at burrow and chase and then as chase got consistently doubled he went to Higgins and others. Mixon also stepped up hugely and made big plays. Dak doesn’t have that same link up with either Lamb or Cooper and Zeke doesn’t isn’t like Derrick Henry or Jonathan Taylor.
The defence needs to keep improving but the offence will ultimately hold this team back if Dak or Zeke don’t improve either
I’m just saying with how much they are paying Zeke and what Pollard showed last year, if they could magically move him without taking back a lot of money it would go a long way. I agree Dak isn’t a top 5 qb but their offense was number 1 this last season just need the defense to step up a little more
Burrow and Chase have played together for multiple years, and Chase is seemingly an elite talent. That connection did not appear overnight. Burrow had a great year, but takes too many sacks, even with that terrible OL. Prescott also had some terrible line play to deal with. The Cowboys need help in the trenches to make take the next step.