There appears to be a new man in the middle of the Dallas defense for Week 6, but it’s not who the majority of Cowboys Nation wants to see.
Defensive coordinator Matt Eberflus confirmed on Thursday that with Jack Sanborn still in concussion protocol, Kenneth Murray would take over green-dot duties as the team’s middle linebacker- on both passing and run downs- when the Cowboys travel to Charlotte to face the Panthers in Week 6.
“Seeing things a little bit differently from traditionally what I see at [weakside linebacker],” Murray said of the change this week, after getting a taste upon Sanborn’s second-quarter exit during the 37-22 win over the Jets, “so just trying to just go out there just have a clean process with the things that I see from my eyes and just go out there and play fast.”
Murray has played more defensive snaps (all but six) than anyone on the Dallas roster through five games, but both he and Sanborn have gotten mostly mixed reviews in their first year with the team. PFF’s player grades show similarly sluggish starts for both veterans. Of the league’s linebackers who have met the site’s snap minimum thus far, Sanborn ranks 49th. Murray comes in at 68th. Mind you, that’s out of 74 players.
Ugh.
A detailed breakdown of their grades in different situations paints an even bleaker forecast for this week’s assignment change.
Sanborn was brought to the Cowboys in large part due to his time with Eberflus in Chicago and his familiarity with the DC’s system. He ranks second on the team with 34 tackles but has looked woefully slow at times.
Murray is the Cowboys tackles leader but has been particularly susceptible in run defense, at least at his former weakside position. His run defense grade of 32.1 is next-to-last among LBs with the required snaps.
That doesn’t bode well with Rico Dowdle on tap. The ex-Cowboy running back made headlines earlier in the week by suggesting that his former teammates “buckle up” for their reunion on Sunday. Dowdle turned in an impressive 206-yard day against Miami in Week 5 and averaged 9.0 yards per carry.
Murray says the Cowboys defense has obviously heard Dowdle’s bulletin-board quote, but they’re approaching their prep work this week like any other.
“We’ll see on Sunday,” he told reporters. “I think for us, it’s going to be important for us to just hone in on our keys, hone in on playing run defense as a unit, and just going out there and just flying around.”
Murray’s supporting cast- especially at linebacker- could indeed have a chance to shine. Second-year man Marist Liufau has played like a heat-seeking missile, but that tends to also have him out of position not infrequently and has already led to two undisciplined 15-yard penalties for roughness. Shemar James had a team-best 15 tackles versus the Jets but is still a fifth-round rookie with just two games’ worth of experience. (James will see more playing time, though, Eberflus stated.) Damone Clark has gotten about the same usage as Liufau and James thus far, playing nearly as much on special teams as with the defense and probably not a viable green-dot candidate.
Yet many Cowboys fans would rather see any of that trio over Murray (or Sanborn, for that matter) as they await the return of DeMarvion Overshown. Thanksgiving has long been the ETA of the ex-Longhorn, but Overshown has been hoping to beat that timeline. According to some inside The Star, Agent Zero could be back in action a game or two earlier than that.
That still leaves the next month and change, though. And for now, Murray will have to be the LB corps’ leading man, with Sanborn waiting in the wings to reclaim his starring role and a promising supporting crew surrounding him.
The curtain goes up for the revamped cast on Sunday with a matinee performance in Carolina, where Murray can hopefully improve on what has been, so far, lackluster reviews.
“Never really satisfied, always trying to strive to get better,” Murray said. “A lot more to come, a lot more season, so I’m looking forward to that: being able to make a lot more plays.”
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This article originally appeared on Cowboys Wire: Cowboys changing LB roles, but not what fans have been asking for
Reporting by Todd Brock, Cowboys Wire / Cowboys Wire
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
