ARLINGTON — As the green dot player on defense, it’s Kenneth Murray’s job to communicate play calls to the rest of the defense. It’s his job to get everyone on the same page and to align them correctly. If there’s any player who would notice something amiss for the defense as a whole, it’s probably him.
Which is why he decided to do something different this week.
Players will often watch film — whether it’s of themselves or whether it’s of their opponent — on their own in addition to the normal meetings. This past week, for the first time, Murray led two player-meetings with the entire defense. They watched film together and talked a lot — beyond what they originally planned.
There was a clear objective: after six weeks of struggling, it was time for the Cowboys’ defense to get on the same page.
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“Just connecting the whole thing,” Murray said. “I think that’s really what it is. And I think today you saw a connected group.”
And a vastly different one than the weeks prior, too.
The Cowboys’ offense was fantastic, once again, but it was the defense that was the difference in Sunday’s 44-22 win over the Washington Commanders. They forced two turnovers, including an interception return for a touchdown by DaRon Bland. It was his first interception return for a score since he had one in 2023 against Washington to break the single-season record.
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The Cowboys’ defense had crashed into the nadir last Sunday in a loss in Carolina. In order to climb out, things — plural, mind you — had to change.
Changes were made and success followed. Confidence should tag along, too.
“Just proud of the guys, man,” Cowboys head coach Brian Schottenheimer said. “The defense, they’ve taken a lot of bullets, deservedly so in some regards. I was just proud of them. They played really hard. They tackled well.”
It’s worth noting that you, on the outside, aren’t the only one who has noticed the Cowboys’ struggling defense. The people involved noticed, too.
“They’re not naive to what they’ve been doing and what everyone has been saying,” Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott said about the defense, “and they answered the bell.”
They also answered a major external question.
Cowboys defensive coordinator Matt Eberflus noted this week that this was new territory for him. His defense ranked last or nearly last in many major defensive categories. To put it simply: they weren’t playing good enough defensively to win consistently with an offense that had been their antithesis through six weeks.
“But hey, we are where we are,” Eberflus said. “We’ve got to be where our feet are.”
They also had to make changes. Through six weeks, the Cowboys mostly ran zone defense. They blitzed less than a quarter of the time, according to Sharp Football. They hoped that their front four pass rushers could generate pressure, but it was to limited success. Corner Trevon Diggs — out for Sunday’s game with a concussion after an “accident” at home this week, per the team — even previously asked Eberflus to play more man coverage.
Against the Commanders, the Cowboys blitzed more. They also ran more man coverage than zone in the first quarter, according to the FOX broadcast.
“It was the most we ever played,” said corner Kaiir Elam.
“It gives us this ability to show off our skill set. Obviously, in zone, there is going to be soft areas. In man, we tighten it up. It was credit to coach Eberflus for allowing us to really show what we can do.”
It changed the secondary’s demeanor to play more man coverage. Rookie corner Trikweze Bridges made his first NFL start in place of Diggs. He said they were able to set a tone with their man coverage. He said having the chance to get their hands on opposing receivers made the secondary attack, rather than simply defend.
“We have a standard in the room. Nobody can come on Alcatraz. That’s our island,” Bridges said. “That’s us. Coach giving us man calls, we already knew it was our time to show what we are and show the standard that we have. It’s us doing our thing, displaying who we are.”
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The scheme changes were one thing. But the difference couldn’t be felt if the players didn’t execute. That’s where Murray’s meeting came in. Watching film together as players only allowed them to be honest with each other. It allowed them to hold each other accountable, Elam said, but also explain how each individual position group thought.
“I just wanted to make sure everybody’s on the same page,” Murray said.
Now he hopes he and the defense can turn the page, continuing a rewrite of their 2025 story that began on Sunday.
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