in the top 10 and neither are named Sean Lee The Dallas Cowboys have a good defense. Many of us were wondering if this day would ever come Chris Jones Jersey , but after six weeks of football the Cowboys defense has proven themselves to be one of the stronger groups in the league. They currently lead the entire NFC in fewest yards given up as well as fewest points allowed. There are a lot of reasons this team is playing well on defense. A defensive line rotation consisting of DeMarcus Lawrence, David Irving, Maliek Collins, Tyrone Crawford, Randy Gregory, Antwaun Woods, and Taco Charlton make for a strong group of soldiers in the the trenches for the Dallas D.The secondary is holding up well too despite not consisting of big name playmakers. Instead, it’s laced with many inexperienced players. The player with the most snaps in his young career is fourth-year defensive back Byron Jones, but even he is relatively raw as he just recently moved to cornerback this season. And what a great move that was as Pro Football Focus has graded Jones out as the best cornerback through the first six weeks of football. But the biggest surprise for the Cowboys defense comes at the linebacker position, where the team has been without All Pro Sean Lee for the last three games. Coming into this season, the Cowboys as a team were 1-7 over the last three years without Lee. It was as if the group fell apart without their field general. They weren’t able to stop the run and opponents took full advantage. For example, the Cowboys had a stretch last season where the offense had five-straight games scoring 28+ points. The Cowboys only won three of those games. The two games they lost were the two where Lee was out and the opposing team racked up 168 and 160 rushing yards against them. No Lee usually meant - no win.But not anymore.Over the last three years, the Cowboys have used a couple premium draft picks to add Jaylon Smith and Leighton Vander Esch to the squad and despite the early criticism - both of those decisions are turning out to be genius moves. Both Smith and Vander Esch have been playing well this season. In fact, both are ranked in the top 10 for linebackers according to Pro Football Focus.It brings such a great feeling to see Jaylon Smith playing at the level we were all hoping for when the team gambled on him in the 2016 NFL Draft. He is explosive and has come up big for the team already. Not only is he tied for the team lead in tackles with 50, but he’s second to only Lawrence in sacks (3.0). He’s also making more and more swipe-worthy plays. Last week, he showed off his speed by chasing down Texans quarterback Deshaun Watson on a crucial fourth-down play. Then later in the fourth quarter, Smith hit Watson as he was throwing the ball causing it to float into the arms of Xavier Woods. Against the Jaguars, Smith had a strip fumble that was recovered by Jourdan Lewis near the sideline. While all of these plays may not show up in the stat book as such, that’s essentially three turnovers he’s responsible for.Not only is Smith a physical specimen, but his football IQ is off the charts. With Lee out, Smith is now the leader of this defense. He can be seen running the huddle, communicating with everyone, and even correcting players when they are not lined up correctly.His leaderships has been extremely valuable to his rookie partner in crime. Even though this is Vander Esch’s first year in the league, he’s already showcasing the strengths that made him a first-round pick. LVE keeps his hips open, keeping his center of gravity low, which allows him to change direction on a dime. He flies to the ball and uses those long arms to snatch ball carriers. Nobody has been able to get past him. And he has the athleticism and length to be a force in coverage. The play of these two is being recognized around the league and their head coach doesn’t hesitate to praise these guys. Jason Garrett would talk about the progress of his two young linebackers:Lee returned to practice, but there is absolutely no reason to rush him back. Let him get the extra rest with the bye week following the Redskins game, because right now - the Blues Brothers got it covered.Dak Prescott’s legs are the key to unleashing the Dallas Cowboys offense to its fullest potential The Dallas Cowboys and its offense exploded Sunday en route to annihilating the Jacksonville Jaguars by the tune of a 40-7 score. The Jaguars Terrance Williams Color Rush Jersey , led by the likes of Jalen Ramsey, A.J. Bouye, and Calais Campbell, are widely considered to have one of the league’s top defensive units. Meanwhile, Jason Garrett, Scott Linehan, and Dak Prescott have received tons of criticism for the lack of offensive firepower. On paper, it seemed like a horrific matchup for those in silver and blue.That did not matter on Sunday.Dallas came out with an aggressive gameplan against the Jags, wanting to enforce their will on one of the league’s top defenses. Dak Prescott, who arguably had his best game of the season, looked as comfortable as ever in the pocket and Linehan dialed up some effective play-calls that got his unit in a rhythm that kept rolling all afternoon long.As good as Dak looked tossing the football against an elite secondary (17/27, two touchdowns, 107.5 rating), the story of the game was how effective Prescott was when he tucked the ball and ran. Prescott, either by design or when the play broke down, was able to hurt the Jaguars with his legs on the way to setting a career-high in rushing yards with 82. In order for the Cowboys to reach its fullest potential offensively, Dak will need to use his legs.In the first quarter, the Cowboys took an early 3-0 lead over the Jaguars. Soon after, the offense was back in scoring position with a chance to go up by two scores. Dak picked up some yardage with his legs on a play in which Ezekiel Elliott happened to be open, but Prescott made up for it on the next play. Prescott keeps the ball and follows some excellent downfield blocks from Geoff Swaim, Blake Jarwin, and Tyron Smith on his way to the end zone.The read-option isn’t really anything new to this offense — we have seen it quite a few times over the course of the Dak and Zeke era — but it is still definitely a play that allows Dak to have the option to hurt defenses with his legs while also forcing the defense to account for another potential ball carrier. For example, the Giants had to think twice about sending the house in Zeke’s direction, because Prescott showed that he is capable of making plays on the ground, too:Prescott was very effective in this style of offense during his days at Mississippi State, where he was a legitimate Heisman Trophy contender and considered one of the elite players across the nation while accounting for over 1,500 yards on the ground in his final two seasons. It’s not just read-options, though. Prescott has the ability to pick up yardage on the ground when the play breaks down or when the coverage is downfield https://www.dallascowboysfanshop.com/Brett-Maher-Jersey , which leaves a running lane available for him. We saw more of that on Sunday than we have for the most part in other games this season. Here is an example of Prescott utilizing his legs and nearly moving the chains on yet another touchdown drive.Then, of course, the bootleg. Prescott does well when he is on the move — either when passing or running. The bootleg gives Dak the opportunity to do just that. He picks up the first down, and the Cowboys eventually get into the end zone later in the drive.Dak is a dynamic player when he has the ball in his hands, and this offense is better because of it. Since entering the league, Prescott has rushed for more touchdowns from the quarterback position than anyone else in football. He has earned the respect of defenders in that regard, which, as a result, gives one of the elite running backs in the game opportunities against less defenders. Week one’s loss was certainly forgettable, but there was a play-call that I liked late in the game. It was the only touchdown that the Cowboys scored versus the Panthers, which happened to be a drive where Dak picked up first downs with his legs. Linehan dialed up a speed-option look with Dak and Zeke near the goal line. The end couldn’t let Dak keep it, and the linebackers weren’t quick enough to get out to Zeke. Six points.Now, the debate becomes how much running the quarterback is too much? Putting your quarterback in danger is never a goal, but in the case of Dak Prescott, the Cowboys have a unique player in that regard. Prescott is more built like a Cam Newton than he is an RG3; he can handle some hits here and there and keep being effective. Jerry Jones was asked about whether or not he is fine with Dak running the football like he did versus Jacksonville. His response?While Dak mentioned that his running ability open things up against the Jags’ man-to-man look.Prescott is right in that — his ability to hurt defenses with his legs opens the offense up for both Ezekiel Elliott and the passing game. Defenses cannot zone-in on Elliott, and as Prescott mentioned, the Jaguars were forced to adjust by assigning a spy on the quarterback.Cole Beasley, who he himself had a big game on Sunday, had some interesting comments about what Dak brings to the run game, mentioning that he believes the team is turning the corner.Implementing somewhere around three-to-five designed QB runs, in addition to three-to-five more scrambles and improvisations from Prescott, would give this offense another element and force defenses to gameplan for another dynamic. We heard about a ‘Dak-friendly’ offense all offseason long, and Dak’s legs gives the Cowboys opportunities to attack opposing defenses in numerous ways — through Zeke, through the QB run game, and through RPOs.Where Dak may struggle in the pocket, his talent of creating plays with his legs has the chance to change the dynamics of the season and help the Cowboys get back on track in a struggling NFC East.