Blogging The Boys
After losing to the Philadelphia Eagles in the season opener, the Dallas Cowboys will face another division rival on Sunday. They welcome the New York Giants to AT&T Stadium.
While the Cowboys did plenty of good things during their Week 1 matchup against the Eagles, there is room for improvement in many areas. With that theme in mind, we take a look at two players the Cowboys should use more in this week’s matchup against the Giants.
1) WR KaVontae Turpin
Over the past few seasons, we’ve seen 29-year-old KaVontae Turpin transform from an exclusive return man to a guy who can make a real impact as an offensive player. Cowboys’ head coach Brian Schottenheimer clearly took notice of how Turpin can change the game on offense, giving the former UDFA 28 offensive snaps in Dallas’ Week 1 matchup.
Over the course of those 28 snaps, Turpin ran the ball twice for a total of nine yards and caught two passes for 18 yards. While the stats certainly aren’t eye-popping, Turpin’s game-changing speed was on display nearly every time he touched the ball.
Turpin was used in motion on 53.8% of his offensive snaps, making it even harder for defenses to counter his otherworldly speed.
As the Cowboys move forward, giving Turpin more opportunities to touch the ball could be a real asset for their offense. If Jaydon Blue is inactive again this week, Dallas’ running back room desperately lacks breakaway speed. This is Turpin’s greatest asset, and giving him four or five carries a game could really help Dallas’ running back group as a whole.
This week against the Giants, the Cowboys should give Turpin more offensive touches instead of just more snaps, and see if he can make an even bigger impact than he did in Week 1.
2) LB Marist Liufau
If there was one position group the Cowboys came away from Week 1 feeling worse about, it has to be their linebackers. As a whole, Dallas’ linebacker group put together an extremely underwhelming performance, headlined by some poor tackling.
Kenneth Murray, who was one of the Cowboys’ starting linebackers in Week 1, really struggled against the Eagles, posting a 30.0 Pro Football Focus defensive grade, the worst of any defender in the game who played more than 25 snaps. While he was only credited with one missed tackle, Murray consistently struggled to stop the Eagles’ ball carriers in their tracks.
Jack Sanborn, Dallas’ other starting linebacker, was not much better. In 47 defensive snaps, the 25-year-old linebacker recorded a 47.0 PFF defensive grade, and like Murray, left plenty to be desired.
With how bad their linebackers were against the Eagles, the Cowboys have no reason not to give second-year pro Marist Liufau more playing time in Week 2. The former third-round pick played just six defensive snaps in Week 1, the second-lowest total of any game in his NFL career.
While Liufau himself may not be enough to completely transform Dallas’ linebacker group, his physicality and...
