CLEVELAND — With the results the Dallas Cowboys’ defense generated in their 33-17 season-opening win, it felt like they may have thrown the kitchen sink at the Cleveland Browns’ offense.
Far from it.
“We didn’t even open up the full bag,” Micah Parsons said. “For a lot of us, it was our first game since the playoff loss (in January). We’re just getting back into it, tackling people again, getting to that full contact game plan. I just think the sky is the limit. This is just the beginning.”
The defense “has, like, 50 calls. We only ran probably like three of them,” All-Pro cornerback Trevon Diggs said after intercepting a pass in his first game since tearing his ACL after Week 2 of last season.
“That was just a little sample,” Diggs said.
For the last three seasons, Dan Quinn did his job as defensive coordinator at a high enough level to earn himself a head coaching gig in Washington. To replace Quinn, the Cowboys brought in Mike Zimmer, whose excellence as Cincinnati’s defensive coordinator landed him a head coaching job in Minnesota for eight seasons (2014-21). Zimmer didn’t shake up the entire foundation in Dallas, but he did more than just tweak a few things around the edges. He implemented a new system and preached a fresh philosophy. He was tasked with coming in and maintaining the things the Cowboys did well under Quinn while patching up the deficiencies.
“We obviously have a standard that we want to create on defense,” linebacker Eric Kendricks said. “Today was a stepping stone in that direction. At the same time, there are a lot of little (things) that we can correct going forward.”
Last year, the Cowboys’ run defense struggled. On Sunday, the Browns had three rushers combine for 93 yards. Limiting a Browns’ rushing attack that was without starting running back Nick Chubb doesn’t prove the run defense is fixed but it was a great start to feeding that notion.
DeMarvion Overshown had a sack Sunday and forced Deshaun Watson to make a difficult throw on this play. (Jeff Lange / USA Today)
The masterpiece of Zimmer’s defense on Sunday was how he called the game against Deshaun Watson. The Browns’ quarterback looked rattled all day. According to Next Gen Stats, Watson was pressured 25 times and sacked six times on 56 dropbacks. Against pressure, Watson completed 5 of 17 passes for 22 yards.
“I definitely feel that if we ever got a problem with a mobile quarterback, we definitely got the pieces to take care of it,” linebacker DeMarvion Overshown said. “I’m blessed with my abilities and the coaching staff to put me in the right position to go make those plays.”
As much as the scheme was the story, the personnel made it happen.
Kendricks and Overshown were two of the most noticeable players on Sunday, and neither played a snap for the Cowboys last season. Kendricks, the 32-year-old veteran, had two sacks and an interception off a Parsons deflection. The last time Kendricks had two sacks in a game was in 2016, his second year in the NFL, against Mike McCarthy’s Green Bay Packers. Kendricks, who exited the game due to dehydration (he said afterward that he’s fine), has largely been touted for his leadership and knowledge of Zimmer’s defense.
On Sunday, he sent a message that his ability on the field is worth just as much attention.
“You got to trust yourself more than anybody,” Kendricks said. “At the end of the day, I’ve put the work in, I know what kind of player I am, I know what I bring to each team that I’m a part of. If people don’t know about it now, they’re going to know pretty soon.”
The guy playing next to him was impossible to miss, especially in the second half.
Overshown, who missed last season after tearing his ACL in the preseason, played his first full football game since his final season at Texas in 2022. He was tasked with spying on Watson throughout the game, to help neutralize the quarterback’s ability to buy time and to prevent big runs down the field.
The game was littered with Overshown’s presence but a critical play stood out in the third quarter. With the Browns down 27-10, they faced fourth-and-6. Overshown initially shadowed Watson from 15 yards away. The second he saw Watson roll to the right to extend the play, Overshown committed and closed on Watson with blinding speed to turn the ball over on downs.