FRISCO, Texas — The Dallas Cowboys have allowed 126 rushing yards to quarterbacks through two games, the most in the NFL. Cowboys coach Brian Schottenheimer said Wednesday at The Star that Dallas has had hands on quarterbacks on some of those runs without getting them to the ground.
Jaxson Dart ran 11 times for 54 yards in the New York Giants’ 28-20 win on Sept. 13. Jayden Daniels had 69 rushing yards on 7 carries against Dallas on Sunday before he dislocated his left elbow late in the first half of the Washington Commanders’ 37-20 loss.
Lamar Jackson and the Baltimore Ravens are next, Sunday at Maracanã Stadium in Rio de Janeiro. Jackson is a two-time MVP. His 6,596 career rushing yards are the most by a quarterback in NFL history.
Dallas teaches it from a straight rush, and the coaching point comes once a rusher reaches the quarterback’s level.
“The way we teach it is so you try to win off your rush, whatever it is,” Schottenheimer said. “I’m going to talk about a straight rush. So when you get to the level of the quarterback, you don’t keep going. You start working towards him. So that compresses the pocket. When you run around him, you open seams. So if the inside guys push and then we run around, then that creates open B gaps.”
“So it’s about when you win your matchup or you try to win off the edge, when you get to the level of the quarterback, you try to work at him to try to keep him contained,” Schottenheimer continued. “And that’s where guys have gotten through and they’ve hit some seams. And some of the seams we’ve had, we’ve actually had hands on the quarterback. We just haven’t been able to get him on the ground.”
Brian Schottenheimer On Affecting Lamar Jackson Versus Sacking Him
Donovan Ezeiruaku leads Dallas with 9 quarterback pressures through two games, and he said this week he wants sacks against Jackson. Rookie safety Caleb Downs had one of the Cowboys’ 2 sacks of Dart in the opener.
Moving Jackson off his spot can make him more dangerous, Schottenheimer said, which is why containing him matters.
“Well, I think getting him on the ground is the biggest deal,” Schottenheimer explained. “You’d like to get the sack, but I think if you affect him, hopefully you’re making him make poor decisions. He’s loose with the ball. Maybe he throws the ball in a double coverage. We’ve gotten to the point where you’re playing a guy like Lamar. If you move him off the spot, sometimes they become more dangerous, which is why we have to be better at containing.”
“He’s looking at the film,” Schottenheimer added. “He’s seeing the seams that we’ve created and given to Jaxson Dart and Jayden Daniels, and he’s going to be aware of that. But this is a new week. It’s a different deal. We’ve got some different things that we’re looking at that we kind of like going into this game, and hopefully those things perform well for us.”
Lamar Jackson Against Dallas Cowboys
Jackson has 181 rushing yards in two career games against Dallas and has run for a touchdown in each. In the 2024 meeting, a 28-25 Baltimore win at AT&T Stadium, he ran 12 times for 89 yards and a touchdown. He threw for 182 yards on 12-of-15 passing in that game.
In Week 1 against Indianapolis, Jackson completed 17-of-25 passes for 324 yards and a touchdown. He also ran 7 times for 40 yards and a touchdown. Baltimore beat the Colts 41-23 and lost 24-17 to New Orleans on Sunday.
Kickoff at Maracanã Stadium is 3:25 p.m. CT Sunday on CBS. Defensive tackle Kenny Clark said Tuesday the game has to be won up front.
