The Dallas Cowboys are close to having one of the most dominant defensive lines in all of football. With team sack leader DeMarcus Lawrence returning, Taco Charlton another year into his development, and Maliek Collins finding his home on the interior, this defensive line is starting to come together.
A key piece to this potentially scary pass rush, however, has been missing from team activities thus far in 2018.
That piece is defensive tackle David Irving, who despite his immense talent and impressive flashes, has yet to put together a complete body of work during a full season. Whether it be due to injury or suspension, David Irving has been in and out of the Cowboys lineup during his young career.
When he’s in he looks fantastic; totally controlling offensive linemen and creating havoc in every opponents’ backfield. When he’s out, however, some begin to pose questions about his commitment and determination.
According to his latest Instagram post, David Irving has heard these questions, and he isn’t too happy about needing to answer them.
David Irving posted the picture above, captioning it with his reasoning for missing OTAs. Well, at least part of his reasoning.
Irving says that he wishes the media would “tell the truth” about his absence from team activities, stating that you have to “help yourself before you help others.” Irving then wrote that we should all “stay tuned” for the actual 2018 season.
I have been a defender of David Irving throughout the years, and I’ll continue to do so now. Irving has had a tumultuous offseason, and allowing himself time to workout his life outside of football is understandable.
It has been rumored that Irving is not in “football shape,” but I would argue that no one is truly in football shape until the pads go on and real football is played.
Mandatory mini camp opens next week, an event which David Irving is contractually obligated to attend. Hopefully, he will be participating in mini camp and getting himself ready for what we hope to be a fun 2018 season.
