What more can a defensive unit ranked in the top 10 overall and number 1 in takeaways the past two seasons do?
Most fans would say there's still some meat on the bone, especially in the run defense area.
Nevertheless, Defensive Coordinator Dan Quinn continues to add a little more each game, each season, to disrupt the flow of the opposition's offense.
We know what the team added on that side of the ball to raise their game—no need to spend too much time there.
We know what Micah Parsons and the pass rushers represent.
The backend, including Trevon Diggs and Stephon Gilmore, could be a no-fly zone.
That leaves us with the linebackers led by Leighton Vander Esch. The injuries surrounding this unit make you worry, and rightfully so. However, I'm here to argue that Vander Esch could make a leap and not for the reasons one would suspect.
Leighton Vander esch finally has some size in front of him
You're probably thinking to yourself, this isn't some novel idea. Having defensive tackles who can eat up blockers in front of you is football 101.
I want to dig a little deeper than that.
Does anyone remember the 2013 Seattle Seahawks? I'm sure you do. They went on to win the Super Bowl and create the Legion of Boom.
In 2014, we saw the second season of the connection between Quinn and All-Pro linebacker Bobby Wagner. Under Quinn's tutelage that season, Wagner became a Pro Bowler, All-Pro, and Defensive Player of the Year.
Let's park there for a second and clear the air. I'm not saying Leighton will one day earn those accolades. It isn't very likely.
#CowboysNation
-In 2022 Leighton Vander Esch had his best season since 2018 (All Pro) grading as PFF's No. 23 ranked inside linebacker.•In comparison
-In 2022 Bobby Wagner graded out as the No. 1 player at his position (Inside Linebacker) by Pro Football Focus.
— Mark D. TalknBoysWitDaBoyZ (@MarkDsCorner) March 13, 2023
However, Wagner had something that Leighton finally has, which is guys with size and grit in front of him.
Quinn had the pieces (Brandon Mebane, Tony McDaniel, Kevin Williams, Cliff Avril, and Michael Bennett) that allowed Bobby to do precisely what he wanted. They weren't superstar talent, but they were lunch pail type of guys that did handled their assignments.
Dallas assembled a similar rotation of talent (Hankins, Mazi, Osa) where the former Boise State product will be free to do what he does best: roam and hunt.
Men lie, women lie but numbers don't
According to Pro Football Focus, Leighton Vander Esch's progress as a player since 2020 is trending in the right direction.
Each statistical metric you look at is better in the three years.
His overall defensive rating was 60.2, 63.5, and 70.8. His tackling rating went from 56.5 to 79.7 in 2022. The coverage results – yes, that went up from – 42.2 to 75.6.
It's undeniable that his play has improved. If you don't subscribe to the analytical, I can respect that. I wasn't always a zombie to the numbers as well. However, the more you dig into it, the more you realize he is still a young linebacker with some development left in the tank.
Lastly and most importantly was the improvement in the missed tackles. That percentage decreased from 13.2% to 6.5%.
So, while I would have loved to snag Bobby Wagner, Tremaine Edmunds, or Roquan Smith (for draft capital), we didn't get those guys. But we have Leighton, who was sorely missed last season when we had to rely strictly on his new running mate Damone Clark.
Granted, Clark was just getting back in the swing of things, but we had a noticeable hole in the middle of the defense (no pun intended).
Even still, the future remains bright for these linebackers in Dallas, and Leighton isn't afraid to stand in the spotlight.
