It would be easy to say that nothing good came from the Cowboys most recent one-score loss to the Jets, which officially eliminated them from playoff contention. However, a few players certainly stood out and deserve to be mentioned. As we slowly turn our focus onto the next season, pulling players of the week from the remaining two games will help in assessing the Cowboys offseason needs.
So, without further ado, let's get started:
Offensive Player of the Week: Dez Bryant
The most important thing to note from the Cowboys offense on Saturday was Kellen Moore coming in to replace Matt Cassel. While I'm not ready to totally hop on the Moore bandwagon, he did some positive things – including throwing the ball to this guy named Dez Bryant!
That's right, the Cowboys have a wide receiver by the name of Dez Bryant who is very good. You would never know by watching Matt Cassel, but on Moore's third drive of the game, he connected with Dez Bryant on a scoring strike against Darrelle Revis.
Bryant didn't do too much else of note in this game, but let's face it – we have not been able to celebrate #88 being in the end zone nearly enough this season. For that reason alone, his third touchdown of the season earns him a player of the week helmet sticker.
Defensive Players of the Week: DeMarcus Lawrence and Terrance Mitchell
DeMarcus Lawrence had just three sacks through 12 weeks of this season, reassuring the thoughts of those who predicted that the pass rusher would not live up to his preseason hype – myself included.
However, the second-year defensive linemen has made a living in the backfield as of late, recording four sacks in the last three games. Lawrence also had a critical sequence early in this game when he stopped Chris Ivory on second and short near the end zone, before getting into the backfield once again on fourth down against Ivory to preserve the Cowboys 3-0 lead.
Terrance Mitchell, who was signed off the practice squad to fill in for the released Tyler Patmon, quietly did a great job in coverage all night long. He then capped off his excellent night by intercepting Ryan Fitzpatrick deep in Jets territory – the first interception recorded by a Cowboys defensive back this season!
Rookie of the Week: La'el Collins
Collins has continued to impressive as a rookie along this Cowboys offensive line, leading the way for Darren McFadden's fifth 100+ yard game of the season.
The evaluation on Collins since he has become a starter has been that he has the ability to make huge plays, but will also cost the team with breakdowns in technique at any given time.
Slowly, Collins has shown more and more consistency, and he did so against the Jets to earn my rookie of the week!
Who else stood out from the Cowboys in week 15? Let me know with a comment below!
