Reviewing the Cowboys Interior Defensive Line: What We Learned

As the Dallas Cowboys enter the draft process of their 2024 offseason, the team has many questions.

Most of those questions didn’t arise until after the embarrassing Wildcard loss at home to the 7th-seed Green Bay Packers.

“Embarrassing” might not even be a strong enough word to describe the utterly disgusting performance they put on for Cowboys Nation.

The offense got off to yet another slow playoff start, except this time the defense was equally as inept.

Dallas fell into a 27-0 hole that the 2007 New England Patriots wouldn’t be able to crawl out of.

Yesterday, I wrapped up my grades for each position group in the offense and today it’s time to start the review of the defense.

First, let’s focus on the interior defensive line.

All stats are provided by Pro Football Focus Premium.

Players who did not play in at least 10 games this season are not included in the NFL rankings.

Interior Defensive Line

Under Dan Quinn, the Cowboys shuffled around their defensive line quite often.

Several players were able to move from outside to inside or vice versa, but today we will focus on the players who primarily played defensive tackle.

Osa Odighizuwa

PFF Overall (NFL Rank): 81.4 (15th)
PFF Rush Defense (NFL Rank): 70.2 (19th)
PFF Pass Rush (NFL Rank): 80.0 (13th)

By PFF standards, DT Osa Odighizuwa is the only Cowboys interior defensive lineman to crack the top 20 in any of the three graded metrics.

He finished the season with 46 tackles, nine tackles for loss, 13 QB hits, and 3.0 sacks.

What stood out the most was Osa’s 25 stops at or behind the line of scrimmage.

The Cowboys’ defense wasn’t able to stop the run very effectively, but Osa was a big part of their success when they could.

Grade: B

Osa is entering a contract year in 2024, and although he’s been a solid player for the Cowboys, he will need a big year to earn a second contract.

There will be a new defensive coordinator coming in after the departure of Dan Quinn to Washington.

Osa didn’t make the leap this season that we were all expecting after an upward trajectory in his sophomore season.

For the Cowboys to go all the way in 2024, Osa will need to step up his game.

Johnathan Hankins

PFF Overall (NFL Rank): 51.8 (104th)
PFF Rush Defense (NFL Rank): 49.9 (92nd)
PFF Pass Rush (NFL Rank): 62.8 (79th)

We all envision Johnathan Hankins as our big run-stopper in the middle of the defense, but the numbers show he wasn’t as effective as we thought.

Yes, the rush defense improved when he was on the field, but it was a marginal improvement and not some miracle cure.

According to PFF, Hankins finished the season with a putrid 49.9 rush defense grade, ranking 92nd in the NFL.

Hankins was rarely in on passing downs but was able to manage 3.0 sacks, his highest total since the 2016 season.

Grade: C

Hankins wasn’t terrible, but he wasn’t amazing either.

When the Cowboys were getting run over by teams like the Bills and 49ers, not even Hankins’ presence could stop the bleeding.

We don’t know if he will be offered another one-year contract to remain with the Cowboys, but whether he stays or goes, I’m indifferent.

Neville Gallimore

PFF Overall (NFL Rank): 57.8 (88th)
PFF Rush Defense (NFL Rank): 52.8 (84th)
PFF Pass Rush (NFL Rank): 65.7 (64th)

Fourth-year DT Neville Gallimore had a season consistent with his previous three seasons.

He is capable of showing flashes of greatness, but cannot stay consistent enough to make a lasting impact.

Gallimore posted career lows across the board in all the major categories, including snap counts, where he was on the field for just 27% of the defensive snaps.

Grade: D-

Gallimore was a healthy scratch for much of the 2022 season, and I was certain he wouldn’t make the team this offseason.

However, the Cowboys did so little to address the defensive tackle position that Gallimore was one of the best options.

His contract has expired, and I’d be very surprised to see him in a Cowboys uniform in 2024.

Mazi Smith

PFF Overall (NFL Rank): 49.8 (114th)
PFF Rush Defense (NFL Rank): 34.9 (134th)
PFF Pass Rush (NFL Rank): 70.3 (40th)

It’s difficult to look at rookie DT Mazi Smith and believe that he was the Cowboys’ 1st round pick in 2023.

Dallas has so much success with 1st round talent that we are appalled when a player doesn’t contribute immediately.

Smith contributed very little to the Cowboys’ defense and did nothing to help the problems stopping the run.

It is rumored that Smith lost nearly 40 pounds throughout the season, and it would explain how he got pushed around all year.

Grade: F

There were very high expectations for Mazi Smith after he was drafted with the 26th overall pick in the first round of the draft.

He was labeled as the strongest player in the draft and his reputation as a lane-clogger was the final piece the Cowboys’ defense needed to be elite.

All of that hype was for naught, and reality burst the Cowboys’ bubble as they watched good teams run roughshod through the middle of the defense.

Let’s see if a new defensive coordinator can bring out the talent that we all saw at Michigan.