Reading the Defense: Week 14

Cowboy Up

This column has been hard on the Dallas Cowboys for the franchise's decisions about its defense. And that was before they traded away their best defender, Micah Parsons, for a 29-year-old nose tackle and two future first-round picks on the eve of the season.

Owner Jerry Jones claimed the move demonstrated the team's prioritization of run defense to complement franchise quarterback Dak Prescott and the offense. The pass defense, already fielding castoff cornerbacks and linebackers, was toothless without its star pass rusher, Parsons. Through September and October, only the Bengals performed worse defense than the Cowboys.

As the league's trade deadline approached, Jones deflected questions by stating the defense was more than one player away from competitiveness. The team's odds of making the playoffs were minute. Undeterred, Jones traded away most of its recently acquired draft capital for defensive tackle Quinnen Williams and linebacker Logan Wilson. Meanwhile, rookies Reddy Steward and Donovan Ezeiruaku began to emerge, and linebacker DeMarvion Overshown returned from IR.

The Cowboys' defense has not been good with all these additions, but it did enough to keep the team in games against last year's Super Bowl opponents. The unit's biggest story has been the league's top defensive line since the arrival of Quinnen Williams.  

This column's Week-10 analysis of Williams's fantasy outlook has been on target so far. The integration of Williams into the defense, his performance in it, and the Cowboys' schedule in Weeks 14 to 16, the fantasy playoffs, indicate upside.

As explained in Week 10, Williams is playing in a more aggressive posture, consistent with Matt Eberflus's philosophy to attack between the offensive guard and tackle. Jets defensive coordinator Steve Wilks had Williams playing more frequently in a reactive stance, prepared to stand up offensive linemen and catch running backs at the line of scrimmage.

Williams started his tenure in Dallas with a bang: 1.5 sacks and 5 quarterback hits versus the Raiders. The production has been lackluster since, but he has continued to be disruptive against quality offenses.

Here, you can see the slight difference between Quinnen Williams' stance this year (first picture; more weight on feet, but down, head up) and his stance when he played with Whitecotton (2nd image; more forward in stance with more weight on hands, but higher, head not up as far),… pic.twitter.com/T4zyLAjTFL

— John Owning (@JohnOwning) November 5, 2025

A surprising wrinkle from Matt Eberflus has contributed to his success. Eberflus is executing an evergreen NFL cliché: "Play your best eleven." Incumbent Osa Odighizuwa, September addition Kenny Clark, and newly acquired Quinnen Williams constitute the defense's best position group, so Eberflus is deploying all three in frequent 5-man fronts. With Clark at nose, Williams and Odighizuwa are both freer to get upfield.  Entering Week 14, the duo ranked among the top 20 defensive tackles in pass-rush win rate.

Williams is proving again that he excels in both run and pass defense. He can be locked into starting line-ups for the fantasy playoffs. The Vikings, Chargers, and Commanders comprise one of the league's softest schedules for defensive tackles, according to Footballguys' Classic Customized Strength of Schedule tool.

Minnesota is allowing a league-worst 1.25 sacks per game to defensive tackles. The Chargers' interior offensive line was a concern entering the season. It's evolved into a liability, allowing tackles and sacks to interior defenders at some of the highest rates in the league.

Diamonds in the Rough