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It's been nearly a month since Mike Pettine was brought on board as a defensive consultant. Have you seen any differences so far? Has he made much of an impact yet? – Tracy Gerik/AR
Nick: Well, I think it's safe to say that he's had a huge impact in at least one area - pass rush. Since he's arrived, the Cowboys are still 1-2 with a loss to the Packers and then last week's collapse to the Cardinals - sandwiched around a big win over the Eagles.
But when he got here, the Cowboys had five sacks in five games. Since then, they've tripled the number to 15. So in his arrival, we've seen the Cowboys get 10 sacks in the last three weeks, and the first of the year for guys like Von Miller, James Houston and Donovan Ezeiruaku has also picked up his first full sacks in that span.
Also, you've seen an interception in each of the last three games - although it's been all linebackers making plays. Still, the turnovers have gone up, as well as the sacks. But teams are still moving the ball and scoring points so that's the biggest issue when looking at this defense.
But if you're asking us if we've seen some changes with Pettine being here, the answer is undoubtedly yes.
Patrik: I think it's pretty evident, honestly. Prior to Pettine joining the Cowboys staff, they couldn't get sacks. After he joined, they're getting sacks, a season-high five against the Cardinals alone. Christian Parker made it clear that one of the reasons for adding Pettine was because "he's a front-7 guy" to balance Parker's knowledge as a secondary/defensive backs coach (be mindful where the interceptions are coming from as well).
That's proving true, and now it's a matter of ... and here comes the magic word again ... consistency. The defense was unbelievably good in the first half against the Cardinals and through much of the third, before collapsing in the fourth and bouncing back in the lone overtime series. Things began coming together for Parker's group in Philadelphia, and that carried over to Arizona, but can Pettine help the unit put together four full quarters of dominance? That's the question, but his impact on the pass rush isn't.
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