Dallas Cowboys: Who’s feeling the pressure to perform in 2020?
By Brandon Ladd
On a scale of one to ten which Dallas Cowboys players feel most pressure?
The Dallas Cowboys will need to perform in 2020, the pressure is there every single season for America’s Team. Let’s say you set up an imaginary scale of pressure felt this season by each player.
Who is getting sleep before games and who’s not? The following are my views on which Cowboys are feeling the most heat (or not) in 2020.
Defensive End DeMarcus Lawrence, pressure scale: 8.4
DeMarcus Lawrence will still receive his money through 2021, all $65 million guaranteed to that point. But another $40 million in 2022 and 2023 combined could be lost if his numbers don’t shoot up again.
Plain and simple, 5.0 sacks in 2019 are not enough to warrant that amount of money in my opinion. Still, the trend is that Lawrence will have a bounce-back season.
A whopping 25.0 sacks between 2017 and 2018 show that 2019 was most likely a statistical fluke. Tank still was a force on the field at most times.
The pressure is so high here because Lawrence has to get the double-digit sack numbers the next two seasons, while not having a proven counterpart opposite him on the defensive line. Double teams will have to be overcome.
It’d be a 10 if Lawrence wasn’t so darn good and had the proven track record.