4 dream scenarios for the Dallas Cowboys in 2022
3. DeMarcus Lawrence Finally Ups His Sack Numbers
DeMarcus Lawrence is an incredibly valuable veteran piece of the Dallas defense. With Randy Gregory now in Denver, Lawrence’s season as a dominant defensive end becomes even more important. Although the Cowboys added Dante Fowler Jr. and Sam Williams this offseason, Lawrence is still clearly the best DE on the roster.
Micah Parsons will likely be sent to hunt down the quarterback a few times, but the team has explicitly stated that they plan to keep him as a versatile linebacker. For that reason, Lawrence needs to up his sack numbers to help make up for those lost in Gregory’s absence.
Even though his importance was still felt in the past few seasons, the eight-year veteran hasn’t had a double-digit sack season since 2018. It’s part of the reason he gets overlooked as one of the league’s best edge rushers.
DeMarcus Lawrence on his mentality this season: “Become the sack leader again. I let a rookie show me up last year. Shot out to my boy Micah. Restate my dominance. Let everybody know how I’m coming, how I feel and the type of respect I’m going to demand when I step on the field.” pic.twitter.com/2U16jvEOoo
— Jon Machota (@jonmachota) May 25, 2022
The good news is, that even at 30 years old, the DE has the drive to get better. During OTAs, he told reporters that he changed his diet and workout regimen to get stronger and healthier. The defender also said that his goal for 2022 is to become the Cowboys’ team sack leader again.
Lawrence achieving that feat would be amazing for his career, his legacy, and for the defense as a whole. The problem is he has to beat Parsons to the quarterback to achieve that. But, I’d say that’s a good problem to have.