The Dallas Cowboys could once boast a pass rush led by perennial All-Pro Micah Parsons and wily veteran DeMarcus Lawrence. However, after the former was traded to the Green Bay Packers and the latter helped take the Seattle Seahawks to Super Bowl LX, the defensive line fell off a cliff.
Lawrence's impact on his new club in Seattle was immediate and massive. To hear Seahawks defensive tackle Jarran Reed describe it during his media availability before the Super Bowl, he knew from the jump that Lawrence was going to be a huge difference-maker for this team.
"That's a player I think we were missing," Reed said at Super Bowl LX Opening Night. "A guy who can rush on the edge, rush on the inside, play the run, create turnovers...when he came, that was great for us. When we got him, we knew we got a special player."
Seahawks' Jarran Reed praises former Cowboys DE DeMarcus Lawrence
Lawrence made his fifth Pro Bowl this season at 33 years old for Seattle. Even though he isn't putting together the gaudy sack numbers many of the better edges in the league are amassing, his ability to set the edge for one of the best defenses in football has been nothing short of remarkable.
Lawrence was not just PFF's No. 13-ranked edge rusher this season, but he was No. 1 in all of football at stopping the run. This allowed Seattle's speed rushers and defensive backs to go to work as extra blitzers, thus making Mike Macdonald's defensive scheme complete.
Cowboys fans will likely be living vicariously through Lawrence, as he may have the opportunity to slide a ring on his finger after years of coming close and failing in Dallas. The New England Patriots, who have some questions on their offensive line, present some opportunities that Lawrence can take advantage of.
Dallas, meanwhile, will likely need to use what cap space they have in free agency (that will not be allocated to George Pickens) or one of their two first-round picks in the 2026 NFL Draft on a pass rusher who can both replace Lawrence and emerge as someone who can thrive next to Donovan Ezeiruaku.
As hard as it was for Cowboys fans to watch Lawrence leave after nearly a decade in town, watching him immediately go compete for a championship while serving as a key cog in one of the best defenses in the league has to make the pain of the front office letting him walk even more vicious.