Merit Street Media
Arlington, TX — Let's call a spade a spade... the Dallas Cowboys (1-1) got punked on their home field last week by the New Orleans Saints (2-0). The 44-19 beatdown New Orleans handed Dallas was so bad fans and media pundits alike are now questioning the Cowboys' toughness.
No one took the loss to the Saints harder than Cowboys' star pass rusher Micah Parsons. This week he is challenging his defense to silence their critics with a bounce back performance Sunday against the Baltimore Ravens (0-2).
“I think I’ll find it tougher if people don’t step up," Parsons said. "To me, it’s like a prove it weekend. I’m not putting anything on any of my teammates. I’m saying myself included, I need to step up. We all need to step up. It would hurt me more if we all didn’t step up and we all played down to that standard again. Because that just tells me we’re not moving in the direction we should be moving.”
To say the Cowboys defense underperformed last week would be an understatement. Dallas allowed New Orleans to score touchdowns on their first six possessions. The Cowboys gave up 35 points in the first half, tying a franchise record. The Saints ran for 190 yards on the ground. Dallas forced New Orleans to punt only one time during the week 2 blowout. There are plenty more negative stats to show the Cowboys' defensive futility, but hopefully you get the point.
Dallas' defense has a disturbing trend going on right now. The last two games the Cowboys have played in front of their home fans - the flood gates have been wide open. The Green Bay Packers defeated the Cowboys 48 - 32 in last year's wild card round at AT&T Stadium. Then of course there's the 44 points allowed last week in Arlington.
“To have back-to-back embarrassing losses at home, I get the fan frustration, but I don’t think there’s anyone more frustrated than me," Parsons said. "I’m a competitor. I feel like I’m a warrior. I battle like everyone else battles, but at the end of the day, it’s all about wanting it more. To me, not having everyone wanting it as bad as you do, that kind of hurts the most. If you’re willing to take a beating like that, that says a lot.”
If the Cowboys are going to avoid another humbling home loss, they are going to have to contain two-time NFL MVP Lamar Jackson and former All-Pro running back Travis Henry. The Ravens have the seventh best rushing attacking in the NFL. Jackson has 167 rushing yards this season by himself. That's almost as many rushing yards as the Cowboys has as a team at 170.
Parsons understands the Dallas defense will have their hands full with defending the combination of Jackson and Henry.
"Toughness. Step up. Ain't no other choice," Parsons said. "Derrick Henry's going to come downhill, like it or not. So it's not like a matter of are you going to stop it. It's just are you going to do it or not. I know I'm ready for the matchup."
"At some point, all 11 (players on the field) got to have the same mindset, and that's just toughness," Parsons said. "You talk about who you want to be and all this other stuff, but you've got go out there and be it. And it can't just be one guy. It can't be two guys. It's all 11 guys. It takes everyone."
* Photo Credit - USA Today Sports
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