Can Cooper Rush Be a Zone Beater?

12/27 Here We Goooo
FRISCO, Texas – The Cowboys enter the final two games of the 2024 season with division rivals ahead, starting with the Philadelphia Eagles on Sunday. While both teams will be missing key players, the rivalry still holds weight, and both sides are looking to finish strong. Can the Cowboys bounce back from their 34-6 defeat in Week 10? This week’s “Here We Goooo” deep dive into the numbers highlights key areas where the Cowboys can find success:

1. Rush must beat zone coverage
Cooper Rush mentioned after Dallas’ victory over Carolina two weeks ago that he’s playing some of the best football of his career, and both his coaches’ support and recent performance back that statement. However, against Philadelphia, he needs to take another step forward for the Cowboys to reach 8-8.
That next step involves improving his play against zone defenses. Vic Fangio’s defense runs zone at one of the highest rates in the NFL, and Rush has struggled against it, completing 132 of his 207 attempts for 1,089 yards, two touchdowns, and an interception. His 5.3 yards per attempt against zone coverage ranks lowest in the NFL. A deeper look reveals a completion rate below expected at -7.2%, with an expected points added of -35.5 and just a 41.8% success rate against zone.
In contrast, the Eagles have allowed eight touchdowns and four interceptions while pressuring the quarterback 30 times with sacks. They limit quarterbacks to just 6.4 yards per attempt and 3.4 yards per completion in zone, a hallmark of a Fangio defense.
For Rush to succeed, he must place the ball in the right spots, especially with the Eagles’ young, but talented secondary featuring players like Quinyon Mitchell, Cooper DeJean, and Reed Blankenship. A major challenge for Rush comes from the absence of CeeDee Lamb, so the Cowboys’ younger receivers will need to get open and make themselves available for Rush.
The silver lining is that Rush has been playing some of his best football in recent weeks, particularly in throwing downfield. Over the last three games, he’s completed 17 of 27 attempts for 328 yards, six touchdowns, and no interceptions on throws of 10 or more yards. In the previous Eagles game, Rush didn’t complete any pass over 10 yards. If he can connect on downfield passes against a defense that has intercepted nine of its 10 picks on such throws, the Cowboys’ offense might stand a chance.

2. Get pressure, regardless of the quarterback
A big question for the game is who will start at quarterback for the Eagles after Jalen Hurts suffered a concussion against Washington. Kenny Pickett replaced him, but he’s dealing with his own rib injury. On Friday, the Eagles confirmed Pickett would start, but no matter who plays quarterback, the Cowboys’ defense must apply pressure.
This point may seem obvious, but the defense needs a strong performance for a chance to win. Micah Parsons is crucial to this effort, with the Cowboys leading the league in turnovers (15) and sacks (28) since Week 10. The defense has also achieved a 32.3% pressure rate, 10th in the NFL, even when only sending four pass rushers.
The statistics highlight the impact: the Cowboys’ 28 sacks since Week 10 have increased their win probability by +127.2%, the most in the NFL. This is a key reason for their 4-3 record over that span.
Parsons isn’t the only one generating pressure, as Osa Odighizuwa’s 48 pressures rank him among the top four defensive ends. When the two are on the field together, they’ve generated at least four pressures in six of seven games since Week 10 and combined for 12 sacks.
In Philadelphia’s recent loss to Washington, Pickett faced a blitz on 53.3% of his dropbacks, the highest percentage of his career. Against the blitz, he completed seven of 13 passes for 94 yards, while being pressured 10 times and sacked three times. Mike Zimmer’s creative blitzing has been effective, as the Cowboys rank fourth in the NFL with 20 sacks from blitzes.

3. Contain Saquon Barkley again
In their first matchup of the season, the Cowboys defense contained Saquon Barkley to 66 yards on 14 carries, his third-lowest output of the year. Since then, Barkley has rushed for over 100 yards in five of his last six games.
Barkley has excelled in the second half of games, rushing for 1,118 yards after halftime this season, the most since 2018. However, in the last two weeks, he’s managed just 61 yards on 28 carries, marking his two lowest second-half totals of the season.
With the Cowboys’ defense playing some of its best run defense in recent weeks, continuing this trend would be crucial. They haven’t allowed a 100-yard rushing performance since Week 11 against Joe Mixon.
Barkley is chasing Eric Dickerson’s single-season rushing record of 2,105 yards, needing 267 yards in the final two games to break it. The Cowboys will not only aim to spoil the Eagles’ playoff hopes but also to prevent Barkley from setting that record, even with a possible increase in carries due to a backup quarterback.