Former UCLA Star Represents Bright Spot In Lost Cowboys Season

This former UCLA Bruins star has been enjoying a terrific season with the Dallas Cowboys.

Oct 27, 2024; Santa Clara, California, USA; after the game San Francisco 49ers linebacker Fred Warner (54) and Dallas Cowboys linebacker Eric Kendricks (50) shake hands at Levi's Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Neville E. Guard-Imagn Images / Neville E. Guard-Imagn Images

Things really can't get much worse for the Dallas Cowboys right now. They dropped to 3-5 with their Week 9 loss to the Atlanta Falcons, and now, it looks like quarterback Dak Prescott is going to be sidelined for quite some time.

But while the Cowboys' season has gone off the rails, one player has quietly represented a bright spot for the club: former UCLA Bruins linebacker Eric Kendricks.

Kendricks represented Dallas' most impactful free-agent signing in what was an offseason that included very limited activity from Jerry Jones and Co.

The Cowboys signed him to a one-year, $3-million deal, an incredibly affordable contract for a player of his caliber.

And you know what? Through the first couple of months of the 2024 NFL campaign, Kendricks has delivered, having already rattled off 70 tackles, a couple of sacks, an interception, a pair of forced fumbles and two passes defended in seven games played.

He has also earned a solid 71.9 run defense grade from Pro Football Focus, and while that isn't elite, it is certainly decent.

Kendricks did make a Pro Bowl as well as earning a First-Team All-Pro selection with the Minnesota Vikings back in 2019, which are his only such accolades since entering the NFL as a second-round draft pick nearly a decade ago.

The 32-year-old isn't that player anymore, but he is still clearly a positive force on the defensive side of the ball and has been one of the Cowboys' few reliable defenders this season.

Kendricks spent four years at UCLA from 2011 through 2014 and was a tackling machine, racking up 150, 106 and 149 stops, respectively, during his final three seasons with the school.

During his last year with the Bruins, Kendricks also registered 12 tackles for loss, four sacks, three picks, a forced fumble, a fumble recovery and a defensive touchdown.

That's what you call filling up the stat sheet.

While inside linebackers have definitely been a bit marginalized in the modern NFL, which places a heavier emphasis on edge rushers, Kendricks remains a force and appears to be one of the best players his position has to offer in 2024.

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