Matchups Favoring Bears Against Cowboys

Dallas, at 5-2, has put together a solid and even spectacular group of playmakers but there are spots the Bears can exploit on both sides of the football.

Going up against America's Team is likely to be a much tougher assignment for the Bears than was going on national TV and embarrassing the coach with the most Super Bowl wins in history.

The Dallas Cowboys have amassed a solid lineup across the board with few obvious weaknesses and the Bears could find trying to outwit defensive coordinator Dan Quinn more difficult. It was Quinn who was among three finalists with Matt Eberflus and former Lions coach Jim Caldwell for the Bears coaching job.

The Bears are trying to do this on a short work week, but they realized this ahead of time and altered their practice schedule earlier to focus on Dallas.

"Time is time," Eberflus said Wednesday. "You only get so many times. So we spent the better part of one day of that (mini-)break on first and second down vs. the Cowboys. So we’ve already had a chance to look at that, we’re already ahead of that. So we feel like we’re in good spot with that."

It's a common Eberflus practice to squeeze in the time to work ahead when hit with schedule alterations like the mini-bye weekend or a Thursday night game earlier this month.

"Yeah I just look atーI always work back and look at the time," he said. "So where do you gain the time? In these short weeks, long weeks, you still have the same amount of time, but as long as you think ahead a little bit and put that time forward, you know, and it’s important to do that, but we’ve always done that since I've been in pro ball with who I was with first, so it's important to do."

There are a few soft spots in the Dallas lineup where the Bears could take advantage regardless of the time spent working on the game plan or preparations for practice. 

It's mostly in places where younger players are being leaned on to pick up their development.

The Bears are very familiar with that type of situation, themselves.

Here are matchups the Bears can exploit against the Cowboys.

Bears G Teven Jenkins vs. Cowboys DT Osa Odighizuwa

Jenkins has been the surprise of the Bears offensive line at starting right guard, after moving over from tackle. He hasn't yet allowed a sack and has committed two penalties. Pro Football Focus currently ranks him the eighth-best guard in the league and the fifth-best run-blocking guard. Odighizuwa is a high-energy type who can be effective as a three-technique but the second-year lineman is prone to mistakes and can get out of his gap at times. At 6-2, 280, he better be fast because Jenkins' has good burst out of his stance and his greatest asset is his strength. Odighizuwa is ranked 58th in the league among interior defensive line defenders by Pro Football Focus, and has one sack and four tackles for loss.

Bears DE Robert Quinn vs. Cowboys T Tyler Smith

Quinn hasn't been getting the sack production with just one on the year but continues to have good pressure in a scheme that emphasizes defensive ends being a bit more stout than the Bears required in their 3-4 look last year. His run-stopping responsibilities have been more important than before and he can't abandon his gap on the hunt, but has been adjusting. It's not apparent whether all the rumors he has been shopped around the league have affected him. Smith is a rookie first-round pick, 24th overall, and as such could get an education facing a pass rusher with some unique techniques like Quinn has. Smith, who is 6-6, 332, is ranked 52nd among tackles by Pro Football Focus and has given up four sacks while committing six penalties.

Bears WR Darnell Mooney vs. Cowboys CB Jourdan Lewis

Lewis is not off to the sterling start he has enjoyed in some other years since coming into the league in 2017. His passer rating against, according to PFF, is 95.4 and he has allowed 24 receptions when targeted 29 times. He has been an upper tier slot cornerback in the past. Mooney and Justin Fields seem to be heating up in their connection, and they have averaged four completions for 66 yards over the last four games after just four catches for 27 yards total in the first three games.

Bears DT Armon Watts vs. Cowboys C Tyler Biadasz

Watts has played better and better since signing just before the season and he took over as starter from Angelo Blackson in the last four games. He seems to have a better grasp of what's required from the nose tackle in this scheme, which is getting hands on the center immediately to keep him from double-teaming the three-technique. Watts doesn't play as often since the Bears rotate in pass rusher on the interior but he has 19 tackles and one for loss for 94 plays and was among the reasons they were able to limit New England to 70 rushing yards Monday night. Biadasz is in his second season as starter and just a so-so center, ranked just 20th among centers by Pro Football Focus and the 24th best run blocking center. The Cowboys used to load up Ezekiel Elliott in the I or Tony Pollard but it's not a primary focus for Mike McCarthy. They'll still do it occasionally to get their running game operating efficiently and Biadasz, as a former Wisconsin center, is at his best then. The Bears have shown more tendencies to blitz in passing situations. Can Biadasz handle A-gap incursions from Roquan Smith or Nick Morrow?

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