Cowboys vs. 49ers: How San Francisco’s Defense Can Slow Down QB Dak Prescott
By Peter Panacy
Negating the Cowboys Rushing Attack
As is the case with many young mobile quarterbacks, a key factor in controlling the offense is ensuring the running game is going.
Quarterback Dak Prescott isn’t any different than, let’s say, Colin Kaepernick back in his heyday. Kaepernick needed a strong running game to thrive of play-action and read-option schemes. The Niners had a good ground attack back then. The Cowboys have a potential breakout one with Ezekiel Elliott right now.
We can look at Elliott’s incredible hurdle against the Chicago Bears in Week 3. But notice how the rookie tailback cuts to his right, as the Bears fail to set the edge on defense:
San Francisco struggled with this in Week 3, which allowed Seahawks running back Christine Michael to gash the Niners defense early on in the game.
Effective running games make any quarterback’s life easier, which means Prescott will have an easier go of things if San Francisco’s defense isn’t setting the edge on the ground.