“Do you want to take a chance and be great, or do you want to be safe and good?” ex-head coach of the Dallas Cowboys Jimmy Johnson once remarked.
Personally, I’ll go with the latter, but that’s just me.
In the case of this team, Dallas has a few spots on the roster where it could decide to take a risk on potential rather than the easy option. A few weeks ago, I brought up playing Mazi Smith instead of Jonathan Hankins.
Heck, you could make the same argument for three or four other players on this team.
Still, Dallas has a rival that is not on their level waiting for them at Bank of America Stadium in Charlotte, North Carolina.
There may be a chance to get more players moving around the field with this.
It certainly raises the question of what Israel Mukuamu is doing—or not doing—to obtain more defensive snaps. He had a great finish to the previous season and has not appeared in any games in 2023.
Let’s talk about why he has been kept hidden as a unique team member.
Could you please tell me the answer to that question? There can’t be just me in the dark about this.
Izzy appears to be a simple solution for someone who hasn’t been receiving the appropriate amount of snaps.
Although it’s no secret that he wasn’t a “slam dunk” selection for this roster, his physical attributes make it practically hard to ignore.
He added 154 total defensive snaps in the previous campaign. 2023 has only seen 45 snaps so far.
There’s still a remote chance that he will blow past the chances from the previous season with eight games left in the schedule.
After Trevon Diggs was sidelined for the season and Kelvin Joseph was traded, it appeared inevitable that defensive coordinator Dan Quinn would insert Mukuamu into the hybrid corner/safety position.
Sadly, that hasn’t happened for the fans.
I immediately thought of position needs. Mukuamu’s stature (6’4″, 205 pounds) seems ideal for playing outside the lines, if not in a safe manner.
DaRon Bland has been playing lights out outside, thankfully. Relocating him to the slot would be illegal.
Jourdan Lewis is not playing well, in my opinion. Sorry, but I am unable to subscribe to that. His physical profile, though, more closely fits the slot than Izzy’s.
There are few to no snaps to be had in that unit now that all three safeties—Donovan Wilson, Jayron Kearse, and Malik Hooker—have returned to full health.
It looks that Juanyeh Thomas is ranked fourth in vice grips.
The defensive backfield isn’t particularly good, but it’s also not bad. Is it feasible that Mukuamu is no longer needed in the defensive backfield?
Seems incredibly improbable.
