DeMarco Murray has toughest matchup vs. Lions

Dallas Cowboys quarterback Tony Romo had a fantastic regular season and led the league in most of the important statistical categories used to evaluate QBs, but he isn’t an MVP front-runner due to credit splitting with star running back DeMarco Murray. Even though it seems like the Cowboys are running the tread on Murray’s tires before he hits the free agent market (it doesn’t seem like they’ll re-sign him with Dez Bryant and Rolando McClain also on expiring contracts), there’s no doubt that he’s been critical to this team’s success as the best running back in the league this season (though Arian Foster and Le’Veon Bell make compelling cases).

Murray finished the regular season with 392 carries, 1,845 rushing yards, an average of 115 yards per game, 12 outings with at least 100 rushing yards, 13 touchdowns, and an impressive 57 receptions. He consistently generates significant chunks of yardage, and there aren’t many backs who are better at forcing missed tackles than Murray, whose elusiveness has finally been recognized. There’s no doubt that he benefits from running behind some elite blockers, but Murray’s 85 missed tackles and 2.54 yards after contact per attempt, per Pro Football Focus, show that he’s more than capable of generating yards beyond the real estate handed to him by his offensive line.

The Detroit Lions pass defense gets all the talk, but their run defense has a resume that is just as impressive as Murray’s Offensive Player of the Year-caliber numbers. For starters, they are probably the best run defense in the NFL, as they allow a rock-bottom 3.2 yards per carry, which is the lowest average allowed in the NFL. Their counting stats are equally impressive against the run, as they allow the lowest rushing yards of any team in the league and have surrendered just eight touchdowns on the ground. It’s almost impossible to move the ball against the Lions front seven, as they have allowed over 100 rushing yards just twice this season.

That said, they did post their worst game as a collective run defense in last week’s rivalry finale against the Green Bay Packers, who had some surprising success against the Lions with 152 rushing yards. Eddie Lacy pounded it at them with 100 yards on 26 carries, while James Starks chipped in 25 yards on just six attempts. The Packers weren’t incredibly efficient on the ground, and it’s a testament to the Lions dominance against opposing running games that their Week 17 performance was their worst of the season. In fact, they allowed 50 or fewer rushing yards in four games, including back-to-back games with 13 and 26 rushing yards allowed.

That’s the defense Murray will have to beat on Sunday evening, and what makes the Lions run defense so daunting is the fact that they are good in run defense at all levels. Their safeties know how to play the run, as Glover Quin is a sure-handed tackler, while strong safety James Ihedigbo bases his game on making plays close to the line of scrimmage.

Linebacker DeAndre Levy is one of the best in the NFL, and the players around him are solid players who don’t make mistakes. Even without Nick Fairley, the Lions defensive line is still the strength of this defense, as Ndamukong Suh has combined his elite pass rushing ability with elite run defending, and Ziggy Ansah has quietly shown that he’s more than capable of using his ridiculous physical tools to make a consistent impact against running backs.

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DeMarco Murray has an offensive line in front of him that doesn’t have a single below-average player. Tyron Smith and Doug Free form one of the NFL’s best tackle bookends, center Travis Frederick is an elite run blocker in every since, rookie guard Zack Martin is a serious beast who is on his way to becoming one of the best at the position, and fellow guard Ronald Leary has established himself as a solid starter in this league. The Cowboys have strength, smarts, and athleticism on their well-balanced offensive line to counter the Lions league-best run defense, and they have an elite feature back who has very few holes in his game. The Packers showed that the Lions run defense can be beaten, and the Cowboys offense has even better players.

Although the Cowboys passing attack is excellent, they will also go up against an elite pass defense, so the key for the Cowboys is maintaining the balance on offense that has made them so successful. They used to be heavily criticized for forcing Romo to do everything, and this is one of those games where having an elite passing attack and elite rushing attack is so important; they will have to use both and be effective in their utilization of both in order to defeat a team that has the ability to shut down either.

There’s no doubt that this week’s game between the Lions and Cowboys has a chance to be one of the best in the postseason, and it will be interesting to see if Murray, whose worst performance of the season was a 58-yard day against the Indianapolis Colts whne he was injured, can be one of the only backs to have success against the Lions stingy D.

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