3 Cowboys players who must step up for Dallas to succeed in 2020
By Randy Gurzi
3. Chidobe Awuzie, Cornerback
There was no position on the Cowboys depth chart that received as much attention as the cornerback spot. This was clearly due to the fact that Dallas had no intention of re-signing Byron Jones, who ended up landing a massive contract with the Miami Dolphins.
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With Jones gone, the Cowboys cornerback depth came under fire. Suddenly a unit that was only average with Jones looked to be in trouble. Dallas does deserve some credit though as they found a solid option in free agency in Daryl Worley and then picked up two potential starters in the draft.
Second-round pick Trevon Diggs should be a starter in this league for a long-time and fourth-round pick Reggie Robinson has tremendous upside and was a steal for where he was drafted. Having said that, the success, or lack thereof, in 202 isn’t going to fall on the rookies but instead on players such as Chidobe Awuze.
A second-round pick himself, Awuzie has been under the gun his entire career. He was expected to start right away and shore up the secondary but instead has become the most criticized player on the entire defense. His struggles had a lot to do with the frustration over losing Jones, but the Awuzie hate is unwarranted — and that’s come to light even more in recent days.
Former players and trainers have come forward and shed some light on the dysfunction that was the former Dallas coaching staff. And the biggest culprit for the head-scratching strategy is Kris Richard. Once considered the best defensive coach on the team, he’s now being accused of tipping his own hand when it comes to play-calling as well as limiting his own defensive backs by forcing them to use the same counter moves regardless of the receiver they were covering.
There could be some sour grapes here but if true, this could be huge for Awuzie. With a new staff, he should be able to reach his potential and their success this season will rely on him doing exactly that.