Dallas Cowboys rookie star, defense keep rising headed into showdown with Redskins
The Dallas Cowboys’ defense is for real. They proved it again Sunday in Atlanta.
And more specifically, rookie linebacker Leighton Vander Esch is the real deal.
Vander Esch intercepted a pass for the second consecutive game to set up a Cowboys’ touchdown, their first touchdown of the game early in the fourth quarter against the Falcons. Vander Esch made the pick after it deflected off Falcons’ rookie receiver Calvin Ridley. Ridley was the player that many thought Dallas should have drafted with the No. 19 pick in April.
Vander Esch, however, continues to prove all doubters wrong. He returned the interception 28 yards to the Atlanta 31. Ezekiel Elliott scored on a 23-yard run two plays later to give the Cowboys a 19-9 lead with 12:26 left in the game.
“Some things happen so quick, just bang-bang plays. You have to be ready for them,” Vander Esch said. “[It’s about] being in position and expecting stuff to happen. Sometimes the ball bounces the right way. Then again, you have to be in the right place and you have to be relentless and hustle every single snap of the ball so you’ve got to be there.”
The Falcons scored twice to tie it at 19-19 before the Cowboys’ won it with a 42-yard Brett Maher field goal as time expired. The win moves Dallas to 5-5. The Cowboys are a game behind the Redskins (6-4), who lost to the Texans. They meet with first place in ithe NFC East on the line at 3:30 p.m. Thursday at AT&T Stadium.
Vander Esch grew up watching the Cowboys play on Thanksgiving. Now he’s a star-in-the-making starting in his first turkey day tradition.
“It’s pretty neat to be in that position now,” he said. “It’s going to be awesome. We’re going to be ready and we’re going to go get it again.”
The rookie has had a knack for making key plays the entire season and leads the team in tackles. He broke up a pass at the goal line on 3rd and inches that forced the Falcons to settle for their fourth field goal in the fourth quarter. He had eight tackles and three passes deflected and is the sixth Cowboys’ rookie to record at least 100 tackles in a season.
“I love playing here. I didn’t want to be anywhere else. I love Cowboys Nation,” he said.
Dallas sacked Matt Ryan three times, including 1.5 by DeMarcus Lawrence and one by Randy Gregory. Linebacker Jaylon Smith said the momentum is working for the Cowboys now.
“We have a short week but we’re looking forward to it. It’s feels better than where we were,” Smith said. “We have to continue to take it game by game. We’re very resilient team and unit. We have to do that each and every week.”
This story was originally published November 18, 2018 at 4:40 PM.