THE APEX TIMES
Dallas’ starting middle linebacker laid out what went wrong after a brief run of physical play, and what the defense has to do to regain its edge week to week.
The Dallas Cowboys’ defensive identity has been built around urgency and physicality, Shemar James said this week, even after the unit’s effort faded quickly against the Arizona Cardinals.
James, the team’s starting middle linebacker, pointed to how the Cowboys started with pressure and a stout run defense, but said the momentum changed after Arizona made a quarterback switch to Gardner Minshew.
In James’ description, once the playbooks opened up for the Cardinals, Dallas’ earlier execution fell apart in a way that affected both the defense and the rest of the game, leaving the Cowboys with a rare, at-home loss after a strong stretch.
Asked about the “million dollar question” of what the fix is, James emphasized preparation throughout the week and pushing the defense to perform with the same intensity for every phase of the game, not just early.
James also stressed that Dallas can’t treat any week as a given in the NFL, saying the program needs an urgency mindset regardless of opponent, because the league offers no “circled” games and the margin for error is thin.
Despite the setback and the unlikelihood of a quick correction, the Cowboys are not mathematically out of playoff contention, James said, and he tied Dallas’ path to a challenging NFC East overall.
Dallas’ next game is against the Indianapolis Colts, which James framed as the immediate opportunity to prove the defense can still be the version it believes it is.