Cowboys: Deuce Vaughn could be on track to losing playing time
Deuce Vaughn quickly became one of the Dallas Cowboys' fan favorites for several reasons. His draft story is absolutely fantastic, he was an electrifying player in college, and his preseason locked him in as a 53-man roster member. So far, we haven't seen much of him in the regular season and on Sunday, we saw […]
Deuce Vaughn quickly became one of the Dallas Cowboys' fan favorites for several reasons. His draft story is absolutely fantastic, he was an electrifying player in college, and his preseason locked him in as a 53-man roster member.
So far, we haven't seen much of him in the regular season and on Sunday, we saw him struggle in an area that could cost him significant playing time moving forward: Pass protection.
Vaughn gave up two pressures during the game and missed on a couple of big pick-ups during the Cowboys' win over the New England Patriots.
One happened on third down and long when the Cowboys ran three verticals out of a Max Protect look (seven blockers). In the play, which happened in the second quarter, Vaughn and tight end Jake Ferguson lined up in the backfield to give Dak Prescott some extra time by picking up whatever got through the offensive line. You can watch the play in the tweet below.
Tyler Biadasz and Zack Martin got beat in the stunt, squaring Vaughn up versus defensive lineman Deatrich Wise Jr. Vaughn failed to even lay his hands on him as he was stepping outside while Wise broke free.
Later in the game, Vaughn failed to pick up a DB pressure from the Patriots. It was never an easy play by any means and Dak Prescott deserves some of the blame as he doesn't get rid of the football despite the free rusher.
It should be noted pass pro schemes are complex in the NFL and it's tough to know for sure what the Cowboys are running. But with only two threats to the left side (blocked by Chuma Edoga and Tyler Smith), I'd bet Vaughn's first read would've been the middle linebacker and the second read to the blitzing DB.
Particularly frustrating is the fact that it wasn't Vaughn's size that cost him the two reps above. Rather, it was more about mental processing and awareness. He was never in a position to make any of the two blocks.
"We all smile when he does pass protect," McCarthy said about Vaughn back in August. "Because you talk about the instincts, awareness, and most importantly the footwork to get yourself in position, he has that."
Vaughn needs to start showing that in regular season football. In the meantime, his snap count could take a hit. And as somebody who doesn't play a whole lot of special teams (11 snaps this season to Hunter Luepke's 60, for example), he must step up quickly to avoid being a healthy scratch in the future.
He's shown us what he can do with the ball in his hands and the Cowboys should absolutely get him in more favorable situations for his traits. But the blocking needs to get better.
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He made a great point.
