Dallas Cowboys safety Jayron Kearse has had four playoff appearances heading into Sunday’s game against the Green Bay Packers, but he has never gotten past the Divisional Round.
The Cowboys haven’t even been able to get past the Divisional Round of the playoffs since 1996. Kearse hopes to be part of the team that breaks the Cowboys’ dry spell and gets them into a deeper playoff run.
Jayron Kearse’s Hope in the Cowboys’ Offense
The Cowboys’ defense has been the identity of the team for the majority of the last three seasons under DC Dan Quinn. Meanwhile, the offense’s inconsistency was one of the team’s downfalls last year in the postseason.
Kearse says two numbers give him hope that things can be different this year: “four” for Dak Prescott and “88” for CeeDee Lamb.
“We got four and 88, and that’s enough hope for me when they’re playing the way that they’re playing. I believe that’s the best quarterback-receiver duo in the league, and the numbers say so, as well,” said Kearse.
The safety is correct, as Prescott led the NFL in passing touchdowns with 36. Meanwhile, Lamb led the NFL in receptions with 135. Prescott had 4,516 passing yards this season, 1,749 of which were to Lamb.
Kearse says that as long the defense is doing their part against the Packers, he knows the offense can cook.
As for the ties HC Mike McCarthy has to the Packers as his former team, Kearse says the team isn’t going to blow up that storyline because the focus is on winning.
MORE: How Mike McCarthy’s Past Mistakes Will Influence His Approach to Sunday’s Game Against the Packers
“We wanna go out there and win this thing for coach, but let’s understand that this is just a team that’s in our way. Let’s not make it bigger than what it is. Being that it’s the playoffs, it’s already huge enough, so let’s not put anything else on it. Let’s just go out there and handle business,” said Kearse.
Is the Cowboys’ Defense in Playoff Form?
This season, the defense has had its lows — primarily when it assesses the run defense and dry spells of creating turnovers.
These aspects of their game have struggled and contributed to the team’s five regular-season losses this year. Still, the safety says the unit has hit its stride at the right time.
“You wanna be playing your best ball when you get into that dance,” said Kearse.
He said the last two weeks have been an integral part of the defense clicking again.
In Weeks 15 and 16, the defense struggled to generate turnovers. That tied hand-in-hand with the team’s first back-to-back losses since the 2021 season.
But in the last two weeks, the defense had five combined turnovers.
DBs Donovan Wilson and Jourdan Lewis were the two players responsible for those turnovers. They hadn’t created turnovers all season until the last two weeks.
Wilson has had back-to-back weeks of interceptions, while Lewis had an interception and a forced fumble and recovery.
Both Wilson and Lewis came into this season nursing injuries but have seemingly reemerged as time has passed. Kearse said that this has been vital for the defense to hit its stride recently.
Overall, he said the unit returned to the basics and played their assignments — not trying to chase big plays.
Kearse’s Early Impressions of the Packers
Now, it’s time to turn the page from the regular season, as preparations for the playoffs have begun.
He says the challenge he has seen early on in his game prep is Green Bay QB Jordan Love’s play — especially in his first year as the Packers’ starter.
Love ranked fourth in the NFL this season for the most touchdowns scored by a quarterback (36).
Kearse says his ability to score stood out to the veteran safety. He also credited Green Bay HC Matt LaFleur for the offensive scheme that puts Love in favorable situations.
“They’ll provide a challenge,” said Kearse, adding, “Especially it’s Green Bay, they won, they know how to win, so it’s definitely going to be a challenge but one we’ll definitely be up for.”
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