It's not too harsh to describe the Dallas Cowboys' season as disastrous. One year after dominating the NFC East and becoming one of the most impressive teams in the entire league, the Cowboys find themselves at the bottom of a lackluster division and facing an offseason of question marks. It's true that injuries to quarterback Tony Romo and wide receiver Dez Bryant contributed to this year's derailing, an unlikely repeat offender next season. But the Cowboys also have 18 players headed to some form of free agency, including defensive starters Greg Hardy, Morris Claiborne and Rolando McClain.
Fortunately, defensive end DeMarcus Lawrence remains as a foundational piece after a breakout season that earned him team MVP honors from ESPN Cowboys reporter Todd Archer.
"The Cowboys had high hopes for Lawrence entering 2015 after he ended his rookie season in 2014 with two sacks during their playoff run," Archer wrote. "But Lawrence had to get accustomed to playing left defensive end after playing on the right side in 2014. Lawrence led the Cowboys with eight sacks this season and has shown he will be a building block for the future. Not much went right for the Cowboys in 2015, but Lawrence's development can be viewed as a positive."
The 2014 second-rounder added 55 total tackles and one forced fumble on top of his 8.0 sacks this year. His pass-rushing skills helped Dallas' defense rank fifth in yards per game through the air (227.3) and a middle-of-the-pack 16th in points (23.4) despite some horrendous rushing D. The sophomore defender was one of the few bright spots in an otherwise lost season.
The Cowboys will likely enter the 2016 season with healthy stars, which may draw away some attention from Lawrence. But the DE will undoubtedly be directly involved in any success Dallas achieves next season.
