The Dallas Cowboys now have one less problem on their defensive line after acquiring edge rusher Robert Quinn from the Miami Dolphins for a 2020 sixth-round pick. Quinn comes to Dallas with one year remaining on his contract, but the Cowboys are working to restructure it to lower his hit on the salary cap.

Overall, this seems like an excellent move for the front office to shore up the depth on the defensive line, assuming the Cowboys are able to patch things up with DeMarcus Lawrence and the dreaded franchise tag. With Quinn in tow, the Cowboys might have one of the more talented pass-rush bullpens heading into the 2019 season. This is a step in the right direction for the Dallas front office as Quinn brings some potential to a pass rush that was sorely lacking in stability.

By the numbers

Quinn’s 2018 campaign seemed unremarkable at a glance. With the Miami Dolphins, he was the No. 2 pass-rushing threat behind Cameron Wake. Quinn managed only 6.5 sacks, but in a complementary role, that is a pretty impressive stat. For the sake of comparison, Quinn’s 6.5 sacks would have ranked second on the Cowboys in 2018, just in front of Randy Gregory’s sack total (6.0).

Age was not a big factor for the 29-year old Quinn in 2018. According to ESPN’s Pass Rush Win Rate metric, he was the best edge rusher in terms of beating his man at the point of attack with a win rate of 40 percent. ESPN’s PRWR is denoted by a pass rusher’s ability to beat his man within 2.5 seconds (the average time for the quarterback to release the ball).

The fact Quinn led all edge rushers in PRWR is jarring for many reasons. For starters, this means that he was able to beat his blocker on nearly half of his 336 pass rush attempts. That is staggering. However, the counterpoint to all of this is: If he was able to win at the line of scrimmage so much, then why was his production so minimal? That is likely what the Cowboys are trying to find out. With that said, he should fit in nicely as the team’s new right defensive end, with Gregory’s future still up in the air due to an indefinite suspension, Quinn is going to be the player to watch coming off the right side.

Stats and measurables

Quinn stands at 6-foot-4, 265 pounds, a prototypical build for the defensive end position. Amazingly, it’s what he’s able to do at that size that is so impressive. He ranked in the 90th percentile among pro defensive ends with a 40-yard dash of 4.62 coming out of the draft, and that speed still shows up in his game. He is able to explode off the ball and shows some good bend off of the edge.

Career Defensive Stats Games Def Interceptions Fumbles Tackles Year Age Tm Pos No. G GS Int Yds TD Lng PD FF Fmb FR Yds TD Sk Comb Solo Ast TFL QBHits Sfty AV 2011 21 STL de 94 15 1 0 0 0 0 2 1 0 0 0 0 5.0 23 20 3 5 12 2 2012 22 STL DE 94 16 14 0 0 0 0 2 1 0 0 0 0 10.5 29 24 5 11 17 7 2013*+ 23 STL DE 94 16 16 0 0 0 0 1 7 0 2 33 1 19.0 57 50 7 23 34 16 2014* 24 STL DE 94 16 16 0 0 0 0 6 5 0 0 0 0 10.5 46 39 7 13 20 12 2015 25 STL de 94 8 7 0 0 0 0 3 3 0 0 0 0 5.0 21 13 8 5 7 4 2016 26 LAR DE 94 9 8 0 0 0 0 2 2 0 0 0 0 4.0 10 8 2 2 6 4 2017 27 LAR LB 94 15 14 0 0 0 0 1 2 0 0 0 0 8.5 32 21 11 9 12 6 2018 28 MIA DE 94 16 16 2 0 0 0 0 6.5 38 25 13 9 15 7 Career 111 92 0 0 0 0 17 23 0 2 33 1 69.0 256 200 56 77 123 58 7 yrs STL-LAR 95 76 0 0 0 0 17 21 0 2 33 1 62.5 218 175 43 68 108 51 1 yr MIA 16 16 2 0 0 0 0 6.5 38 25 13 9 15 7 Provided by Pro-Football-Reference.com

Quinn’s most dominant season as a pro came in 2014, a season in which he was ranked as the second-best player in the NFL, according to Pro Football Focus. Quinn led the league in total pressures with 91 combined sacks, hits and hurries. Those numbers have declined through the 2018 season. He only picked up 39 total pressures, a far cry from his league-leading total in 2014.

The stats might have dropped off with the passage of time, but Quinn still presents good value for the Cowboys, a team that desperately needed to find signs of life with their pass rush heading into the next season. In 2018, PFF had the Cowboys ranked No. 12 with a team pass rush grade of 72.0. The team had been so dependent on the elite play of Lawrence that without him, the defense could be in for a serious slump. The acquisition of Quinn should not deter the Cowboys from trying to work things out with Lawrence long term. After all, building a consistent pass rush is one of the most stable things to do on defense.

In conclusion

The Cowboys’ front office had been waiting in the wings, looking to get talent that wouldn’t hamstring the salary cap priorities. However, they haven’t exactly struck out with their free-agent signings, and a player like Quinn is definitely an improvement. His spot on the roster also means that the Cowboys will not feel the need to reach for an inferior prospect at defensive end in the upcoming draft for the sake of depth.

Working a deal for Quinn might not seem like a big thing at the moment. But considering what the duo of him and Lawrence would look like screaming off the edges, the Cowboys would have to feel pretty comfortable about where they stand on the defensive front.