The NFL is filled with some of the biggest, strongest and most athletic human beings on Earth, but it's not the biggest, strongest or most athletic players who truly dominate on the football field -- it's the ones with the most technical proficiency who tend to dominate on Sundays.

It's not to say these players aren't some combination of big, strong and athletic, but it's that those factors aren't as big of differentiators in the NFL as they are in college, high school or peewee football, which is why technique is so much more important in the pros than the lower levels. As long as a player meets the baseline requirements from a size, athleticism and intelligence standpoint, his technique will be the reason he succeeds or fails in the NFL.

Do you ever wonder how a 270-pound defensive lineman can move a 320-pound offensive lineman at the point of attack despite being smaller and weaker? It's all about technique.

So without further ado, let's take a look at some of the signature moves and most impressive techniques on the Cowboys' roster.

Tyron Smith's snatch and trap

One of the most common techniques in the tool bags of NFL pass rushers is the long arm. It makes sense given how powerful and efficient the technique is for them. It enables them to outreach the opposing lineman, which then allows them to initiate contact and put the offensive lineman on his heels.

Since the long arm typically only utilizes the inside arm to exert force onto the blocker, it means that the outside hand is free to manipulate the offensive lineman's weight, collapse his hands or sequence into another move.

The long arm is one of the most difficult moves to stop for an offensive lineman when the pass rusher uses it correctly. Because one arm extended can reach farther than both arms (try it at home), it allows the defender to latch onto the blocker's frame without the blocker being able to latch onto the pass rusher's frame.

Luckily for Dallas, Tyron Smith has mastered the perfect counter to the long arm -- the snatch and trap. This move takes advantage of a pass rusher whose weight distribution is more reliant on his arms than base, which typically occurs with long arms and bull rushes because the pass rushers are looking to exert as much force on their opponent as possible, invariably leading to overextension and uneven weight distribution. Here's an example:

Here, Smith is lined up across from his new teammate Robert Quinn, who is in a two-point stance with a wide alignment. Once the ball is snapped, Smith does a good job of creating the appropriate amount of depth in his pass set, putting him in perfect position to combat Quinn once he gets within striking distance.

Now, Smith has absurdly long arms (36 3/8 inches), so he is still able to contact Quinn even when the pass rusher elects to use the long arm -- perks of his freakish size. Quinn does a good job with his pad level and timing when using the long arm, but once Smith feels Quinn's weight get over his toes, he "snatches" the long arm with his inside hand, which "traps" Quinn's inside hand -- the primary source of his balance -- and sends him tumbling to the turf.

What makes this illustration of the technique more impressive is how Smith uses his inside arm to combat Quinn's free hand. This prevents Quinn from sequencing to another move or collapsing Smith's hands during combat.

The snatch and trap requires a keen awareness of the pass rusher's weight distribution and balance to go along with perfect timing and hand placement. If an offensive lineman does the technique right but uses it a tick late or lands his strike a couple of inches too high or low on the defender's arm, it saps the effectiveness and puts the blocker in a position to get countered in the process. Still, Smith is one of the best in the entire league at utilizing the snatch and trap to defend long arms and bull rushes, and it's one of the most impressive expressions of technique on the Cowboys' roster.

Amari Cooper's slant route

When Dez Bryant was a Cowboy, he was often lauded for his ability to win and create big plays on slant routes. In fact, when he was initially hired, Cowboys receivers coach Sanjay Lal credited Bryant for being one of the best slant runners in the league. The Cowboys run a lot of slants, and the offense often relies on the No. 1 receiver getting open when faced with the right coverage.

Amari Cooper isn't the same type of receiver as Bryant, but he is still extremely effective on slants -- maybe even better. Here's a great example:

Amari Cooper breaks Quinton Dunbar off a piece of that Kit Kat bar on this route. Releases outside to sell the vertical concept before throwing on the brakes & breaking inside on the slant. His acceleration and deep speed do the rest. pic.twitter.com/quZBnDmXcE — John Owning (@JohnOwning) November 23, 2018

On this play, Cooper is matched up against Washington cornerback Quinton Dunbar, who is in man coverage. Once the ball is snapped, Cooper quickly closes the gap between him and Dunbar before releasing outside, simulating a fade or go route. This gets Dunbar to turn his hips and start to run downfield in an effort to cut off what he thought was a vertical concept.

Instead, Cooper reads Dunbar's hips, immediately throws on the breaks and stems inside on the slant route. With his hips pointed toward the sideline, Dunbar struggles to transition back inside, which causes him to lose his balance and cede separation to Cooper on the slant.

From there, Cooper is able to easily haul in the pass before accelerating through the Washington secondary for a touchdown.

Playing off coverage vs Amari Cooper on 3rd down is basically gifting the Cowboys a 1st down. pic.twitter.com/zss6g2Lp0F — John Owning (@JohnOwning) November 30, 2018

The great thing about Cooper's masterful slant routes is that he's effective against a variety of coverages. He can create separation against press, soft-press and off-coverage alignments and is equally effective against man, zone or combination coverage, which is why Cooper was so successful on slant routes last season.

Amari Cooper is soo good at creating separation on slant routes. Stem outsides to get the CB to open his hips toward the sideline then cross his face and create separation. pic.twitter.com/u1pCjdweWa — John Owning (@JohnOwning) January 8, 2019

Cooper made a habit of making defensive backs look silly on slant routes throughout the 2018 season, doing an excellent job of disguising the true intentions of his route with his release and stems.

He does an outstanding job of selling a vertical route with his release, which puts cornerbacks in a precarious situation. If they don't turn and run to defend the vertical concept and instead sit on the slant, they risk Cooper (who has 4.4 speed) blowing by them for a big gain on a vertical route. But if they turn and run to defend the vertical route, Cooper will stem inside to get open on the slant.

It's a pick-your-poison situation for cornerbacks, and most choose to defend the vertical, which is why Cooper was able to get open so often on slant routes.

He's been on the team for less than a year, but Cooper has already proven capable of becoming one of the best route runners in franchise history -- the slant route is just one reason why.

DeMarcus Lawrence's cross chop

DeMarcus Lawrence has become one of the best defensive ends in the NFL over the last couple of years. He has been outstanding against the run and electric rushing the passer off the edge. Lawrence possesses a deep repertoire of moves to combat offensive linemen, but his favorite (and most effective) means to beat a block on his way to the QB is, without a doubt, his cross-chop move.

Here's a great example:

Highlighting DLaw's cross-chop that he uses to get quick pressure. He's dominating with that move week in and week out.#DallasCowboys pic.twitter.com/hBjT4QhUjN — John Owning (@JohnOwning) December 19, 2017

On this play, Lawrence is matched up against Raiders right tackle Vadal Alexander. Once the ball is snapped, Lawrence attacks Alexander's mid-line in an effort to prevent the right tackle from getting enough width with his pass set, which invariably creates a softer edge for Lawrence to attack. Once he gets within striking distance, Lawrence jab-steps inside in an effort to freeze Alexander's feet and draw out a strike from his outside hand, which works to perfection.

With Alexander reaching to latch onto Lawrence's frame with his outside hand, the Cowboys pass rusher has a great opportunity to execute the cross chop, which he does to perfection.

Notice how Lawrence syncs up his footwork with his hand technique. It allows him to be fluid, precise and quick with his movements.

Also watch how Lawrence prevents Alexander from recovering by using his outside hand to cover Alexander's outside elbow after performing the cross chop with his inside hand. Those little details are what separate the good pass rushers from the great ones -- and there's no doubt Lawrence is a great one.

Lawrence's ability to set up the cross chop in different ways and utilize it in unique situations truly unlocks its effectiveness. Pass rushers have a tendency to get too predictable with their favorite moves, which ends up sapping their effectiveness in the long run.

He does an excellent job of disguising his true intentions by changing tempo and using different footwork with a variety of hand techniques. This allows Lawrence to stay unpredictable while maintaining the effectiveness of his favorite move. Here are some examples:

DeMarcus Lawrence dominates with the details. Uses his best move, the cross chop, here. Fantastic timing, placement & footwork, but what I like most is how he covers the RT's right elbow with his left hand after using the cross chop to prevent RT from recovering his outside hand. pic.twitter.com/1jOwwyzlbz — John Owning (@JohnOwning) May 4, 2019

He can hit the cross chop after his first step against a jump set.

One of DLaw's best rushes of the year was negated by an iffy at best flag. Speed cross chop to clear contact as he burns around the edge. Not sure I've seen DLaw turn a tighter corner this season. pic.twitter.com/oWprPKL03l — John Owning (@JohnOwning) November 30, 2018

He can also use it in concert with a vertical speed rush where he doesn't threaten inside.

This is a beautiful rep from DeMarcus Lawrence to register the QB hit. Gorgeous inside cross-chop to beat Morgan Moses' punch and apply pressure. pic.twitter.com/8XvaBU9kIz — John Owning (@JohnOwning) November 23, 2018

He also has the rare ability to use the cross chop to win on an inside move.

DeMarcus Lawrence has better timing & fluidity with his cross chop than any pass rushers in the NFL. Bobs inside before expanding outside with his well-timed and placed cross chop with his inside hand. Hands are always in sync with his feet. #PayTheMan pic.twitter.com/T4wa6iZ1eE — John Owning (@JohnOwning) November 19, 2018

Lawrence can fake the inside move and use the cross chop to win on the outside edge track.

DeMarcus Lawrence shows off his ability to sequence moves together on this sack. Initially looks to hit his cross-chop, but whiffs. So he immediately transitions into his next move, a two-hand-swipe, as he speeds around the corner.



Sublime. #DallasCowboys pic.twitter.com/Zi055LA7pi — John Owning (@JohnOwning) November 19, 2018

And even when he misses initially with his cross chop, he can sequence into another move to beat the block and get to the QB.

Through hard work and thousands of reps, Lawrence has mastered the cross chop to the point where he can use it in nearly any situation and against almost any opponent (Lane Johnson is usually Lawrence's toughest test each year), which is the mark of someone who has truly mastered a technique.

Honorable mentions

Randy Gregory's inside swim

Nice footwork from #DallasCowboys DE Randy Gregory to set up his inside swim move here. He got Peters to take one extra step to the outside, giving himself the room he needed to get free for the sack. Great rush. pic.twitter.com/FlIoqLrX1g — John Owning (@JohnOwning) November 12, 2018

The inside swim move has been one of Randy Gregory's favorites since college. In fact, during one of his first practices as a Cowboy, Gregory used the inside swim move to beat Tyron Smith, illustrating how effective Gregory is with the move.

His effectiveness on the inside swim comes from his outside speed off the edge. Gregory is an elite athlete who can race by any offensive lineman in the NFL if they aren't careful. Because of this, tackles often sell out to defend Gregory's speed off the edge. That, however, often opens up the inside swim counter for Gregory.

Dalton Schultz's slingshot block

Helluva block by Dalton Schultz on Anthony Walker (No. 50). Uses the slingshot technique to take Walker out of Zeke's cutback lane. The rookie TE did really well in the run game. #BrightSide pic.twitter.com/I6XZz14cgB — John Owning (@JohnOwning) December 18, 2018

Dalton Schultz had a slow start to 2018, but he really started to come on -- especially as a blocker -- down the stretch. While he didn't use it often, the slingshot technique was a great demonstration of his progress as a blocker.

The slingshot technique is a fantastic means of a cutting off a defender when the blocker doesn't have a good angle to execute a traditional cut-off block.

In the above clip, the linebacker (Anthony Walker) does an excellent job of attacking forward, which prevents Schultz from being able to cross his face and cut him off. However, Schultz uses the linebacker's momentum against him, slightly pushing him upfield, and that gives him the time he needs to wrap around the back of Walker, putting him in prime position to cut the linebacker off and prevent him from getting near the ball carrier.

The slingshot is an incredibly difficult technique that most veteran offensive linemen don't even use, let alone a rookie tight end.

Enjoy this post? More film studies:

-- Why S George Iloka will play an important role in 2019

-- Why CB Jourdan Lewis will be a key reserve in 2019

-- Why rookie RB Tony Pollard will be a versatile weapon in 2019

Twitter: @JohnOwning