The Cowboys have themselves a new defensive coordinator, plucking Christian Parker from the Eagles. In the wake of the news, just about everyone who has played or worked with Parker has spoken up to praise the 34 year old, who becomes the youngest defensive coordinator in franchise history.
The excitement around Parker is palpable, and plenty of players on this roster stand to benefit from his hiring. Our own LP Cruz already outlined the three biggest winners. But one specific player, whom hardly
anyone is thinking about, may end up being one of the biggest beneficiary: Markquese Bell.
That’s right, Markquese Bell, who played just 32% of defensive snaps this past season with just three starts. The suggestion actually comes from Ted Nguyen of The Athletic, who pointed to a profile he recently did on the rise of the nickel position in the modern day NFL.
In the article, Nguyen spoke to a handful of coaches, including Eagles safeties coach Joe Kasper. Obviously, Kasper and Parker worked closely together the last two years. Here’s what Kasper had to say about how Vic Fangio and the rest of the Eagles defensive coaching staff views the nickel position:
The nickel now has become a premium position, a defensive-defining position. So having that length and strength is a big advantage, you know, to be able to reroute and disrupt releases of routes. Foot speed to be able to match routes when you’re talking about being able to play true single-high coverage. And then your vision to be able to identify route concepts.
They have to identify and have a feel for time and distance in a quicker setting than a safety would. A safety has about 7 to 12 yards to be able to process and then make his first move. The nickel doesn’t have that. He has to make his first movement within those first 4 to 5 yards.
The value of a great nickel is way higher than what most personnel departments think. Most personnel departments are really way behind the times. When you look at it, you look at these offenses that run in-breaking routes off of reductions, and then that is already defeating quarter leverage. And then we talk like, ‘Oh, well, the corner is still the most important one.’ I just think that that’s grossly inaccurate if you’re talking about keeping up with the times.
That goes back to a big piece of the Fangio system: light boxes.
Fangio tricks quarterbacks in the pre-snap by showing the same types of alignments over and over but rarely running the same actual concept on consecutive plays. A big part of that is the presentation of light boxes – you’ll often see two or even just one linebacker in the second level – to goad offenses into either running the ball or attacking the middle of the field.
That’s why the nickel is so crucial to the scheme. They align inside anyway, and Fangio can effectively use the nickel as an extra linebacker when it comes to fitting the run. It’s also more advantageous to have an actual defensive back covering those in-breaking passes than a linebacker. But the trick is finding a defensive back who can play with linebacker traits.
Do you hear that? It’s Markquese Bell’s music.
Let’s flash back to Bell’s initial scouting reports. He went undrafted out of Florida A&M. Before that, Bell was a former 4-star recruit who spent a year at the junior college level before finding a home with Florida A&M. There, he played a hybrid role for the Rattlers, with his athleticism and size helping Bell to become a true chess piece at the FCS level.
When Bell was coming out, a certain Blogging the Boys scribe profiled him and specifically noted his multiple applications should he become a Cowboy:
His hard-hitting style of play is reminiscent of Donovan Wilson; his risky ball skills that usually pay off in a big way are reminiscent of Trevon Diggs; and his ability to thrive as a chess piece in the secondary is reminiscent of Jayron Kearse. That’s not to say he’ll turn out like those players, but he has similarities in his game to all three of them.
Bell isn’t a plug-and-play guy, either. He needs to get better eye discipline and be just a little more refined in his techniques before he can be in the discussion to be a starter.
The potential to be a hybrid player manifested itself in a very real way, too. As we all know, Bell was straight up moved to linebacker early in the 2023 season. He finished with the team lead in tackles and was their highest graded linebacker, according to Pro Football Focus. Bell’s play was not enough to justify keeping him at linebacker – he was simply too small to routinely go up against offensive linemen – but it highlighted his limitless potential.
Potential that could be unlocked in Parker’s scheme, which prioritizes the kind of traits Bell possesses in that nickel role. Of course, Bell’s biggest weakness coming out of college – eye discipline – is a big problem to have for that nickel role, as Kasper explained. Bell hasn’t really seen enough reps in his NFL career to answer whether or not he’s ready to start in this new scheme, but he should at least be a candidate.
There’s also an argument to be made that Parker – who has been hailed for his communication and teaching skills – can help improve Bell’s eye discipline more than the previous two coordinators Bell has worked with. If the Cowboys can get some improvements in that regard, Bell will be in a position to battle for a role at a premium position on this new defense.
