The Dallas Cowboys may not have come out on top in a season-opening loss against A.J. Brown and the Philadelphia Eagles, but defensive coordinator Matt Eberflus put together a fine day at the office by taking the sting out of Jalen Hurts and their hated rival’s passing game.

A former All-Pro receiver, Brown caught just one pass for eight yards in that game, and he was targeted just once in the fourth quarter when the Eagles were trying to run out the clock. Brown explained what went wrong on local sports radio, and he may have given teams around the league a clue as to how to slow him down.

Brown was lamenting the fact that the Cowboys played zone coverage the entire game, claiming that it became much harder to get separation as a result. Brown also added that he was not hurt and his poor showing was his own fault above all else.

To hear Brown himself say it, if you play tons of zone coverage, it becomes much harder for him to dominate on the outside. Cowboys fans better hope that teams around the league on Philadelphia’s schedule will copy what Eberflus put on film.

Cowboys’ Matt Eberflus showed NFL that zone coverage can beat AJ Brown

Eberflus is committed to his scheme, as the zone-heavy coordinator did not run a single man coverage play the entire game. While they were ripped up on the ground as a result of this philosophy, Hurts looked completely out of his element for most of the game.

In addition to Brown struggling, high-end WR2 Devonta Smith caught just three passes for 18 yards. Outside of one bomb down the field to Jahan Dotson, all Hurts could do to move the ball through the air was to check it down to Dallas Goedert and hope that he made a move.

While it will be much harder for the Cowboys to replicate their Week 1 performance following the news that standout cornerback DaRon Bland will miss time with an injury, the fact that an already thin cornerback room put the clamps on a player like Brown is extremely encouraging for Dallas and concerning for Philadelphia.

The Eagles play three straight playoff teams in their next trio of games, including a Week 2 duel against the Kansas City Chiefs in a rematch of Super Bowl LIX. According to Brown himself, if they go into the game playing tons of zone coverage, the threat he brings can be neutralized.