SAN JOSE, Calif. — In 2014, a second-round pick and an intern coach learned from defensive coordinator Rod Marinelli at Dallas Cowboys headquarters.
Over the next decade, the rookie would become a five-time Pro Bowl rusher. The UK-raised intern will become a defensive line coach, tasked with coordinating the Seattle Seahawks’ defense in Super Bowl X.
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But as players and coaches continue to focus on their careers on defense, they always look back to Marinelli’s early lessons and his lessons in other areas other than making sacks to earn edge rusher money and coaching promotions.
DeMarcus Lawrence and Aden Doud learned the importance of defending the run from Marinelli.
“He told me early on that in order to get to the quarterback, [I’ve got to] “Stop on the way to the quarterback,” Lawrence said Wednesday. “So it really depends on your angle of approach and how you set up the edge. With that, you can play game action, you can stop the run. I mean, if you go out there and take advantage, you can use the offensive tackle and have him run up to the running back and make tackles like that. So, it’s really just downfield, establishing the advantage, taking the pressure.
“If it’s a play or a pass, take action.”
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Of course, in theory, this principle is not new. Defending the run helps combat the opponent’s ability to control the clock. Stopping the run can force an offense into a one-dimensional passing situation, increasing the chances of a sack or takeaway. No one advocates be opposed to Stop running. But it’s an open secret throughout the NFL that many elite edge rushers are so keen on chasing quarterbacks – and that’s valuable too! —They sometimes give up on their pursuit of running and their broader vision. A sack translates more directly into a record contract and All-Pro honors than a 2-yard tackle.
Lawrence is 33 years old and entering his 12th season as a pro, but he has never changed.
So when his contract with the Cowboys expired last season, the Seahawks targeted him. Their bet paid off.
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According to Pro Football Focus, Lawrence ranked No. 1 among 115 rushers in defense against the run. He helped the Seahawks earn 14 regular-season wins and an NFC championship victory by doing the dirty work, and he got some bang for the buck while doing it.
After Lawrence had three fumbles and six sacks in 17 regular season games, other Had three fumbles in two playoff games and added two more sacks to his tally.
He performed like the complete player the Seahawks were betting on. He could play a role Sunday between Seattle and the New England Patriots, who are 4.5 points behind.
“When you see really good talent and really special players that are paid well and put in just as much, if not more, effort, it just stands out,” Patriots center Garrett Bradbury told Yahoo Sports. “So I have a lot of respect for him. I think our entire team does. So it’s a good challenge for us.
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“You can’t cancel any games.”
Lawrence leaves Cowboys for Seahawks because ‘my window of opportunity is closing’
Many will wonder why the Cowboys would let a player like Lawrence go.
It’s not accurate to say Dallas no longer believes in Lawrence’s ability. Instead, the Cowboys, who restructured in some ways and paid quarterback Dak Prescott $60 million last season when he was 32, were not interested in paying Lawrence a big fee. The Seahawks, who rank 11th in pass defense and 16th in running back defense in 2024, view Lawrence as a player who can improve the team’s overall game.
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Seattle signed Lawrence to a three-year, $32.5 million contract with $18 million guaranteed. Like DeMarcus, another Cowboys rookie before him, Lawrence’s second team quickly reached the Super Bowl. DeMarcus Ware won Super Bowl 50 with the Broncos after the 2015 season, two years after his first nine years with the Cowboys. coincide?
After 11 years with the Cowboys, DeMarcus Lawrence reached his first Super Bowl in his first season with the Seahawks. (Hassan Ahmed/Yahoo Sports)
Lawrence made headlines last March and resurfaced recently when he said Dallas was his home but “I’m sure I’m not going to win a Super Bowl there.” Backlash ensued on social media, including from then-Cowboys edge rusher Micah Parsons (who was later traded to the Green Bay Packers in August). Lawrence was motivated in part by the little things and emotions she experienced after leaving her home of 11 years. Throughout Lawrence’s NFL career, he hasn’t been afraid to embarrass himself or talk trash when he feels confident.
But now, on the doorstep of Super Bowl X, Lawrence explained his comments in a more nuanced way.
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“I [saw] Dallas is going through a transition, letting go of some older players and trying to rebuild, and I understand that, but I also understand that my window of opportunity to play football is closing,” Lawrence said Monday. “So that’s really what I meant by that is, I’m not going to win in Dallas because my window of opportunity is closing. I only have a few years, three years, four years, the Lord has blessed me with so many years.
“But I know it won’t be in Dallas.”
Without Lawrence, a Super Bowl opportunity might not have reached Seattle.
Lawrence showed his intensity in the red zone during a combine practice with the Carolina Panthers before the season started, his coach said, and he had a blocked field goal in the season opener and had multiple tackles in a loss to Christian McCaffrey.
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He had not one but two fumble catches for touchdowns on Nov. 9 against the Arizona Cardinals, and then had an “old school” Lawrence moment on Nov. 30 against the Minnesota Vikings. Likewise, Lawrence doesn’t just focus on the passer. So on third-and-14, Lawrence chased running back Aaron Jones from behind and knocked the ball away. Teammate Ty Okada recovered.
“Playing like that, he understands where the ball is going, how to catch it, and how to try to force the ball every time he makes contact,” Dude said.
When Seahawks quarterback Sam Darnold threw an interception against Carolina last December, Lawrence helped erase the loss by knocking the ball off Carolina Panthers running back Chuba Hubbard on the next play. After six innings, Seattle led 10-3. Everyone breathed a sigh of relief at the interception.
“He’s a game-changer,” defensive backs coach and defensive passing coordinator Carl Scott told Yahoo Sports. “We joke about it all the time. It’s like ‘This is the law, this is the law,’ from his instinctive game to him being a ball hawk.
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“He makes us better.”
On the cusp of the biggest stage, Lawrence is eager to embrace Lombardi and his sixth child
With a chance to play in his first Super Bowl in 12 professional seasons, Lawrence stepped up his game against the Los Angeles Rams in the NFC Championship Game.
Down four points, the Rams scrambled to catch up on fourth-and-4 from Seattle’s 6-yard line with 4:59 left in the game. Safety Julian Love told Lawrence he had running back Kyren Williams. But Lawrence saw Williams explode unusually quickly, and his instincts screamed at him not to let Williams’ touchdown opportunity fall by the wayside.
“It looks really funky,” Lawrence said. “I have to use my ‘legal logic’ to help.”
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Lawrence recalled what Marinelli taught him about how to read formations. He’s not worried about 37-year-old Matthew Stafford taking off. So he dropped his defense, double-teamed Williams, and blocked Stafford’s outlet.
The Seahawks held on and prevailed.
Lawrence knows the work isn’t done yet, but can still see himself hoisting the Lombardi Trophy. He thinks about what that moment meant for himself, his wife and their five children.
“Just holding it in my arms felt like a huge relief for me,” Lawrence said. “I know it’s definitely a huge relief for my family because I know how long I’ve been chasing this dream and now it’s right in front of me.
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“Can’t let it slip away.”
He controls what he can control on the field. He hopes to spend time with his pregnant wife, Sasha.
Sasha is 37 weeks pregnant with their sixth child this week. Lawrence gave birth to his oldest son during the Cowboys’ rookie minicamp in 2014. Lawrence was eager not to miss the birth, but Lawrence couldn’t fly back to Boise in time, so he watched the birth via FaceTime.
This time, the Lawrences weren’t taking any chances. Sasha and her obstetrician were in the Bay Area for the game, and the Lawrences flew in.
“We’re due any day now,” Lawrence said of her third trimester, but “hopefully not Monday. Hopefully she’ll make it to Thursday after the parade.”
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Teammates joke that he could have another baby, but what are the chances of him making it to another Super Bowl? Lawrence responded: “Man, man. I missed the birth of my first son and I couldn’t miss the birth of my last son.”
He hopes no such coordination will be needed, but the Lawrences have hospitals and emergency plans identified just in case.
Before Sasha goes into labor, DeMarcus Lawrence will continue to prepare for this big game. He will continue to remember the lessons Marinelli taught him. He’ll continue to justify a free-agent signing that head coach Mike McDonald this week called a “no-brainer.”
“Man, it paid incredible dividends,” McDonald said. “I feel like DeMarcus will tell you this, but I feel like we’re getting the best version of himself and the best version of his game. So it’s a win-win.”
