One of the defining plays of the Dallas Cowboys 20-17 win over the Los Angeles Chargers on Monday night was safety Markquese Bell shooting from his position to stone Austin Ekeler at the 1-yard line before he could reach the end zone.
Though the Chargers would score a touchdown on the next play, the stop by Bell was one of seven tackles he recorded on the night.
#CowboysNation #Dallascowboys #Cowboys LB Markquese Bell
-7 total tackles
-4 Solo Tackles
-5 defensive stops at or behind the line of scrimmage
-targeted 5 times in coverage
-3 catches/36 yards
-only 1 catch resulted in a 1st down..And this crucial defensive play on 3rd… pic.twitter.com/bYzhulCeVQ
— Mark D. TalknBoysWitDaBoyZ (@MarkDsCorner) October 17, 2023
The undrafted Florida A&M star recorded a team-high 86.6 coverage grade on 27 coverage snaps, per Pro Football Focus. He was also the team’s second-highest graded defender behind Osa Odighizuwa with a 91.3 grade.
After the game, Bell was given a game ball by Cowboys coach Mike McCarthy for his overall performance.