Anthony Hitchens a jack of all LB trades
In the Dallas Cowboys' media guide Anthony Hitchens is listed as a linebacker. It just doesn’t say which kind of linebacker.
Rookie Anthony Hitchens is flexible enough to fill each of the linebacker spots for the Cowboys this season.
Good thing because it seems to change every week.
Hitchens is six games into his NFL career and he has already started at middle linebacker, weak-side linebacker and in the overtime victory against the Houston Texans he started at strong-side linebacker.
“Just a lot of studying and I’ve got a lot of good vets around me,” Hitchens said. “[The coaches] told me from Day 1 they were going to move me around. If I’m staying in one position I’m always studying another one. I had it in my mind before the season started so in the preseason I started looking at other positions so I wouldn’t be caught off guard.”
With Rolando McClain slowed by a groin injury, Hitchens could start at middle linebacker Sunday against the Seattle Seahawks. If McClain improves, then Hitchens could remain at strong-side linebacker if Bruce Carter misses his second straight game with a quadriceps injury.
When McClain went out in the win against the Houston Texans, Hitchens slid over to middle linebacker.
“I’ve always got to be ready,” he said.
He said there are different mindsets required for each spot. On the strong side, there are more contain responsibilities against the run, so you have to play a little slower. At middle linebacker, he has to make check calls. On the weak-side, he has to do a little bit of everything.
“But overall it just comes down to getting to the ball and doing your job,” Hitchens said.
When the Cowboys drafted Hitchens, it was with the idea that he could learn from Sean Lee at middle linebacker and be a contributor on special teams as a rookie. Sometimes plans have to change on the fly.
“He’s done a nice job, and that’s one of the things we liked about him is we felt like he had some position flex and it’s so important for a linebacker in this system to be able to do that,” coach Jason Garrett said. “You have to be smart, you have to be instinctive, it has to be important to you, and I think he has all those traits and he’s working at it. He’s one of those guys you see get better and better by the day at practice and certainly in the game experiences he’s had. He grows. He wants to learn. He wants to get better. He’s got a high standard for himself. For a rookie to be able to play a couple different spots based on injuries and go out there and be effective, I think it’s a real tribute to him.”
