What’s keeping the Cowboys from playing like a top NFL contender is as obvious as it is deflating
I’ll be honest here, even though I was very critical about the way the Dallas Cowboys approached team building this offseason, I was expecting much more from the team than what we’ve seen. With that, I don’t mean that I expected things to change much: The Cowboys gave us no reason to believe they’d be […]
I’ll be honest here, even though I was very critical about the way the Dallas Cowboys approached team building this offseason, I was expecting much more from the team than what we’ve seen.
With that, I don’t mean that I expected things to change much: The Cowboys gave us no reason to believe they’d be better than they were in 2023, as they lost key figures like Tyron Smith, Stephon Gilmore, as well as plenty of depth across the entire defensive line.
But I did expect more of the same: A team capable of playing good football in the regular season yet one that would probably fall short in the playoffs once again. Things have changed, however, as this team’s bar appears to be significantly lower than that. In fact, they’re favored to miss the postseason altogether. Which is why I can’t keep thinking about, how did things change so much in such little time?
Sure, this year’s schedule is much tougher than last year’s. But didn’t the Cowboys beat the Lions 20-19? You can bring up the officiating being a factor but 1) an even more impactful wrong call went Detroit’s way and 2) even if they had lost, that game was in a whole different category than last Sunday’s 47-9 blowout.
After thinking about it a whole lot and comparing the Cowboys to other contenders in the league, I believe their biggest problem at the moment is as obvious as it is deflating. Forget about a well-rounded team, there’s just nothing they do really well at the moment.
The Lions’ secondary and pass rush might not be the best in the league, but boy can they get going on offense. The Baltimore Ravens, considered one of the best teams in the NFL, have one of the worst passing defenses in the league. But good luck stopping the unique rushing threat that Derrick Henry and Lamar Jackson represent. And the still undefeated Minnesota Vikings? It’s not even that their defense is insanely talented (although it is more than decent), but Brian Flores is drowning opposing quarterbacks with a relentless barrage of blitzes every game.
Even the Washington Commanders, who boast one of the league’s worst defenses, are being successful thanks to an offense yielding elite production thanks to Jayden Daniels and Kliff Kingsbury.
We can come up with more examples or get dizzy with stats about other teams in the league, but try to think about what the Cowboys do best. Really, what is it?
Prior to the season, I thought it’d be the passing game because after all, that’s what led the Cowboys to a 12-win campaign last year. Dak Prescott and CeeDee Lamb terrorized passing defenses every week. But now? The Cowboys rank 24th in dropback EPA/play and 23rd in dropback success rate, per RBSDM.
There's a variety of reasons for the lack of production, from turnovers, to Dak Prescott and CeeDee Lamb not being on the same page. The play-calling is highly questionable and former Cowboys legend Troy Aikman recently exposed the wide receivers as being “lazy” and "terrible" route runners.
And the worst part? It’s kinda hard to buy into the Cowboys’ passing game getting better down the stretch. The pass protection is objectively bad as Tyler Guyton and Terence Steele consistently need schematic help to deal with good pass rushing teams. To add to the problem, Zack Martin didn’t look like himself in Week 6 when he gave up seven pressures while recording a 0.0 pass blocking grade from PFF.
Against the Ravens, Steelers, and Lions, it felt like the Cowboys’ passing offense could carry the team victory in the absence of a respectable defense and each time, despite a clutch win in Pittsburgh, we’ve not gotten a clean performance from the offense. Last Sunday, Dallas never got in the end zone.
As for anything else, I don’t think the Cowboys have shown us they can be really good at anything. The run game is broken and though a healthy defense could bring back a ferocious duo of pass rushers, offenses have learned they can gash the Cowboys through the ground.
If something is going to change, the Cowboys don’t need to be a well rounded team. But they need to start doing something, anything, really well. Temper your expectations.
