Cowboys Report Card: Biggest surprises, disappointments, and the one rookie we need to see more of as playoff hopes rise
What we’ve learned from the Dallas Cowboys in the last seven weeks.
Yup, It’s report card time for the 2025 Dallas Cowboys. What has gone well and wrong for the team 13 weeks into the year? This is the second report card of the season and there are changes at most categories.
And with the Cowboys’ revamped playoff hopes, it’s the perfect moment to recap what’s gone on in the last seven weeks for the team.
Ahead of a Week 14 Thursday Night Football matchup against the Detroit Lions, we’ll start with the offense.
Cowboys’ offensive superlatives
MVP: QB Dak Prescott
Previous report card: QB Dak Prescott
There are a lot of players on offense that deserve acknowledgement, but the only thing keeping Dak Prescott for being a Top MVP candidate is the team’s record. He’s been playing lights out and is in full control of the Cowboys offense. George Pickens is playing his best football ever and it has a lot to do with Prescott’s work. Speaking of the devil…
Glue guy: WR George Pickens
Previous report card: WR George Pickens
Pickens’ rise on the Cowboys offense has been so impressive that he has gotten people talking about him as WR1 over CeeDee Lamb, an established elite wide out. Pickens was expected to be a high-end WR2 that would force defenses to honor his vertical routes. But he’s shown a side of him we hadn’t seen in Pittsburgh: A complete wide receiver with answers to every defensive look.
He’s become the master of the slant route while having a complete route tree to round out his game. Right now, he looks like the future highest-paid WR in the NFL.
Biggest surprise: RG Tyler Booker
Previous report card: RB Javonte Williams
In my previous report card, I had RB Javonte Williams here but to change it up, I’m listing Booker this time. As a first-round draft pick, we expected him to be an immediate starter. But I’ll tell you what shocked me: He dominated All-Pro caliber defensive tackles Jalen Carter and Chris Jones in a four-day span. He’s a bully in the run game and a wall in pass protection.
The Cowboys found themselves another lineman with All-Pro potential in Booker.
Biggest disappointment: WR Jalen Tolbert
Previous report card: RB Jaydon Blue
Tolbert’s career has had its ups and downs but Pickens’ arrival was expected to unleash him as WR3. Instead, Tolbert was a healthy scratch a couple of weeks ago. He’s been firmly displaced from his expected role by a combination of KaVontae Turpin and Ryan Flournoy. Though he’s had his moments—including an epic sideline catch in Week 4 against the Green Bay Packers—it’s been mostly downhill for the fourth-year player.
Turning point of the last six weeks: 21-point comeback versus the Eagles
The unit needed a lot of help from the defense to make the comeback happen, but Pickens going for 146 yards and a touchdown against a Vic Fangio defense was significant. It was the result of a big day for Prescott, who has historically struggled against the defensive mastermind. Meanwhile, Javonte Williams had a big day on the ground as the offensive line dominated the line of scrimmage.
offense overall grade: A-
Cowboys’ defensive superlatives
MVP: DT Quinnen Williams
Previous report card: No one
He isn’t the only reason the Cowboys defense has turned it around but he’s absolutely the biggest one. Having an All-Pro in the trenches simply changes the math for the defense. Williams is disrupting offense’s run games and pressuring the quarterback better than he was with the Jets earlier in the year. He’s having fun out there.
Glue guy: CB DaRon Bland
Previous report card: DT Osa Odighizuwa
I know it hasn’t been his best year but considering who the Cowboys have had to field at cornerback, Bland’s work shouldn’t be overlooked. At times, he’s been tasked with matching up against the opponent’s top threat, even when that has meant going up against tight ends, outside receivers, or in the nickel.
Since Dallas started pressuring the quarterback more consistently, Bland has been all over the football, registering four pass deflections in the last four games. He’s been close to intercepting the football multiple times, too.
Biggest surprise: EDGE Donovan Ezeiruaku
Previous report card: DE James Houston
Ezeiruaku has become the Cowboys’ starter at DE opposite of Jadeveon Clowney and his play looks better every week. We knew about the pass rush upside but he’s improved even as a run defender. He’s proving to be the steal of this year’s draft class.
Biggest disappointment: LB Kenneth Murray
Previous report card: DC Matt Eberflus
Expectations for Kenneth Murray weren’t that high for Cowboys Nation going into the season. But the coaching staff clearly had higher hopes. He’s the only defender with a snap count over 80% this season. And yet, his struggles continue to show up on film. The linebacker room needs to be improved next year.
Turning point of the last six weeks: Quinnen Williams’ arrival
Before the Williams trade: 31st defense in EPA/play.
After the Williams trade: 20th defense in EPA/play.
The Cowboys rank dead last in the NFL in opponent’s third down conversion rate. But if you isolate the last three weeks? They’ve been the 11th-best unit. That includes the Tush Push Eagles and Patrick Mahomes, by the way.
Defense overall grade: C
Cowboys 2025 draft class superlatives
Overachiever: EDGE Donovan Ezeiruaku
Previous report card: LB Shemar James
See biggest surprise on defense.
Rookie we need to see more from: CB Shavon Revel Jr.
Previous report card: EDGE Donovan Ezeiruaku
This is by no means a knock on Revel Jr., who recently came back from injury. It is instead a tip of the hat to the little we’ve seen. Revel Jr. looks like the real deal. He’s got the speed and stickiness we saw on his college days. I hope with Trevon Diggs’ pending return doesn’t knock the rookie out of the rotation. He needs to keep playing.
Underachiever: RB Jaydon Blue
Blue has been a healthy scratch most of the year. Meanwhile, Malik Davis has established himself as RB2. Who knows exactly why Blue is on the Cowboys’ doghouse but that’s for sure what it looks like right now.
Draft class overall grade: B
Cowboys coaching report card
Grade: A
This might seem too much for a 6-5-1 team with under 20% chances of making the playoffs. But sometimes, life is bigger than football. And I truly believe Brian Schottenheimer’s work as a coach and as a human following Marshawn Kneeland’s death has been outstanding. That’s the biggest reason why I’m giving the staff an A.
In strictly football terms, the Cowboys’ offense is really well designed and Matt Eberflus made big changes to the defense, mostly through the implementation of a five-man defensive front.
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