Where Did These Dallas Cowboys Come From?
Being a sports fan is funny. The wide array of emotions your favorite team can make you feel is quite incredible. For Dallas Cowboys fans, 2020 is quite the example. In our eyes, this team has gone from being Super Bowl contenders in the offseason to being potential owners of a Top 5 Draft pick. […]
Being a sports fan is funny. The wide array of emotions your favorite team can make you feel is quite incredible. For Dallas Cowboys fans, 2020 is quite the example. In our eyes, this team has gone from being Super Bowl contenders in the offseason to being potential owners of a Top 5 Draft pick. And ultimately headed into Week 17, a potential division champion.
Someway, somehow, the Dallas Cowboys are 3-0 in their last three games. They still carry a losing record, yet the NFC East is well within reach as Washington continues to struggle. And as you surely know, if the Cowboys win and Washington loses next Sunday, Mike McCarthy's era in Dallas will begin with a trip to the playoffs.
As excited as I am for America's Team playing for the division in Week 17, I can't help but wonder…
Where did these Dallas Cowboys come from?
First off, let's talk about defense. When Jalen Hurts and the Eagles scored 14 points as easily as they did, it was business as usual. But then the Cowboys responded on defense. And although they'd finish the day with three takeaways, they didn't rely entirely on them as in previous weeks.
Instead, they actually forced the Eagles to punt five times. Considering the Cowboys rank as the sixth-worst defense in opponent punts per offensive score, that was pretty impressive. Hurts came into this game hot off quality starts versus the Saints and Cardinals yet the Cowboys' defense shined against him.
Randy Gregory, whose journey back has been great, constantly pressured Hurts and finished the day with 1.5 sacks and three forced fumbles.
Through 16 weeks, the Dallas Cowboys rank in the Top 10 in takeaways with a total of 21. We're talking about the same defense that's been one of the worst in the league all season long. Granted, takeaways are volatile and they'll come and go regardless of the talent the defense has. But even still, it's been an impressive run as plenty of young players like Donovan Wilson have shined.
While it will be difficult to keep taking the opponent's ball away at that pace, the Dallas Cowboys are still playing better and more disciplined football. Taking a look at the angles they took when pursuing Jalen Hurts is proof of that. Despite rushing for 69 yards, Hurts was fairly limited after the first quarter. A big part of the Cowboys' defense performance was the successful penny package John Owning pointed out on Twitter.
As for the offense, the Cowboys' offensive line is holding its own better than it was a few weeks ago. Maybe that has to do with the defenses they've faced, but the main reason for their success might be the fact that they're getting plenty of experience together. Both in the running and passing game, the Cowboys have enjoyed the results.
Andy Dalton is far from perfect and he still makes mistakes, but for a backup quarterback, he's been good enough to keep the Cowboys in the mix. As of late, he and Kellen Moore have made the most out of their play-makers. The perfect example was a game in which Michael Gallup and Amari Cooper got 121 yards each while CeeDee Lamb caught three passes for 65 yards.
You see, we can discuss everything that has gone right for the Dallas Cowboys in the past three weeks. But the truth is, I still don't have an answer to the question I posed in the headline. Where did these 3-0 Cowboys have come from?
I'm not sure that it matters.
What matters is while "Team Tank" was gaining steam as discussions emerged on what the Cowboys should do with their Top 5 draft pick, Mike McCarthy's Cowboys were working to turn things around. Which is undoubtedly a good thing. Especially because it seems like it's working.
McCarthy was brought in to create a winning culture. Thinking that finishing the season 4-0 is bad because it worsens the team's draft position might make sense at first, but I'd rather see this team win games. Heck, losing record and all, the Cowboys might just play in January. Forget about finishing the season 7-9, if the Cowboys pull it off after losing Dak Prescott in Week 5 among many other starters, that'll be a positive for this franchise.
So get ready for next week, because Cowboys' fans will be all-in on their team winning just to root for the Philadelphia Eagles hours later.
Being a sports fan is funny.
Featured Image Via Tim Heitman-USA TODAY Sports
