Cowboys have a great chance to silence weak narrative surrounding them
A lot of doubters and detractors point toward the Dallas Cowboys' schedule in an effort to call them a fake contender within the same conference that features the Philadelphia Eagles and San Francisco 49ers. The fact that America's Team is 0-2 against those rivals this year only fuels the narrative. The argument usually goes something […]
A lot of doubters and detractors point toward the Dallas Cowboys' schedule in an effort to call them a fake contender within the same conference that features the Philadelphia Eagles and San Francisco 49ers. The fact that America's Team is 0-2 against those rivals this year only fuels the narrative.
The argument usually goes something like, "Sure, they're winning, but against who?"
That approach seems weak since it's not like the Cowboys are out there winning down-to-the-wire ballgames against lesser opponents. Instead, they're hitting all the right buttons to pull off a Mortal Kombat-esque fatality and have Dak Prescott and the starters resting well before the clock hits zero. Their point differential is the highest in the NFL at +162!
In all fairness though, it's true that the Cowboys have faced a very favorable schedule en route to an 8-3 start to the season. Per DVOA, which measures team efficiency adjusted for opponent, they've actually faced the easiest schedule in the league so far. The following rankings were listed entering Week 12:
- Past schedule: 32nd most difficult
- Future schedule: 8th most difficult
What's more, the Cowboys are about to face a murderer's row of opponents over the final weeks of the season. They've got a Top 8 schedule in difficulty as their next six games look like this:
- vs Seahawks (6-5)
- vs Eagles (10-1)
- @ Bills (6-6)
- @ Dolphins (8-3)
- vs Lions (8-3)
- @ Commanders (4-8)
Many have insisted that the Cowboys have yet to beat a team with a winning record, an overblown narrative considering they've faced two of them all season long and although they were obliterated by the 49ers, they exchanged haymakers in a shootout against the Eagles in Week 9.
Sure, they didn't win, but to come out of that one feeling like they can't beat winning teams is an inaccurate takeaway of a tight, hard-fought 28-23 loss that had everyone buzzing about how football was a game of inches.
The Cowboys got a chance to completely destroy the storyline of them against winning teams by keeping their current run alive against the better competition they're about to face.
That starts on Thursday when they take on the Seattle Seahawks, who would be in the playoffs if the season ended today.
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It’s getting ridiculous.
