Any notice to Dak Prescott’s surprising comment after the Dallas Cowboys’ disappointing season came and went quickly, but maybe it shouldn’t have.
The Cowboys finished 7-9-1 despite an offense that was among the NFL’s best. Prescott had a tremendous season. And while he didn’t say anything untrue on the podium after the final game, it’s not the kind of comment you’ll often see from any NFL quarterback.
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In practical terms, he told the world that he played well enough and the defense let everyone down.
“One of the first seasons, if not the first of my career where I can’t directly correlate my play to the wins, the loss, or the end of the season or overall success of the season,” Prescott said, via the team’s site. “So that makes it frustrating.”
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Prescott has been held responsible for Cowboys losses throughout his career no matter how well he plays, so perhaps he was cutting off that inevitable and misguided criticism after a losing season. Or maybe he was sending a message: Get me some help. It wouldn’t have been unjustified.
The Cowboys had the worst defense in the NFL last season and, statistically, the worst defense in franchise history. It was so bad, the Cowboys allowed Russell Wilson to put up 450 yards and three touchdowns against them in Week 2. Even if you won’t often see a quarterback say he did his job and wash his hands of the team’s final record, Prescott wasn’t wrong.
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It’s not like the Cowboys needed to hear those words to know what the approach to the offseason had to be. And they went to work.
Matt Eberflus was fired after one horrendous season as Dallas’ coordinator, and was replaced by Eagles passing game coordinator Christian Parker. Then came a personnel overhaul. There are six new additions who are expected to go right into the starting lineup, The big additions were at safety. Jalen Thompson was the team’s most expensive free agent addition at $33 million over three years, and Dallas traded up one spot to take talented safety Caleb Downs at No. 11 overall.
The Cowboys added talent at each level of the defense. It was much needed.
The offense shouldn’t be a problem. Prescott threw for 4,552 yards and 30 touchdowns last season. CeeDee Lamb is a star at receiver and the team hit big on a trade for George Pickens. It’s hard to depend on Pickens not creating a distraction, especially with him getting the one-year franchise tag that is well below what he would have gotten on the open market as a free agent, but Pickens showed last season he’s one of the NFL’s most dangerous receivers.
Dak Prescott is hoping to get the Cowboys back to the playoffs after missing the postseason the past two seasons. (Photo by Cooper Neill/Getty Images)
(Cooper Neill via Getty Images)
Javonte Williams had a surprising season at running back (which earned him a three-year, $24 million extension) and the Cowboys offensive line is good enough to not be an issue. Let’s also include kicker Brandon Aubrey, because it helps any team when reaching the 50-yard line is within field-goal range.
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As long as the Cowboys offense plays as well as it did last season, the only thing keeping Dallas from a big season is the defense. And it has been completely overhauled, including a full season from trade deadline acquisition Quinnen Williams at defensive tackle.
The Cowboys haven’t made the NFC championship game since 1995, the longest drought in the conference. Every Cowboys hater knows that fact by heart and recites it often. Dallas has teased everyone so often over the past three decades only to come up short in the playoffs so often that any optimism seems foolish.
But the Cowboys are in a spot to put all that to rest. Now they actually have to do it.
Offseason grade
There wasn’t one move that will transform the defense, though that might have come last midseason when the Cowboys traded for defensive tackle Quinnen Williams.
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This offseason there were a bunch of moves to turn over a defense that was miserable last season. The Cowboys traded with the Packers for edge rusher Rashan Gary, who has 39.5 sacks the past five seasons. He fills a big need. Safety Jalen Thompson was the big free-agent signing, at $33 million over three years. Nobody else got more than $4 million per season, but the Cowboys added cornerback Decobie Durant, safety P.J. Locke, defensive lineman Otito Ogbonnia and edge defender Sam Williams in hopes of bolstering the depth.
Of the seven outside free agents the Cowboys signed to at least $2 million a season, six were on defense (backup QB Sam Howell was the one offensive player). Dallas also traded just a fifth-round pick to the 49ers to get linebacker Dee Winters, and he should step in right away as a starter. Dallas did trade away defensive tackle Osa Odighizuwa, who a year ago was good enough to get a four-year, $80 million deal from the team.
Defense was at the forefront of the draft too, as the Cowboys traded up one spot to get safety Caleb Downs at No. 11 overall. Downs could end up being the best pick of the draft. Central Florida edge rusher Malachi Lawrence was Dallas’ other first-round pick, and versatile Michigan linebacker/edge Jaishawn Barham was a nice pick in the third round. The Cowboys understood the assignment, and did well to improve a bad defense.
Grade: A-
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Quarterback report
While it wasn’t quite to 2024 Joe Burrow levels, the Cowboys missing the playoffs with Dak Prescott playing as well as he did was embarrassing. And Prescott knows it. Prescott had 4,552 passing yards, 30 touchdowns and a 99.5 passer rating.
Prescott will be 33 years old this season, so while he still has some prime years left, there has to be some urgency for him to finally make a deep playoff run. And he knows that as well.
“That’s the one thing I love about the Cowboys nation and being a player of the Cowboys is, it’s Super Bowl or bust,” Prescott said, via the team’s site. “And truthfully, that’s the only reason you play this game. And so if that’s not your mindset, if that’s not your mindset as a fan, then to me, you don’t have the right passion. You’re not a true winner. So absolutely, we’re working every day for it.”
Odds breakdown
From Yahoo’s Ben Fawkes: “Dak Prescott was fifth in QBR (70.2) last season and the Cowboys’ offense was eighth in DVOA. The issue? A defense that ranked dead last by DVOA and allowed the most points per game in the league (but only the third-most yards!).
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“With George Pickens and CeeDee Lamb back, this offense should be humming again. The questions will be on defense, and if a remade defensive line can hold up, along with a remade secondary (Jalen Thompson, Cobie Durant, Caleb Downs). Dallas is favored in 11 games, but underdogs in four of its first six. A very late Week 14 bye could be troublesome as well.”
Yahoo’s fantasy take
From Yahoo’s Scott Pianowski: “Wait-on-QB has been a cheat code for many years, and Dak Prescott checks that box this season. He’s merely the QB12 in Yahoo leagues to this point, a nod to his boring-veteran status and the depth of the position.
“It’s easy to paint Prescott’s upside picture — he’s working with two elite receivers and the Dallas defense appears weak again. If you head to Jerry World this fall, bring your quarters — pinball games are on the way.”
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Stat to remember
There are plenty of ways to describe how bad the Cowboys were on defense last season, but none more than the simplest stat: The Cowboys allowed 511 points, most in the NFL and the most in franchise history. Dallas had never allowed more than 500 points in a season. Allowing 30.1 points per game is miserable.
Dallas also ranked 32nd in DVOA, 32nd in EPA (expected points added) allowed per play, 31st in success rate allowed, 31st in passer rating allowed and ranked in the bottom seven of yards per play allowed against the pass and the run. It was a horrible defense, and it was no surprise that coordinator Matt Eberflus was fired after one season.
“Had we played a lick of defense last year, we would’ve had ourselves, I think, a real playoff run,” Cowboys owner Jerry Jones said, via the team’s site.
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Christian Parker is the new coordinator. He was passing game coordinator and defensive backs coach for the Eagles the last two seasons under respected coordinator Vic Fangio. He’s just 34 years old but had a growing reputation around the league. There’s always some concern with a first-time coordinator and a bunch of new starters. And even a massive defensive improvement for the Cowboys might still put them in the middle of the NFL, so there should be questions about how good Dallas’ defense can really be.
But it can’t get any worse.
Burning question: Will George Pickens really be happy and without drama?
Pickens got the franchise tag and for him to get the long-term deal he desires, it’s in his and the Cowboys’ best interest for him to have a drama-free, productive season. But, this is Pickens we’re talking about. When has anything been easy with him?
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Pickens certainly will look at his $27.3 million deal and know he’s much better than Alec Pierce, who just got a $114 million deal over four years with the Colts because he was set to hit free agency without the tag. He can’t be happy with the one-year franchise tag.
Pickens emerged as a true star last season with 1,429 yards and nine touchdowns. Notably, there was little drama like there always was in Pittsburgh, though let’s also not forget Pickens and CeeDee Lamb being benched for a series against the Raiders for missing curfew in Las Vegas. In a perfect world, Pickens just repeats last season and cashes in next offseason. That wouldn’t be a huge concern for most players. With Pickens, we’ll see.
Best-case scenario
It’s a little strange for a team coming off a 7-9-1 season to even be thinking about a Super Bowl, much less speaking it out loud.
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“I make no qualms that that’s the goal,” Cowboys coach Brian Schottenheimer said on the “Twins Take Podcast.” “The Super Bowl next year is Feb. 14th, 2027. We plan on being there.”
There’s nothing wrong with lofty goals. Is it realistic? Actually, it might be. The Cowboys have the offense to make a deep playoff run. The defense will be better, though it’s also worth wondering if it can make a massive leap to a top-15 level. But say it all comes together in a big way: Caleb Downs wins NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year, Quinnen Williams plays like an All-Pro in his first full Cowboys season, other defensive pieces fit well and the offense just does exactly what it did last season. Then Dallas would be a contender to win the NFC.
Nightmare scenario
The obvious answer is if the defense is still terrible, with rookie defensive coordinator Christian Parker not being much better than Matt Eberflus. But are we dismissing the possibility of the offense fading a bit? Javonte Williams had a fantastic season with 1,201 rushing yards and 11 rushing TDs, but a year ago no other NFL team thought he was worth more than the one-year, $3 million deal Dallas gave him. And there is absolutely no proven depth behind Williams, who had 1,491 rushing yards and seven rushing TDs combined from 2022-24.
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And perhaps George Pickens is an unhappy distraction or the team’s depth gets tested with one key injury or two. Dallas was below .500 in 2025 and lost to Arizona at home, after all. Dallas also goes from the fifth-easiest schedule in 2025 (via DVOA) to the fourth toughest this season (via Sharp Football Analysis). It’s possible they’re just not very good, and they’re a long way from Super Bowl contention as Dak Prescott’s prime slowly runs out.
The crystal ball says
The Cowboys are the most optimistic ranking on this countdown, and by a healthy margin. Having them ranked ahead of the Eagles could look pretty dumb early in the season if the defense is still bad, but I’m buying what the Cowboys did this offseason and trust the offense to maintain its level.
I think Dallas wins the division and I could see them breaking their three-decade drought of making the conference championship round. Feel free to dismiss the Cowboys, because it’s certainly not the first time they enter the season with more hype than they’ve earned. But this is a Cowboys team that can finally exceed expectations.
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