DALLAS — Despite reaching their bye week, it’s still been an eventful few days for the Dallas Cowboys, where the focus has once again been pulled away from the on-the-field product. Instead, team owner Jerry Jones has brought criticism on himself with his condescending radio interview on Tuesday.
However valid the case is against Jones; it doesn’t change the fact that his Cowboys are 3-3 and have been blown out in their three losses. The season is at a crossroads just seven weeks into the campaign and the team needs to fix what ails them. That won’t be done easily, as there are a myriad of problems with the Cowboys right now, and a lack of talent and depth to survive injuries is one of them.
Here’s where the Cowboys stand at the bye week, and what lies ahead for an organization in disarray:
Road warriors, home losers
In an odd twist, the Cowboys have played better on the road than they have at home. Head coach Mike McCarthy’s team is 3-0 away from AT&T Stadium, and 0-3 when surrounded by their fans. Not only have they not won a home game, but they’ve been embarrassed in all three losses by a combined score of 119-53, which is the bigger concern.
However, the home record can be reasonably explained. The three of their four toughest games thus far, have all come at home, and the only team with a losing record currently is the New Orleans Saints. Also, so far this season, home teams have a 45-47 record, as home-field advantage becomes more and more of a misnomer these days.
Away from home, the Cowboys are 3-0 and have held opposing offenses to an average of just over 16 points per game, much better than the nearly 40 per contest that they have allowed at home. It appears the old saying is true, defense travels, but in Dallas’ case, it only applies when they play bad teams.
Still, it can be counted as a positive that the Cowboys have become road warriors because if they do manage to make the playoffs, they’ll likely be forced to win a few games on the road. There’s a long way to go before that becomes a reality, though.
Lost on the Texas Coast
The defense isn’t alone in their struggles, either. The offense hasn’t put enough points on the scoreboard to help their counterparts out. In three healthy years with quarterback Dak Prescott, McCarthy’s offense has finished in the top 5 in scoring or total yards in each season. That includes last year when the offense had problems finding their groove in the ‘Texas Coast Offense’ before their bye week.
Pre and post-bye week offenses for the Cowboys were drastically different in 2023, and the hope is that a switch gets turned on again. Last year the turnaround began by getting top wide receiver CeeDee Lamb more involved and that should be the case again moving forward. The Cowboys simply don’t have enough playmakers, and they’ll need to keep Lamb engaged to get the most out of their offense.
The offense is also 30th in the NFL in red zone efficiency, scoring touchdowns on just 37.5% of their trips inside the 20-yard line. Turnovers and field goals instead of seven points when Dallas gets in the red zone have been big problems.
Prescott, Lamb, McCarthy and the rest of the offense need to tighten everything up moving forward if they want to get back into top form.
Run game poor on both sides of the ball
In the offseason, the Cowboys talked about running the ball better and stopping the run as big priorities. As the bye week has arrived, it’s disappointing to acknowledge that neither has happened.
Mike Zimmer’s defense has been shredded on the ground in his inaugural season as defensive coordinator, giving up over 143 yards per game on the ground, which is over 30 more than they allowed last year. At home it has been considerably worse, where they’ve given up 216 yards per contest while surrendering nine rushing scores.
The running game on the offensive side has been just as pathetic. The Cowboys are last in the league in rushing yards at 77.2 yards per game. It has been a long time since a franchise that prides itself on running the ball has finished last in the NFL in rushing.
Zimmer and Dallas need to find a way to consistently slow the run, and on the flip side, McCarthy needs to find the hot hand at running back and roll with it. RB Rico Dowdle looks like that option, but veteran RB Ezekiel Elliott is still getting too many carries. The Cowboys have to figure out their RB rotation and commit to it going forward.
More discipline needed
Just as it has in the past several years, penalties are an issue for the Cowboys. The team is currently tied for fourth most in the league with 47 infractions. Their two most penalized calls are for false starts and offensive holding, which is another reason the offense has consistency issues. It’s hard to move the ball when you keep going backward.
Dallas has three games where they have been called for 11 penalties, which ironically, have come in their three road games, all wins. That’s not going to happen often, and McCarthy needs to get it cleaned up if the team wants to turn their season around. This is an area where the coach has promised improvement over the years. It’s time to make good on that.
Tough road ahead
The Cowboys will surely make changes that they hope will stick after the bye week, but it might not mean the results will improve. A challenging schedule awaits in the next 11 weeks, and it could lead to a record under .500 for the first time in Prescott’s career as the starter.
In the final 11 games on their slate, the Cowboys will play nine teams that are at or above .500 and that includes six games against teams currently in first place of their respective divisions. Four games – two apiece – against the Philadelphia Eagles and Washington Commanders, come against the teams ahead of Dallas in the NFC East.
The good news is if the Cowboys can win their divisional contests, they will have a chance at winning the East and making the playoffs. The bad news is, that opportunity looks like a longer shot now than it did when the schedule came out.
A tough road lies ahead for the Cowboys, even if they begin to play better.
Do you think the Cowboys will come out of their bye week stronger like last season? Share your thoughts with Ben on X (formerly Twitter) @BenGrimaldi.
