It’s now been almost three decades since the last time the Dallas Cowboys made it to the NFC Championship Game. This franchise billed itself as ‘America’s Team’, but Dallas has been routinely overrated for over a quarter century at this point. The Cowboys had a strong season in 2021, finishing with a 12-5 record, but they were knocked off in the Wild Card Round by the San Francisco 49ers. The Niners gashed them with their ground game, yet the Cowboys didn’t really do much to improve their run defense in the offseason. This defense is designed to have Dallas play from ahead, so the offense can’t have sustained scoreless drives if the Cowboys are going to be competitive.
Dallas Cowboys Season Win Total
Over 10 Wins -126
Under 10 Wins +106
2022 Dallas Cowboys Schedule
| WEEK | MATCHUP |
| 1 | Vs. Tampa Bay Buccaneers |
| 2 | Vs. Cincinnati Bengals |
| 3 | @ New York Giants |
| 4 | Vs. Washington Commanders |
| 5 | @ Los Angeles Rams |
| 6 | @ Philadelphia Eagles |
| 7 | Vs. Detroit Lions |
| 8 | Vs. Chicago Bears |
| 9 | BYE WEEK |
| 10 | @ Green Bay Packers |
| 11 | @ Minnesota Vikings |
| 12 | Vs. New York Giants |
| 13 | Vs. Indianapolis Colts |
| 14 | Vs. Houston Texans |
| 15 | @ Jacksonville Jaguars |
| 16 | Vs. Philadelphia Eagles |
| 17 | @ Tennessee Titans |
| 18 | @ Washington Commanders |
Dallas Cowboys Offense
The Cowboys had the best offense in the NFL last season. Dallas ranked first in total offense and first in scoring offense, as this team benefited from playing two games against each of its counterparts in the NFC East. Amari Cooper was traded away to Cleveland for a late round pick this offseason, but the rest of the skill position players are still in place for this unit.
Dak Prescott has proved that he is one of the best quarterbacks in the NFL. The Cowboys were reticent to give Prescott elite starter money, but he certainly showed that he deserved it in 2021. Prescott completed 68.8% of his passes for 4,449 yards with 37 touchdowns and 10 interceptions.
This team still has three great weapons for Prescott to target in the passing game despite the loss of Cooper. CeeDee Lamb was a 1,000-yard receiver in 2021, and Dalton Schultz was one of the top tight ends in the NFC. A healthy Michael Gallup will help things too after Gallup missed half the season last year.
We might see a big change at running back though. Ezekiel Elliott was not very effective in 2021, so Tony Pollard could receive more of the workload. Pollard averaged 5.5 YPC and was a better receiver out of the backfield, and he costs much less money than Elliott. This is Pollard’s last season under contract with Dallas, so the Cowboys may want to ride him as much as possible.
Dallas still has two of the best offensive linemen in the NFL in Tyron Smith and Zack Martin. They drafted Tyler Smith in the first round out of Tulsa this April too in an effort to make this offensive line one of the best units in the league again.
Dallas Cowboys Defense
There is a lot of talent and name recognition on this defense. However, there are major concerns about the teeth of the defense. The interior defensive line was not that impressive last season, and opponents were able to wear them down over the course of four quarters.
Dallas has solid defensive ends though. DeMarcus Lawrence is a difference maker on one end, and Dante Fowler Jr. was signed in the offseason after two disappointing seasons in Atlanta. That should help the pass rush get to the quarterback more often in 2022.
Micah Parsons was the NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year in 2021, as he was one of the leaders of this defense. Parsons led the team with 13 sacks and 20 tackles for loss. However, Leighton Vander Esch is overrated in the middle of this defense and isn’t as impactful as many Dallas fans believe.
The secondary has a boom or bust cornerback in Trevon Diggs, and Malik Hooker should have more of an impact in his second season with Dallas if he can stay healthy.
Prediction
It’s very tempting to bet the ‘Over’ with Dallas because of the offense, but this defense is problematic. Opposing teams have shown they can run on this front seven, and the NFC East did get a little better this offseason. That makes the ‘Under’ the better play.
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