It arrives every summer. It is as predictable as the summer heat. It can be as cool and refreshing as an ice-cold glass of lemonade by the pool. Or it can be as oppressive as freshly cured asphalt with heat waves visible on the horizon. It is time. Time to start thinking, time to start planning, time to start worrying. Cowboys Training Camp starts later this month, and each and every one of us is charged with trying to figure out what this team will be this year.
The process of determining how Arlington’s most famous resident will finish the season is very complicated and, as always, depends first and foremost on health. That is the reality of professional sports; if the best players on the team are not available because of injuries, then all bets are off. For the purposes of this conversation, let’s assume that the Cowboys will have a remarkably healthy year.
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Perhaps the most important thing to consider when pondering this topic is what happened in the off-season. Recall that last year, the Cowboys had a spring that bordered on catastrophic. They let Tyron Smith walk, they lost three players from the defense to the Washington Commanders, and they chose not to re-sign Tony Pollard or any other running back of note. Fans hoped that the team would be very active in free agency to replace many of these critical losses, but inexplicably, the Cowboys were not.
All signs pointed to a draft that would allow them to replenish the ranks of a team that had been so depleted. The Cowboys whiffed again. Two of their first three draft picks were expected to start on the offensive line. As if that is not difficult enough, each of them was being asked to play positions they had never played before at any level. Therefore, about a year ago, yours truly used this space to warn that the Cowboys would be lucky to sneak into the play-offs.
Now, on to this year, the off-season was much better. It started with a bang when Jerry Jones decided to move on from Mike McCarthy. McCarthy’s lame duck status all of last season, no doubt, contributed to the 7-10 record. Clearly, it was time for the new voice. The hiring of Brian Schottenheimer was underwhelming at first, but he has begun the process of changing the culture around the Cowboys locker room, and so far it seems to be working.
In free agency this off-season, the Cowboys have been much more active. They signed their own free agent, Osa Odighizuwa. He is in the critical position of the “under tackle” in Matt Eberflus’s new defense. Plus, he is durable. He has not missed a game in his career or a start over the past three seasons. They also kept Markquese Bell and KaVonte Turpin from the ranks of their own free agents. They added a couple of journeyman running backs and defensive linemen as well. They did not make a big splash but did address some needs.
In the draft, they continued that same process. They took Tyler Booker, a guard from Alabama, in the first round. His reaction to being selected by Dallas made the pick even more special. He is not being asked to play a new position but will have the unenviable task of trying to replace newly retired Zach Martin. They took an edge rusher in round two, a corner in round three, and Texas-ex running back Jaydon Blue in the fifth.
The best move of the off-season came after they did not address their need for a receiver in the draft. Instead, they traded for George Pickens, who is wildly talented but did not fit the culture in Pittsburgh. If he can play nice with his teammates here, the Cowboys may have as good a receiver tandem as there is in the NFL.
Overall, the off-season was not spectacular, but it was significantly better than last year. Therefore, here are the two guiding principles for considering how to feel about this year’s team: First, don’t believe the hype. The national and even local pundits will sell this as a Super Bowl-contending team. It is not. Secondly, do believe the history. The last thirty years are real, and the Cowboys don’t have enough talent to compete with the best teams in the league. Once again, making the playoffs would be a significant accomplishment.
Sports columnist John Rhadigan is the host of
The Rangers Podcast on DLLS Sports.
