The Cowboys are of to a 0-1 start to the season after falling to the New York Giants in the final seconds of their opener. A perhaps defeating loss for not only the players, but also the fan base, when Terrance Williams decided to stay in bounds which ultimately resulted in the clock running out. Despite the Cowboys-esque loss, the Cowboys are still a favorite to win the NFC East, and Sunday was evidence of that. Here are a couple reasons why Cowboys fans should still be confident that their team can make the playoffs.
1.) Dak Prescott is legit.
The 23 year old rookie out of Mississippi State had one of the best preseason a player has seen in a long time out of a first year player, throwing for 454 yards with five TD passes, two rushing touchdowns and no INTs, on 39 of 50 passing (78%). Many thought that was a fluke because he was playing against many second and third string players, but Sunday proved that theory wrong. Dak threw for 227 yards on 55.6% completion. Although those stats aren’t mind blowing, they do prove a point. The man can take care of the football. Through multiple NFL appearances, he has yet to throw an interception. Also, the run game for the Cowboys wasn’t what it’s gonna be in the future, in addition to Dez having one catch for 7 yards. As time goes on, the run game will break through, which will open up the play action game and passing routes. Without Dez being a force and with the run game non-existent, Dak was still able to lead a drive down the field that would have given the Cowboys a chance to win, had Terrance Williams gotten out of bounds. One thing is for sure, Dak Prescott is not a fluke, and will keep this Tony Romo-less Cowboys offense at the top.
2.) Ezekiel Elliott and Co. will not be contained like they were last game.
Although Ezekiel Elliott did get his first career touchdown in the season opener, he did not look like the 4th overall pick that he was made out to be. Zeke ran for 59 yards on 20 carries. The Giants are walking away from this game patting themselves on the back, and rightfully so, because they contained one of the best RB’s in football. Now, in Elliott’s defense, the Giants were stuffing the box with an extra person every time he was behind the QB. Assuming the Cowboys passing game heats up, opposing teams will not be able to afford to do that, meaning one less guy that Zeke has to beat. Emmitt Smith averaged just 1.6 yards per carry in his first career starts, and he turned out just fine. Alfred Morris looked like the guy that found the holes in the running game on Sunday afternoon, but he even only rushed for 35 yards, on 7 carries. Behind the best offensive line in the league, don’t expect the Cowboys running game to be limited for many more games. In fact, expect them to carry what has potential to be one of the best offenses in football.
3.) Defense is still not 100%
The Cowboys don’t have their entire defense playing, with a number of their stars out with an injury or suspension. With that being said, they did hold Odell Beckham Jr. and Co. to 20 points in Week 1. Now 20 points might seem like a lot, for a beat up defense to hold Odell Beckham Jr, Sherling Shepard, Victor Cruz, and Eli Manning to 20 points is pretty impressive. This is a defense without their sack leader Demarcus Lawrence (8.0 sacks in 2015) for 10 games, and their third leading tackler, Rolando McClain for the first couple weeks, in addition to Randy Gregory. So clearly they aren’t at full strength, which is what they will need to be at if they want to make a run at the postseason.
4.) Dez wasn’t Dez.
In Week 1, Dez Bryant only racked in 1 catch for 8 yards, after one of his touchdowns was overturned. After being one of the most dominant forces in the NFL for the past couple years, Dez seemed like the complete opposite of that, but don’t expect that to remain the same. Even with Dez only catching one pass, he did open up a lot of holes for the Cowboys offense. By being triple covered, that leaves one or two less people that can cover the other Cowboys threats. Jason Garrett has already said that they are gonna target Dez Bryant more in next week’s game against the Redskins, and look for him to be more open once the run game opens up. For all you fantasy owners, I wouldn’t be too concerned about the one catch games happening again.
5.) The defense showed some guts.
Being able to stop the Giants with under 2 minutes left and no time outs is hopefully a foreshadowing of what this defense will be all season long. Whenever the Cowboys needed a stop, they got it. Much like the defense the Cowboys had in their playoff run that was stopped short by the Packers in 2014. On top of that, Odell Beckham Jr. (who I personally think is overhyped) was held to 4 receptions for 73 yards, after being drafted 2nd overall in most fantasy leagues.
Cowboys fans, don’t be too concerned. After all, the Cowboys play in the “NFC Least”, a league that is truly up for grabs until the very end. But one this is for sure, the Cowboys cannot afford to lose many more of these close games.
