Dallas Cowboys
2019 Record: (8-8) 2nd NFC East
2019 Season Recap:
Offense
Points: 27.1 (6th)
Yards: 431.5 (1st)
Pass Yards: 296.9 (2nd)
Rush Yards: 134.6 (5th)
Defense
Points: 20.1 (11th)
Yards: 327.0 (9th)
Pass Yards: 223.5 (10th)
Rush Yards: 103.5 (11th)
Before the 2019 season began, the Dallas
Cowboys were riding high with a roster poised to do great things - which
naturally inflated expectations. Truthfully, we held a good level of excitement
and were filled with anticipation to see what this group would be able to
accomplish.
When you dissect the Cowboys past
season, you wouldn’t be able to tell they were an 8-8 club simply based on the
statistics they were able to generate. Finishing virtually in the top 10 in
most all categories for both offense and defense, it’s clear that this team
underachieved with how talented this roster really was. Jason Garrett continued
to hold his position as the head coach amidst many fans calling for his head
mid way through. Owner Jerry Jones’ unrelenting support to stay the course
could be part of the reason this team didn’t make the playoffs once again.
Perhaps if a coaching change was made half way through – Dallas would’ve seen
the fruits of post season football in 2019.
Subsequently after the year concluded,
Jones made the decision to part ways with his long time friend (Jason Garrett)
to finally move in another direction in hopes to taste glory once more. Hiring
former Packers bench boss Mike McCarthy was an interesting move and one we
still struggle to endorse. Its not that we don’t see his stout resume and all
the accolades it carries, the issue at had is his systems verse they way this
Cowboys club is currently built.
Either way, McCarthy can be viewed as an
upgrade to Coach Garrett in many ways, which should be realized on the field of
play. And while the leadership has been adjusted, the fun only begins in how to
reshape this roster for 2020.
2020 Offseason WorkBook:
The Offense
The best way to describe the 2019
offensive edition of the Dallas Cowboys is – the quite juggernaut! Upon review
of everything achieved from this offense, it’s literally unfathomable that a
mere .500 record was the end result. In terms of total yards, Dallas was the
best team in the league which should’ve equated to a far better record.
Leading the charge was the solid play of
their quarterback Dak Prescott. By all accounts when you watched the on field
performances, you wouldn’t believe that he threw for almost 5000 yards (4902)
and 30 touchdowns passes. In this process of trying to make Prescott more of a
pivotal part of the offense, career high numbers littered his stat-sheet. With
that, it appeared in some contests that the pass game was being favored over
running the ball with their star Zeke Elliott. While the numbers can’t confirm
that, the tape on certain weeks does. In our eyes, this was one of the major
issues from Coach Garrett who continued to force pass plays when games could’ve
been controlled on the ground.
When it comes to the future of Prescott
in Dallas and what appears to be a dog fight over acceptable dollar figures, we
see no situation where he’s allowed to hit the open market as the franchise tag
will be used here. The one caveat in this situation is - does Jerry Jones value
his quarterback enough to pay big money to? This saga will continue to unfold
in the coming weeks.
As for the running back position, there
is no question who the main man is. Zeke Elliott has been and will continue to
be the staple for Dallas. The one concern we have is the new system that will
be implemented under Coach McCarthy in 2020. If history is any guide, McCarthy
has typically been pro-pass, limiting the amount of touches his runners
receive. With that said, this coach has never employed a running back with this
amount of talent and should alter his approach to utilize Elliott as we’ve seen
under Garrett – or one can hope. Outside of Elliott, Tony Pollard was a sound
backup in this offense and could see his role expand if the Cowboys lose star
talent to free agency.
Speaking of losing talent, the other
major story line to grace the Dallas sporting news is the future of Amari
Cooper. Like Prescott, Cooper is an unrestricted free agent but may be the one to
pack his bags and leave town. Its likely Dallas can’t afford everyone and
moving forward with Michael Gallup and potentially Randall Cobb (free agent)
could be the path forward. Adding another weapon via the draft is also a
reasonable option, as this receiver class is truly loaded with talent. If no
action is taken and Cooper is allowed off the roster, I really question if
Gallup can be that number one target facing the best defensive backs on a
weekly basis.
However things shake out in Dallas for
this offense, a new offensive approach will be the beginning and a roster that
could lose star talent could be the reality. Obviously there is a lot to iron
out, and we’ll keep a keen eye on all activities.
The Defense
Heading back to the start of training
camp, we truly had high hopes for this defense and believed they could be one
of the best groups in the entire league. Nothing short of being a letdown was the
result, as giving up big plays fills the game film. Granted, the statistics do
appear better than what transpired as this unit hovered around top 10 finishes
in almost all categories as well.
While some may feel the strength of this
group rested on the defensive front, we’ll begin with a gleaming endorsement
for the line backers Dallas employs. Jaylon Smith and Leighton Vander Esch are
two fabulous talents that proved to be a force in defending both the run and
the pass. Adding often injured teammate Sean Lee to the mix, this group had the
potential to be defensive leaders and they didn’t disappoint. The issue which
crippled this defense was the loss of Vander Esch around the mid way point of
the season, which exposed inadequacy and play tapered off.
The concern for Vander Esch coming out
of college was his neck, and his recovery over the off-season will definitely be
something to be concerned about. With both these youngsters set to return,
we’ll see if Dallas entertains a reunion with Lee as he too is a free agent.
Jumping back to the defensive line, this
group does hold a great deal of talent, but underachieved to the tune of
generating a modest 39 sacks on opposing quarterbacks. The largest
disappointment came from their big ticket player (Demarcus Lawrence) who
managed only five sacks on the season. That was a far cry from the previous two
campaigns which saw a healthy 10.5 and 14.5 sacks respectively. Taking the lead
in the sack department came from Robert Quinn who secured 11.5 take-downs but also
a pending free agent. With not a lot of depth and a couple starting roles to
potentially fill, Dallas has a lot of work to do with this room this off-season.
Moving right along to discuss the
defensive backs, on paper this unit should have been better than what we saw.
Byron Jones, Chidobe Awuzie are two players that any club would covet a great
deal. Both are talented, potential shut down players that did see some level of
despair this past season. With Xavier Woods anchoring the group, we did see a
bend but don’t break unit though the early stages of the season. However, as
the year prolonged, we witnessed teams adjust and exploit the ability while
finding holes in their respective games.
With that, the Cowboys have yet another
issue as Byron Jones is also set to hit the open market, where Dallas has
already stated they will not resign the corner back. This will be a big loss to
a defense that held so much promise and the Cowboys will be forced to the draft
in hopes to repair. Recent news reports have also suggested that Jerry Jones
would have interest in free agent Chris Harris – but with all the contracts
they have on their hands to deal with - it’s highly unlikely.
Team Free Agents / Team Salary Cap
Now as we dive into what’s on tap for
Prescott and his future with the Cowboys – money is the guiding factor. Before
the 2019 season began, Dallas offered Prescott a whopping contract that
would’ve provided him with and average annual salary of 33 million per year. Turning
that contract down and betting on himself, he won handsomely in that respect. Finding
an appropriate number both can live with will be the great challenge. All
indication sees the franchise tag being used here.
Even as the discussion has been more so
about how to handle Prescott and his new deal, most would view the Cowboys 73.9
million in free space a non issue to pay top talent. The problem rests with how
many team free agents Dallas holds (31) and must pay. At the risk of sounding
redundant, players Dallas will be looking to resign include – Prescott, Cooper,
Quinn, Cobb, Witten, Lee, Jones, and Collins. Like we mentioned above, Jones is
likely gone and rumor has it that Witten will endure the same outcome.
So for the purpose of evaluation, let
paint a picture of what it would take to resign the top commodities to keep
this ship afloat. Starting with Prescott, his current market value rests around
the 33 million a year mark, were he is looking to hit 40 million a season.
Amari Cooper on the other hand is sitting with an enormous market value hit of
19.7 million on potentially a five or six year pact. Bringing back Robert Quinn
would eat up around 11.8 million dollars per year with a three or four year
deal forthcoming. And with how well Randall Cobb preformed, he upped his annual
average to reach around the 7.1 million mark in market value.
Even as we understand the make up of
every contract can be manipulated to become cap friendlier, for argument sake –
Dallas would be looking to dish out 78.6 million on these listed players based
on current market values. Tough choices are on the horizon which makes everyone
see why locking up all this talent will be problematic.
In terms of finding contracts of current
players to remove form the books, the Cowboys appear quite lean in that regard
and will struggle to remove others. There is an opportunity to cut bait with
some of their high priced offensive lineman – but that won’t be in the cards
for the 2020 off-season. Dealing with the players they need to resign will be
enough on their plate to keep the front office busy.
The NFL Draft
At this point, Dallas holds six picks to
their name having all but their sixth round selection. Depending on how the
free agent period shakes out for this roster, the Cowboys can move in multiple
ways in hopes to add play makers to this roster.
If Amari Cooper is allowed to taste the
open market, do they pull the trigger on one of the great pass catchers to come
from this draft class? Replacing the potential loss left behind by Byron Jones
could also be an area we see Dallas move and wouldn’t be shocked one bit in
that result. Adding depth to the defensive line while hoping to generate a
starting caliber player would also be on the agenda.
Regardless in how the Cowboys choose to
move forward, this should be one of the most exciting off-season’s in recent memory
in Big-D. Get you popcorn ready!
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