Is It Time to Look Towards Next Year for the Dallas Cowboys?
On Monday Night Football, the Dallas Cowboys record fell to a disappointing 5-8, headlined by a blocked punt blunder that had longtime fans flashing back to Leon Lett in 1993. It has been a season full of injuries and drama for the Dallas Cowboys, and it only got worse in last night’s contest as they lost their star linebacker, DeMarvion Overshown, to a knee injury that will require surgery. It is Overshown’s second knee injury, as he missed his entire rookie season to a torn ACL. Overshown had been one of the Cowboy’s few bright spots this year, he was everywhere on defense, making standout plays on what seemed like nearly every drive. The Dallas Cowboys will have to find a way to go the rest of the season without him.
While they were already eliminated from contention to win the NFC East for the second straight year, though slim, their 2024 playoff hopes are still mathematically alive. They can not obtain a bye week nor host a Wild Card game, but if they control what they can control by winning out and finishing with a 9-8 record, their postseason chances sit at around 10 percent. They would need to pull off a revitalizing win in Week 15 against the struggling 3-10 Carolina Panthers because, after that, their schedule is far from easy. They face three teams that currently possess playoff spots: the 7-6 Tampa Bay Buccaneers, the 11-2 Philadelphia Eagles, and finally the 8-5 Washington Commanders. Two of those being division rivals, one being the Eagles, who embarrassed them in a 34-6 win just a month ago in November. If they somehow pulled it off, winning all those games with a depleted roster, their chances to play in win-or-go-home football still sit at the lowly aforementioned 10 percent. This is why it might be time for Cowboys fans to look towards next year.
Most of the time, looking towards next year means looking at the team’s draft position. Despite an underwhelming season, heading into Week 15, the Dallas Cowboys do not even hold a top-10 draft pick. If the standings held, they would be drafting in the 12th slot in April 2025. While 12th is nothing to write home about, the Cowboys may just luck out and fill a much-needed hole in the running back room.
Boise State’s Ashton Jeanty is from the Dallas metroplex and has already expressed his desire to play with the Dallas Cowboys. The team should be mirroring that desire and then some. Jeanty has shocked the college football world this year, propelling Boise State to not only a playoff spot but a first-round bye week in the inaugural 2024 12-team College Football Playoffs. Jeanty has threatened Oklahoma State and Detroit Lions legend Barry Sanders’ 1988 single-season record of 2,628 rushing yards all year, a record one time thought to be unbreakable. The Dallas Cowboys should capitalize and take the once-in-a-lifetime running back to add some much-needed firepower to their running game.
Another area to look towards for the Dallas Cowboys’ future is the head coaching role. It is not completely clear whether or not Cowboys owner Jerry Jones has decided it is time for the Cowboys to move on from current head coach Mike McCarthy. Cowboys’ star defensive player Micah Parsons has even vouched for McCarthy’s return. That being said, even Parsons’ return to the Cowboys in 2025 is yet to be set in stone, but he has expressed lots of interest for that to seem like a probable outcome. If it were up to the outspoken fans, McCarthy would have been gone weeks ago, perhaps even years ago. For better or for worse, the fans do not make those decisions for a reason, a reason we will have to patiently wait to hear about after the season is over since Jones made it clear he will not be forgoing any in-season coaching changes. A poor offseason and an injury-riddled season has led the Dallas Cowboys to what seems to be yet another new rock bottom. It is officially time to look towards 2025 for the Cowboys. Jerry Jones and the rest of the front office have lots of tough decisions to make to earn the respect of their fan base back and show why they call the Dallas Cowboys “America’s Team.”
