Dak Prescott, Cowboys on the Way to Rewriting Past Wrongs?

For much of 2024, the Cowboys were plagued by humiliating blowouts and injuries. But are they on the way to redeeming themselves, or is this a repeat of 2023 just waiting to happen?

(Image Credit to Imagn Images/Reuters)

Even to the average viewer, it’s very clear that the Dallas Cowboys are playing far differently under new head coach Brian Schottenheimer. 

Much of that might have to do with quarterback Dak Prescott and wide receiver CeeDee Lamb playing injury-free seasons once again, but it’s clear now that the mentality is much-improved in the Cowboys’ locker room. 

It’s been on display for much of Dallas’ ongoing win streak, which was extended to three games following their 31-28 win on Thanksgiving over the Kansas City Chiefs. 

What’s stood out to me the most is the Cowboys’ offence, which has been performing at a very strong clip for the entire season.

After twelve games, Dallas leads the NFL in yards, yards per game, passing yards, and passing yards per game, while only trailing Indianapolis in the points and points per game category.

Individually, Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott is third in the NFL in completion percentage, however he leads the league in passing yards and in passing yards per game. He is also tied with Jared Goff for second in touchdown passes with twenty-six while only trailing Los Angeles Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford for the league lead in quarterback rating. 

What’s more is that Dallas’ defence has started to slowly but surely find its groove and slow opponents down, something that is especially true when considering the additions Jerry Jones and the Cowboys’ front office made at the trade deadline.

With five games left on the schedule for Dallas, the Cowboys will have to make up two games (not considering their tie) on the likes of Green Bay for a wild-card spot and on the Philadelphia Eagles for the NFC East lead. 

Dallas concludes the season against Detroit, Minnesota, the Los Angeles Chargers, Washington, and the New York Giants. While the Detroit and LA games aren’t exactly guaranteed wins, the Cowboys are in a good position to at least hit the nine-win mark. And Detroit will go into their encounter next week with Dallas, having won just two of their last three games and having fallen out of the NFC playoff picture. On the other hand, the Cowboys will enter on a three-game win streak and with a playoff spot being a reasonable distance away. 

Outside of what they can control, the good news for the Cowboys is that the Packers have to play Chicago (twice), Denver (at the Mile High Stadium), and Baltimore (currently on a multi-game win streak) before a Week 18 encounter with the Vikings; matching the Packers’ final win total is a conceivable outcome for Dallas this season and doing so could very well be what gets them into the playoffs this coming January. 

Should they get into the playoffs, the expectation is that Dallas can go on a run. Such a run could be conceivable should they lock themselves into a Wild Card matchup against either the winner of a good-but-nowhere-near-great NFC South or an NFC North that could be won by a good-but-also-inexperienced Chicago Bears team, a defensively-strong but offensively-inconsistent Green Bay Packers team, or a Detroit Lions team that relatively fits the same definition of this year’s Packers team. 

A division title is also possible, which could likely see Dallas as either the second or third seed in the NFC playoffs. 

Personally, my view is different. After what happened last season, getting into the playoffs should be the only expectation at this stage and, should Dallas be one of the NFC’s seven playoff contestants, it must be seen as an achievement. 

But could this Dallas team go on a run in the playoffs? 

With the kind of run the team is on, it’s more than possible. 

Article written by Noah Guttman © Noah Guttman 2025