For the Dallas Cowboys, well, hey, at least you’re number one on the Forbes rich list rankings. The season began in big D with a lot of uncertainty, as we just didn’t know what was going to happen in regards to the long-term future of franchise quarterback Dak Prescott.
While that is nothing new, at least there’s good news in that they have now locked him in on a $240,000,000 deal that makes the highest paid QB ever.
The bad news is that he’s done for the season, and the offense, early on, looks lifeless without him. Cooper Rush put up as ugly a stat line as possible, going a putrid 13-23 passing, for just 45 yards, last week, in a 34-6 blowout at home to Philadelphia.
The L dropped the Boys to 3-6 on the season, 0-4 at home. It’s safe to say that “America’s Team” won’t have another devastating post season collapse in 2024-25, as this time around, they won’t even make the playoffs.
Don’t blame Dak Prescott though.
Cowboys Owner Jerry Jones has simply not built a true contender of a team, as they’re lacking in leaders and playmakers, no both sides of the ball. Flashback to the most recent recent dynasty days.
Charles Haley was a Hall of Fame DE who got it done when it mattered most. And he accomplished this in spite of the severe mental illness that he was battling.
Troy Aikman was a leader in the locker room, and playmaker on the field. Michael Irvin, Emmitt Smith, Jay Novacek- all Mt. Rushmore guys at their respective positions; at least for that era.
And they had top notch talent, at various other positions, all around them. The early 1990s was the last time that the Dallas Cowboys played at a level of deserving of the moniker “America’s Team.”
Today’s Dallas Cowboys only deserve that title from a marketing and branding standpoint. In the corporate board room, their financial numbers are elite, but on the field?
They have a generational talent (sorry, for using that very shopworn cliche) in Micah Parsons, an All-Pro in DaRon Bland and a Pro Bowler in CeeDee Lamb. There just isn’t a whole lot going on anywhere else on this roster.
Rico Dowdle has been a bit of a pleasant surprise at the tailback position, as Dallas came into the season as a bit of a mess when it came to the running game.
Ezekiell Elliott just ain’t it anymore at the running back position. But why are we surprised that this roster doesn’t work? Look who constructed it.
Jones is the same guy who gave notorious woman beater Greg Hardy multiple extra chances long after the rest of the league had found him way too toxic to touch.
It’s Jerry’s World, and therefore he is the one who should take accountability for the Dallas Cowboys drought inevitably persisting yet another year.
He won’t though, because Owner is not a job that one can get sacked from. Let’s just hope for this- the team and the fans have a better appreciation for Dak Prescott right now.
As you can see, he wasn’t really the problem here.
Paul M. Banks is the Founding Editor of The Sports Bank. He’s also the author of “Transatlantic Passage: How the English Premier League Redefined Soccer in America,” and “No, I Can’t Get You Free Tickets: Lessons Learned From a Life in the Sports Media Industry.”
He currently contributes to USA Today’s NFL Wires Network, the Internet Baseball Writers Association of America and RG.org. His past bylines include the New York Daily News, Sports Illustrated and the Chicago Tribune. His work has been featured in numerous outlets, including the Wall Street Journal, Forbes, the Washington Post and ESPN. You can follow him on Linked In and Twitter.