Leading up to kickoff of the 2026 NFL season, TeamFB7 is going in-depth on each team from its strengths and weaknesses to breakout players, intriguing rookies and overall predictions. Next up are the Dallas Cowboys.
Every season for the Dallas Cowboys is intended to be THE season.
The long-awaited breakthrough for a proud franchise that hasn’t gotten past the divisional round of the playoffs since its last Super Bowl title at the end of the 1995 season — more than three decades ago now.
Cowboys owner and general manager Jerry Jones turns 84 years old next month and is desperate to reach the top of the mountain again after winning three Super Bowls in the first half of the 1990s.
But Dallas hasn’t even made the playoffs the last two seasons and have just four playoff wins in the last 29 years.
So it’s hard to have any confidence that any of that changes … until it does.
Dallas invested in upgrading its porous defense that gave up the third-most yards (377.0/game) and most points (30.1/game) last season.
The Cowboys signed former Cardinals safety Jalen Thompson (two years, $33 million), veteran edge rusher Von Miller (one year, $5.5 million), cornerback Cobie Durant (one year, $4 million), safety P.J. Locke (one year, $4 million) and defensive tackles Otito Ogbonnia and Jonathan Bullard (on cheap one-year deals), who all figure to have significant roles. They traded for edge rusher Rashan Gary from the Packers and linebacker Dee Winters from the 49ers. And they drafted Ohio State safety Caleb Downs (11th overall), UCF edge rusher Malachi Lawrence (23rd overall) and Michigan linebacker Jaishawn Barham (95th overall).
New defensive coordinator Christian Parker also takes over after serving as the defensive pass game coordinator for the Eagles the last couple years.
Is it enough to transform the Cowboys into a contender?
Dallas Cowboys Reset
2025 Finish: 7-9-1, missed playoffs
Head Coach: Brian Schottenheimer, second season
Hot Seat Meter (0-10): 2
Offensive Coordinator: Klayton Adams, second season (Schottenheimer calls the offensive plays)
Defensive Coordinator: Christian Parker, first season (previously defensive pass game coordinator for Eagles)
Best Offseason Move: Upgrading the pass rush and safety units
The Cowboys tied for the ninth-fewest sacks with 31 last season and remade the unit with Gary (7.5 sacks for Green Bay last season), Miller (9 sacks for Washington; 138.5 career sacks) and Lawrence joining 2025 second-round pick Donovan Ezeiruaku.
Then at safety, Thompson consistently ranked among the Cardinals’ leading tacklers in his seven years there while Downs was the consensus choice as the top safety in the draft after his All-American career at Ohio State.
Worst Offseason Move: Committing more guaranteed money to right tackle Terence Steele
Many Cowboys fans were underwhelmed by the team’s decision to restructure Terence Steele‘s contract for three years and $33 million.
Steele was already under contract for those years, but the new deal gives him $22 million in guaranteed money (while saving the Cowboys some cap space).
The problem is Steele has been viewed as a weak spot on the offensive line in recent years. The move looked even more curious when the Cowboys move late in the preseason to acquire offensive tackle Broderick Jones from the Steelers to compete with Steele.
Dallas Cowboys Roster Breakdown
Biggest Strength: Passing Attack
There’s only a couple QB-WR-WR trios that can compete with Dak Prescott, CeeDee Lamb and George Pickens. (The Rams and Bengals might be the only ones).
Prescott is coming off a typically prolific season, ranking third in the NFL with 4,552 passing yards and fourth with 30 TDs (with 10 INTs).
Lamb was limited to 14 games by injury but still put up 75 catches for 1,077 yards and 3 TDs, while Pickens had a career year in his Dallas debut with a 93-1,429-9 line.
Biggest Weakness: Offensive tackle
The fact that we’re leaving the defense out of this spot says something about the job the Cowboys did in the offseason, for sure.
Left tackle Tyler Guyton graded out 71st out of 89 qualifying offensive tackles by PFF last season with a 57.4 grade while Steele’s 63.6 grade ranked 55th among tacles.
Considering how many Cowboys’ seasons have turned on not being able to keep Prescott healthy, this is a notable weakness.
Most Intriguing Rookie: DB Caleb Downs
The Cowboys figure to play Downs at multiple spots in the secondary, including safety and nickel. Downs was considered one of the most NFL-ready, safest picks in the draft after keying the best defense in college football at Ohio State last season (and winning a national championship there two seasons ago).
Breakout Player: WR Ryan Flournoy
Ryan Flournoy‘s breakout may have come last year when he caught 40 passes for 475 yards and 4 TDs in his second NFL season, but notably 241 yards and half of his TDs came in the final four games.
He’s the clear No. 3 behind Lamb and Pickens, but that can be a fruitful position for a receiver.
MVP Pick: QB Dak Prescott
Prescott finished second in MVP voting in 2023 and if the Cowboys make a real run this year he could absolutely be in the mix for the award this year.
2026 Dallas Cowboys Schedule
| Date | Opponent | Time (ET) |
| Week 1, Sept. 13 | at New York Giants | 8:20 p.m. |
| Week 2, Sept. 20 | vs. Washington Commanders | 4:25 p.m. |
| Week 3, Sept. 27 | vs. Baltimore Ravens | 4:25 p.m. |
| Week 4, Oct. 4 | at Houston Texans | 1 p.m. |
| Week 5, Oct. 8 (Thursday) | vs. Tampa Bay Buccaneers | 8:15 p.m. |
| Week 6, Oct. 18 | at Green Bay Packers | 8:20 p.m. |
| Week 7, Oct. 26 (Monday) | at Philadelphia Eagles | 8:15 p.m. |
| Week 8, Nov. 1 | vs. Arizona Cardinals | 1 p.m. |
| Week 9, Nov. 8 | at Indianapolis Colts | 1 p.m. |
| Week 10, Nov. 15 | vs. San Francisco 49ers | 4:25 p.m. |
| Week 11, Nov. 22 | vs. Tennessee Titans | 1 p.m. |
| Week 12, Nov. 26 (Thursday) | vs. Philadelphia Eagles | 4:30 p.m. |
| Week 13, Dec. 7 (Monday) | at Seattle Seahawks | 8:15 p.m. |
| Week 14 | BYE WEEK | |
| Week 15, Dec. 20 | at Los Angeles Rams | 4:25 p.m. |
| Week 16, Dec. 27 | vs. Jacksonville Jaguars | 8:20 p.m. |
| Week 17, Jan. 3 | vs. New York Giants | 1 p.m. |
| Week 18, TBD (Flex Game) | at Washington Commanders | TBD |
Dallas Cowboys Season Prediction And Parting Thoughts
Season Prediction: 10-6
Dallas’ offense is too good to be consistently contained — the Cowboys ranked second in yards (391.9/game) and seventh in points (27.7/game) last year — and if the defense can even be middle of the pack this season then this should be a playoff team.
That is a big “if” until it happens, though.
