Did the Cowboys Quietly Become a Great Team?

We're looking at the Cowboys, I guess at your phone number two. And I have been, it's impossible to do one of these things without the Cowboys. Well, it would be irresponsible of us not to do the Cowboys. I am historically resistant to hype. I am one of the most cynical people on the face of the earth. Um, I fell for a Dak Prescott AI photo the other day, by the way, tough. Um, there was a, like a, like a doctor training camp photo of him that made him look like Bane from the last Batman movie. And, uh, I fell for that. I thought that was real. Um, but I, I like this team a lot. Like I really, I really like this team. And you talk about, I think that here's something that I haven't heard this off season yet. We talked all the time and you said it on this show, Albert, if the Bengals can just have a decent defense, that offense is so good. The Bengals can just have a decent. The Cowboys offense was one of the best offenses. And it was better than Cincinnati's and Joe Burrow is healthy. If the Cowboys can just have a decent defense, that team can go places. I don't know. Like, and you add Caleb downs, you change defensive court. I love Christian Parker. I thought that was a great hire and you completely remake the complexion of this defense. I don't know. Like I I'm, I'm there. George Pickens is now he's only 26 and I love the way he played. Like, can he was, was last year. Was they did the right thing by the way? Like keeping him on the one year tender? Yes. Yeah. Absolutely. Because you'll find out because you'll find out whether last year was a wake up call or whether it was a stretch of good behavior in order to Gardner a contract extension, because Pickens needs to learn to play in a band. That's been the knock on him all four years in Pittsburgh. And I think if he can, holy smokes, like that team, I mean, they're going to have a top 10 offensive line. They have a top 10 offensive coordinator, I think, and Clayton Adams. I mean, even the 15th best defense in the NFL, I think might get it done. Yeah. And I think like, I mean, to me, there are, there are a couple of keys for them. Right. Number one. And I think this is number one with a bullet is love tackle. Like they have to get that figured out, whether it's going to be Nate Thomas or Tyler Guyton, Tyler Guyton, of course, was a first round pick there. And this isn't like, oh, Nate Thomas has turned into this unbelievable prospect. Like that's where they are with their former first round left tackle. So if they can come up with a good answer at left tackle, I think the rest falls into place and that's a really good offensive line. Right. So that's part of it. Um, like you said, Pickens is another variable. I think running back is a variable. Um, and what does that look like? Which, which Vontae Williams is Jade and blue look like a guy who can, you know, make a, make a real contribution in year two. And then. Like, I look defensively and to me, it's sort of like, it sounds a little tired, but it does come back to like, what are you doing to replace the production that Micah Parsons gave to you over the course of years? And so like the key to me there is where are you getting out of Rashawn Gary? What are you getting out of Donovan as a rock who in his second year, I think over Sean has potential to help them in that area just because he's so versatile and you can do so much with him. Um, but that ability to kind of replace the edge pressure that those guys can bring, because if you do that now, Quinn Williams is more effective inside. Kenny Clark's more effective inside. Um, and I think some other things start to fall into place. And so, um, I like the ceiling of the team. I do. And I think like, you're also like kind of at the point now with Dak Prescott, where there should be like a little urgency for him. I mean, he's going into his second decade. It's hard to believe as the Cowboys quarterback. And like, he's not 25 years old anymore. So, um, you know, I think that puts a little pressure on him to, to put together the kind of year that's going to position them, not just to get to the playoffs, but to advance when they get there, but that's a team that's got talent, you know, and again, left tackle running back pickings, edge rush. Like some of those things start to come together in camp. Like we could be talking about a team that has a chance. And here's the other thing. I think the NFC is just wide open this year. I think the Eagles are still good, but I don't think the Eagles are like dominant, like they were. Like, I don't think they're going to be like as the dominant team they were two years ago. So like, if we're talking about like a 10, 11 win Eagles team, then I think the door is open for the other three teams to, to, to, to step through. And honestly, like, I think all three have at least reason to believe that they can be that team. So it should be interesting in that division. One of the reasons that I'm less concerned about Dallas's left tackle situation, and I know it's not a permanent fix, but they have one of the great dirty work players. One of my favorite dirty work players in the NFL in Brevin Spanford, and he's a top 15 pass blocker run blocker as a tight end in the league does a lot of things to help the development and the flow of this offense doesn't get any of the credit for it. And you line him up next to the left tackle and you're at least mitigating. I think some of the damage that could possibly happen and what he was on the field for 350 snaps or whatever it was last year, maybe the Cowboys do a little bit more 12 personnel with Ferguson. And we see how that looks because you can still have, um, pickings and CD lamb on the field at the same time when you're doing something like that. But I love, I love him. And I think that put, you know, at least he helps kind of bandaid that left tackle situation where again, I think it goes back to the Bengals where I just don't think some of these teams have that essential dirty work player where you're like, okay, well, I'm, I'm not as worried about that. Cause I know this guy will come screaming out of the HVAC spot knocks somebody's head off. Um, I Christian Parker, it's going to be such a big test. And this is for someone like me who is obsessed with the coaching position in particular. Christian Parker has been coming up for years now. I mean, this is four or five years of everybody saying this guy is brilliant. And it's true. And now that he's over that threshold over that hump, is he an elite play caller? And what happens here is this tends to go two ways. Either you're calling a defense or you're doing what the greats do. Patrick Graham, Brian Flores, um, you know, Matt Burke in Houston. Um, uh, you know, Mike McDonald in Seattle and, and, and Aden, uh, dirty you're, you're creating something that can run without you and can run really effectively with the players on the field. I think Christian Parker's capable of doing that. I think he knows that that's the way to do it. He's been working with Vic Fangio for years. He's probably the closest thing that we have Albert to like a Vic Fangio disciple, which is cool. Um, that's the big question mark this year for Dallas, right? We know Clayton Adams can play. We know he can ball out and help Brian Schottenheimer run that offense. Now it's on the change in defensive coordinator and we got to see what happens here. Right. For sure. I'm excited to see him next week. So I, like, I think again, like there's, I think there's just like a big variable team, you know what I mean? Like, I think, I think that there's, there's a lot of different ways their season could go. Oh, I'm disturbed at how all in on the Cowboys. I am after just like literally a year ago at this time, I wrote that Jerry Jones is a troubled old man and we need to take the keys away from grandpa. And now here I am saying that they're a possible Superbowl contender. Life comes at you fast.