Quarterback

The Cowboys have been among the best teams in the league over the past three seasons, finishing 12-5 in each of the past three seasons, giving them the second most regular season wins in the league over that stretch, only behind the Chiefs. However, while the Chiefs have won two of the last three Super Bowls, the Cowboys have yet to get over the hump in the post-season, going just 1-3 in the post-season, including a big home upset loss to the Packers in the first round last season.

Making matters worse, the Cowboys’ window seems to have closed. In need of more help to get them over the hump, the Cowboys instead added arguably the least of any team in the league this off-season, while parting ways with several key players. In terms of average annual salary, which correlates heavily with winning percentage, the Cowboys went from 8th in last season to just 28th this season. The benefit is the Cowboys now have the 7th most projected cap space in the league next off-season, but, in the short-term, the Cowboys are significantly less talented than a year ago.

Part of the reason the Cowboys couldn’t add more talent this off-season is that their quarterback Dak Prescott has a cap hit of 55.455 million (21.71% of the cap) in the final year of a 4-year, 160 million dollar contract, after years of the Cowboys using his contract to borrow future cap space. The Cowboys could have extended Prescott and lowered his cap hit in the process, but doing so would have required giving Prescott another top of the market contract that would have significantly hurt the Cowboys’ long-term financial flexibility. Instead, the Cowboys seem to be making Prescott prove he can carry a less talented roster before committing to him at a high number long-term. If he can’t do that, it’s possible the Cowboys will opt to move on from him and start over at the quarterback position next off-season, similar to what the Vikings did with Kirk Cousins this off-season.

Like Cousins, Prescott hasn’t been the problem for the Cowboys, completing 67.0% of his passes for an average of 7.61 YPA, 202 touchdowns, and 74 interceptions in 114 career starts, but he also hasn’t proven he’s the kind of quarterback who can elevate this team by himself or take a talented roster on a long playoff run. Given that, the Cowboys are smart not to rush into a huge extension with Prescott, as the track record of non-elite quarterbacks being paid at the highest level is not good, as the only quarterbacks who have accounted for more than 11% of their team’s cap and won the Super Bowl are Hall of Famers or future Hall of Famers. It doesn’t help matters that Prescott is going into his age 31 season, so his best days could be behind him at this point.

If the Cowboys move on from Prescott next off-season, their options to replace him are limited unless they end up with a high draft pick, so they may opt to replace Prescott internally. Cooper Rush has been a decent backup for several years, as the 2017 undrafted free agent has completed 60.6% of his passes for an average of 6.86 YPA, 8 touchdowns, and 5 interceptions in six career starts in seven seasons in the league, but he’s a pretty low upside option who is also going into his age 31 season himself. 

The more likely option would be Trey Lance, who was the 3rd overall pick in the 2021 NFL Draft by the 49ers, but who made just four starts and attempted just 102 passes in two seasons in San Francisco, due to injuries and ineffectiveness, before getting traded to the Cowboys for a mid round pick last off-season. Lance is still raw and might not even win the backup job over Rush in 2024, but he’s always had a huge upside and it wouldn’t be a surprise if the Cowboys internally viewed him as a potential successor to Prescott, even though he’s yet to throw a regular season pass for them. Overall, the Cowboys have a solid quarterback room, but it wouldn’t be a surprise if it looked very different a year from now.

Grade: A-

Offensive Line

Among the key players the Cowboys lost this off-season were two of their five offensive line starters from a year ago, left tackle Tyron Smith, who had a 83.8 PFF grade in 13 starts, and center Tyler Biadasz, who had a 68.6 PFF grade in 16 starts. To replace them, the Cowboys used first and third round picks on offensive tackle Tyler Guyton and Cooper Beebe, a collegiate guard who could move to center as a professional. Guyton figures to start at left tackle immediately. 

Guyton has a high upside, but could struggle through some growing pains in year one and will almost definitely be a downgrade from Tyron Smith, who was PFF’s 4th ranked offensive tackle in 2023. Meanwhile at center, the Cowboys will either turn to the rookie Beebe or to Brock Hoffman, a 2022 undrafted free agent who struggled with a 53.7 PFF grade across 222 snaps as Biadasz’s backup last season, after not playing a snap as a rookie. Whoever wins the job will almost definitely be a downgrade on Biadasz and a liability on this offensive line. 

With Guyton being added, Tyler Smith, a first round pick in 2022, will remain at left guard. Smith made 16 starts at left tackle as a rookie in place of an injured Tyron Smith (in addition to one start at left guard) and fared pretty well for a rookie, finishing the season with a 71.4 PFF grade, but he moved to guard in 2023, had a 72.9 PFF grade in 14 starts, and that seems to be where the Cowboys prefer him long-term. Still only in his age 23 season, Tyler Smith could easily have his best season yet in 2024.

On the right side, Zack Martin and Terence Steele remain at guard and tackle respectively. Martin has been one of the best guards in the league over the past decade, being selected in the first round in 2014 and then starting his career with eight straight seasons above 80 on PFF, but he fell to a 73.3 PFF grade in 2022 and then fell further to a 69.8 PFF grade in 2023 and now he heads into his age 34 season and could easily decline further. Even if he doesn’t decline further, his best days are almost definitely behind him. He has a good chance to remain at least a capable starter, but nothing is guaranteed at this stage of his career.

Steele also had a down year in 2023, finishing with a 50.8 PFF grade. Steele also had a 50.3 PFF grade in 2020, so a year like 2023 wasn’t unprecedented for him, but he was a rookie in 2020, he had PFF grades of 64.5 and 73.9 in 2021 and 2022 respectively, and last season he was coming off of a torn ACL he suffered late in 2022, which was probably the cause for his struggles, so he has a good chance to bounce back in 2024, another year removed from his injury and still only in his age 27 season. Despite going undrafted in 2020, Steele has started 57 in four seasons in the league and seemed to develop into a solid starter before his injury.

Reserve options on this offensive line include swing tackle Chuma Edoga, guard/tackle Asim Richards, guard TJ Bass, tackle Matt Waletzko, and whoever loses the battle for the center job. All seem like underwhelming options. Edoga has made 19 starts in five seasons in the league, but has mostly been mediocre. Richards was a 5th round pick in 2023 and saw action at both guard and tackle, but he only played 40 snaps overall. Bass played 344 snaps last season as an undrafted rookie, but struggled with a 54.1 PFF grade. Waletzko was a 5th round pick in 2022, but has played just 8 snaps total in two seasons in the league. This isn’t a bad offensive line, but they won’t be as good as a year ago without Tyron Smith and Tyler Biadasz and their depth is a concern if injuries strike.

Grade: B

Running Backs

The Cowboys also lost feature back Tony Pollard this off-season, after he played 836 snaps, third most in the NFL among running backs last season. In total, Pollard rushed for 1,005 yards and 6 touchdowns on 252 carries, while adding a 55/311/0 slash line on 67 targets. Pollard did only average 3.99 YPC, as well as just 0.78 yards per route run and 4.64 yards per target, but he had an impressive 50.0% carry success rate as a runner and the Cowboys only replaced him by bringing back a familiar face in Ezekiel Elliott, who was originally let go so the Cowboys could afford to franchise tag Pollard last off-season. Elliott is a lot cheaper than Pollard now, signing for only 2 million on a one-year deal, as opposed to the 3-year, 21.75 million dollar deal that Pollard signed with the Titans this off-season, but there’s a reason he’s cheaper, as he figures to be a downgrade. 

Elliott used to be one of the best running backs in the league and, in total, he rushed for 8,262 yards and 68 touchdowns on 1,881 carries (4.39 YPC) with a 51.9% carry success rate in seven seasons in his first stint in Dallas, but his YPC fell to 3.79 and his carry success rate fell to 47.6% in his final season in Dallas in 2022 and then fell further to 3.49 YPC and 45.1% carry success rate in his lone season in New England in 2023, albeit on an overall poor Patriots offense where he didn’t have much room to run. Now Elliott heads into his age 29 season with 2,421 career touches, which makes him pretty old by running back standards. He shouldn’t still be carrying the load at this stage in his career, but the Cowboys don’t really have much of a choice but to give him a big role.

Rico Dowdle showed some promise as the #2 back last season, rushing for 4.06 YPC and a 47.2% carry success rate on 89 carries, while adding 1.35 yards per route run as a pass catcher, despite being a 2020 undrafted free agent with seven career touches prior to last season. He’s still inexperienced and unproven, but with Elliott replacing Pollard as the lead back, the Cowboys could give Dowdle a bigger role as the #2 back, especially if Elliott struggles as the season goes on and Dowdle continues to impress. Other running back options include veteran free agent addition Royce Freeman, who has averaged just 3.80 YPC on 471 carries in six seasons in the league, and 2023 6th round pick Deuce Vaughn, who had just 30 touches as a rookie last season. Overall, this is an underwhelming backfield. 

Grade: C+

Receiving Corps

Relative to their running back group and their offensive line, the Cowboys didn’t lose much in the receiving corps. Michael Gallup was released this off-season to save 9.5 million and he wasn’t replaced, but he only had a 34/418/2 slash line and 1.06 yards per route run last season, so he won’t be missed much. The Cowboys could have moved on from Brandin Cooks as well, which would have saved them 8 million ahead of the final year of his contract in 2024, but they opted to keep him. 

Cooks was a high level receiver in his prime, surpassing 1000 yards receiving six times in seven seasons from 2015-2021, while averaging 1.86 yards per route run over that stretch, but he fell to a 57/699/3 slash line with a 1.64 yards per route run average in 2022 and then a 54/657/8 slash line with a 1.25 yards per route run average last season and now he heads into his age 31 season. He will continue being the Cowboys #2 receiver in 2024, for lack of a better option, but it wouldn’t be a surprise to see him continue declining and, at the very least, his best days are almost definitely behind him at this point.

The only wide receiver the Cowboys added this off-season was 6th round pick Ryan Flournoy, who is unlikely to be ready to play a significant role in year one, so the Cowboys will likely promote Jalen Tolbert, the 4th receiver a year ago, to replace Gallup. Tolbert was a 3rd round pick in 2022 and has plenty of opportunity in a receiving corps that has lost Michael Gallup (57 targets) and has an aging Brandin Cooks (81 targets), but Tolbert has only averaged 0.89 yards per route run thus far in two seasons in the league, so it’s unclear if he’ll be able to make the most of that opportunity. 

Tolbert could take a step forward in his third season in the league and be a decent #3 receiver, but anything more than that might be a stretch. Aside from the rookie Flournoy, other wide receiver options the Cowboys have behind their top-3 include 2023 7th round pick Jalen Brooks, who played 77 snaps as a rookie, and KaVontae Turpin, an undersized (5-9 157) gadget player who has played just 202 snaps in two seasons in the league since going undrafted in 2022. If any of their top-3 receivers miss significant time with injury, someone will be forced into a role that they are likely very underqualified for.

Fortunately, the Cowboys do still have #1 receiver Ceedee Lamb, who is one of the best receivers in the league. A first round pick in 2020, Lamb was a big part of this offense immediately as a rookie, with a 74/935/5 slash line and a 1.81 yards per route run average, and he’s gotten better in every season since then, with a 79/1102/6 slash line and 2.06 yards per route run in 2021, a 107/1359/9 slash line and 2.38 yards per route run in 2022, and a 135/1749/12 slash line and 2.78 yards per route run last season, ranking 2nd in the NFL in receiving yardage, 1st in catches, 3rd in receiving touchdowns, and 5th in yards per route run. 

Still only in his age 25 season, Lamb should remain one of the best receivers in the game for years to come. He’s going into the final year of his contract and needs to be extended, but, unlike with Dak Prescott, there’s no indication that won’t happen. The Cowboys probably would have saved money by signing Lamb sooner, rather than waiting until after other receivers signed, but even if Lamb ends up surpassing the record breaking 4-year, 140 million dollar deal that Justin Jefferson signed this off-season, it would be hard for him to be overpaid, given how talented he is and how bright his future is.

The Cowboys also still have tight end Jake Ferguson, who was second on this team in targets (102), catches (71), and receiving yards (761), and third in receiving touchdowns (5) last season, while averaging 1.46 yards per route run. With the Cowboys being even thinner at wide receiver than a year ago, Ferguson should continue having a big role. The 2022 4th round pick is just a one-year starter, only playing 430 snaps as a rookie, but he flashed a lot of potential with a 1.66 yards per route run average in his first year in the league and it’s unlikely he would regress significantly in 2024. In fact, Ferguson is still only going into his age 25 season and could have upside to be even better going forward.

Ferguson’s breakout year prevented Luke Schoonmaker from having a big rookie year role, even though he was a second round pick who was likely drafted to be the tight end of the future. Schoonmaker struggled across 369 snaps as a rookie, with a 50.4 PFF grade and a 0.62 yards per route run average, but he has the upside to take a big step forward in his second season in the league. He’ll remain the #2 tight end behind Ferguson, but if he proves worthy of a bigger role, the Cowboys could use more two tight end sets in passing situations this season to offset their lack of wide receiver depth. The Cowboys have one of the best wide receivers in the league in Ceedee Lamb and a talented young pass catching tight end in Jake Ferguson, but this is a very top heavy position group with significant concerns behind Lamb and Ferguson.

Grade: B

Edge Defenders

The Cowboys didn’t lose as much on defense as they lost on offense this off-season, but they still lost some key players, including a pair of edge defenders in Dorance Armstrong and Dante Fowler. They only played 446 snaps and 271 snaps respectively, but both were useful rotational players, finishing with 7.5 sacks, 4 hits, and a 12.1% pressure rate and 4 sacks, 3 hits, and a 17.8% pressure rate respectively in their small roles. To replace them, the Cowboys will probably give a bigger role to youngsters Sam Williams and Viliami Fehoko and they also added another young edge defender in the second round of this year’s draft in Marshawn Kneeland. 

Williams was a second round pick back in 2022 and has shown promise in limited roles thus far in his career, with a 70.9 PFF grade on 274 snaps as a rookie and a 68.5 PFF grade on 306 snaps last season, while combining for 8.5 sacks, 10 hits, and a 12.6% pressure rate. Williams is a projection to a larger role, but, still only in his age 25 season with a high upside, he should be capable of a bigger role in 2024 and I would expect him to be their top reserve edge defender. Kneeland also has upside, but could struggle through growing pains as a rookie, while Fehoko is a 2023 4th round pick who didn’t play a snap as a rookie due to injury and underwhelming practice performances. Both should play roles, but I wouldn’t expect them to be as good as Armstrong and Fowler were a year ago or as good as Sam Williams figures to be this season.

Fortunately, the Cowboys still have Micah Parsons and DeMarcus Lawrence, who are one of the best edge defender duos in the league. Parsons has been one of the best pass rushers in the league since being drafted in the first round in 2021, totaling 40.5 sacks (4th most in the NFL over that stretch), 50 hits, and a 19.9% pressure rate in 50 career games, including 14 sacks, 20 hits, and a 20.1% pressure rate last season. He isn’t as good against the run, but has still finished with overall PFF grades of 89.8, 91.6, and 92.7 on snap counts of 902, 917, and 862 in his three seasons in the league respectively. 

Parsons hasn’t won a Defensive Player of the Year award yet, but he has played well enough that he could have won it in any of his three seasons in the league, finishing in the top-3 in voting in all three seasons. Still only going into his age 25 season, Parsons should remain one of the top defensive players in the league for years to come and it would be an upset if he didn’t win at least one Defensive Player of the Year award in his career, if not multiple. In fact, I would consider him the favorite for the award in 2024, given the voters’ preference for players who haven’t won one yet.

Lawrence isn’t as good of a pass rusher as Parsons, but that’s not exactly an indictment on him. In total, he has 49.5 sacks, 61 hits, and a 13.5% pressure rate in 105 games in the past seven seasons and he’s even better against the run, consistently being one of the top run stopping edge defenders in the league throughout his career. Because of his well-rounded play, Lawrence has finished above 80 on PFF in six of the previous seven seasons, with three seasons over 90, including an overall 91.3 PFF grade in 609 snaps in 2023, when he had a 92.4 run defense grade and added 4 sacks, 5 hits, and a 12.5% pressure rate as a pass rusher. 

Lawrence is now heading into his age 32 season and could easily decline in 2024, but he’s starting from such a high base point that I would expect him to remain at least an above average starter, even if he declines significantly. Any decline from Lawrence would hurt this defense, especially when coupled with the loss of Armstrong and Fowler, but Lawrence should still remain an above average starter at the very least, Micah Parsons should remain one of the best defensive players in the league, and the Cowboys still have good depth, led by the promising Sam Williams and second round rookie Marshawn Kneeland, so overall this is still a really strong position group.

Grade: A

Interior Defenders

The Cowboys also lost a pair of rotational players at the interior defender position this off-season in Johnathan Hankins and Neville Gallimore, but both struggled with PFF grades of 51.8 and 57.8 on snap counts of 350 and 288, so they won’t be missed much. The Cowboys didn’t add any real replacement options this off-season, but they figure to give a bigger role to 2023 1st round pick Mazi Smith, who only played 304 snaps in 17 games as a rookie. Smith struggled in his limited playing time, finishing with a 49.8 PFF grade, so he could be very underwhelming in an expanded role in 2024 if he doesn’t improve significantly, but he at least has the upside to take a big step forward in his second season in the league, even if that’s not a guarantee.

Smith will start next to Osa Odighizuwa, who was by far the Cowboys best interior defender last season, with a 81.4 PFF grade on 635 snaps. Odighizuwa was at his best as a pass rusher, with 3 sacks, 9 hits, and a 12.1% pressure rate, but he also played well against the run. A 3rd round pick in 2021, Odighizuwa is a one-year wonder in terms of playing at the overall level he played at last season, with a 48.5 PFF grade on 614 snaps as a rookie and a 63.3 PFF grade on 616 snaps in 2023, but he’s always been a solid pass rusher, with 6 sacks, 14 hits, and a 9.1% pressure rate in 33 games in his first two seasons combined. Still only going into his age 26 season, it’s possible he has permanently turned a corner and will remain an above average all around player and, even if he regresses as a run defender, he should remain a useful interior pass rusher.

Chauncey Golston remains on the roster as a reserve option. Also a 2021 3rd round pick, Golston has only played an average of 320 snaps per season in three seasons in the league, but he’s mostly been a capable rotational player, with PFF grades of 59.7, 68.4, and 62.7. He especially is useful as a pass rusher, with a career 9.2% pressure rate. He could see an expanded role in 2024, given the off-season losses the Cowboys have had at the interior defender position, but it probably won’t be a drastically expanded role and, still only in his age 26 season, he could prove to have another level.

The only addition the Cowboys made to their interior defender group this off-season is 7th round rookie Justin Rogers, who is unlikely to play a significant rookie year role and would almost definitely struggle in that role if he did. The Cowboys also have veteran Carl Davis, but he’s never played more than 300 snaps in a season in nine seasons in the league, including just 30 snaps played last season, and he has finished above 60 on PFF in just two seasons of those seasons, so he would almost definitely struggle if he had to play a significant role this season, especially now going into his age 32 season. This isn’t a bad position group, led by a trio of Osa Odighizuwa, Mazi Smith, and Chauncey Golston who are all young players with significant upside, but they all have downside as well and their depth outside of the top-3 is very suspect.

Grade: B-

Linebackers

The one free agent addition the Cowboys did make on defense this off-season was linebacker Eric Kendricks, who signed on a 1-year, 3 million dollar deal. He will be needed because Leighton Vander Esch retired this off-season after a solid, but brief and injury plagued 2023 season in which he had a 65.5 PFF grade in 269 snaps, while Markquese Bell, who had an impressive 80.0 PFF grade on 649 snaps in Vander Esch’s absence, is expected to move to safety in 2024.

Kendricks has been a solid starter for most of his career, playing 61.7 snaps per game in 132 games in nine seasons in the league, while exceeding 60 on PFF in all but two of those seasons, including a 72.3 PFF grade across 847 snaps in 15 games in 2023, but he’s heading into his age 32 season now, so, not only is it unlikely he’ll repeat his 2023 campaign, but he also isn’t guarantee to remain even a capable starter. It’s not a given that he’ll decline significantly, but it’s at least a significant concern and, at the very least, Kendricks seems likely to be a downgrade from Vander Esch and Bell.

Kendricks will start next to Damone Clark, who had a 61.8 PFF grade across 782 snaps in 2023. A 5th round pick in 2022, Clark is only a one-year starter, but he also flashed potential with a 65.5 PFF grade across 398 snaps as a rookie and it wouldn’t be a surprise to see him remain at least a capable starter, with the upside for more, now in his third season in the league. The Cowboys also added Marist Liufau in the third round of this year’s draft to provide depth behind Kendricks and Clark and get DeMarvion Overshown back from a torn ACL that cost the 2023 3rd round pick his entire rookie season. Liufau and Overshown are totally unproven, but at least provide upside as reserves. This is an underwhelming position group overall and they will likely miss Vander Esch and Bell, but they’re not a terrible group at the very least.

Grade: B-

Secondary

As I mentioned, Markquese Bell will move from linebacker to safety this season. Bell was originally a safety and is undersized for a linebacker at 6-3 205, but he held up against the run and excelled in coverage last season, coming out of nowhere after playing just 22 snaps as an undrafted rookie in 2022. Not only is he a complete one-year wonder, but it’s fair to question if moving back to safety will be in his best interest, given how well he played at linebacker last season, so I would be surprised if he was as good in 2024 as he was in 2023.

Bell will likely take over the snaps ceded by free agent departure Jayron Kearse, who played 817 snaps in 2023, but struggled mightily with a 43.1 PFF grade. Fellow safeties Donovan Wilson and Malik Hooker also played 731 snaps and 824 snaps for the Cowboys last season, as the Cowboys frequently used three safeties at the same time in sub packages, to mask some of their lack of depth at linebacker, something that is likely to continue in 2024. Both Wilson and Hooker had solid seasons with PFF grades of 68.0 and 77.3 respectively and both remain on the roster for 2024.

Hooker has been a solid starter since entering the league as a first round pick in 2017, finishing above 60 on PFF in all seven seasons, with three seasons above 70, and he is still only in his age 28 season, so he should remain an above average starter in 2024, but durability has been a consistent issue for him, as he’s missed time in every season in the league, while missing 32 games total. Wilson has also finished above 60 on PFF in all five seasons in the league, with two seasons above 70, but he similarly has missed 17 games in five seasons in the league. 

I would expect more of the same from Hooker and Wilson in 2024, solid play, but likely more missed time due to injury. Fortunately, in addition to having Bell, the Cowboys also have Juanyeh Thomas as a reserve option and he flashed a lot of talent with a 81.1 PFF grade in 2023, though it came in just 192 snaps and those were the first snaps of the 2022 undrafted free agent’s career, so he’s still very unproven. When Hooker, Wilson, and Bell are all healthy, all should see roles and Thomas would likely see at least somewhat of a role in the likely scenario that one of the three players ahead of him on the depth chart miss time with injury.

At cornerback, the Cowboys didn’t bring back Stephon Gilmore, who had a 74.4 PFF grade across 999 snaps last season. They do get back Trevon Diggs from a torn ACL that limited him to 101 snaps in two games last season and, in the three seasons prior to his injury, the 2020 2nd round pick had 17 interceptions, tied for the most by a defensive back over that time period. However, Diggs isn’t as good as that suggests, as he also allowed among the most passing yards in the league over that stretch and, as a result, he only had overall PFF grades of 62.7, 59.6, and 66.9 in those three seasons respectively. Now going into his age 27 season, Diggs probably is who he is at this stage of his career, someone capable of making big plays, but also someone who gives up a lot of big plays. He’s unlikely to have as good of an all-around season as Stephon Gilmore had in his absence last season, especially coming off of a significant injury.

DaRon Bland will start opposite Diggs and he had a huge year in Diggs’ absence last season, with a 90.4 PFF grade across 964 snaps (15 starts). A 5th round pick in 2022, Bland showed promise as a rookie, with a 71.9 PFF grade across 597 snaps (8 starts), but his 2023 performance was still a huge jump forward for him. He might not be that good again in 2024, partially because it’s very hard for anyone to be that good two years in a row, partially because he’s still relatively unproven with only one elite season under his belt, but even if he does regress, he has a good chance to remain one of the better cornerbacks in the league and, still only in his age 25 season, he could be one of the better cornerbacks in the league for years to come.

Jourdan Lewis remains the third cornerback and will likely continue being a liability. A 3rd round pick in 2017, Lewis showed some promise early in his career, but he’s finished with PFF grades of 48.1, 61.4, 59.1, and 52.5 on snap counts of 817, 801, 315, and 729 over the past four seasons respectively and, now going into his age 29 season, he is unlikely to get any better going forward. The Cowboys don’t really have a good alternative though, as their other cornerback options are Narshon Wright, a 2021 3rd round pick who has played just 272 mediocre snaps in three seasons in the league, Eric Scott, a 2023 6th round pick who didn’t play a snap as a rookie, and Caelen Carson, a 5th round rookie who would almost definitely struggle in a significant role as a rookie. The Cowboys would be in trouble if any of their top-3 cornerbacks missed significant time with injury, particularly if DaRon Bland missed time, as he elevates this position group significantly by himself. This isn’t a bad secondary overall, but they do have some concerns.

Grade: B+

Conclusion

When you compare the players who left the Cowboys this off-season to the players they added, it’s possible no team lost more this off-season than the Cowboys, who seem to be entering something of a rebuilding process, after three straight disappointing post-seasons. The Cowboys are starting from a pretty high base point, as they had one of the most talented teams in the league last season, and they play in by far the weaker of the two conferences, so they still have a good chance to at least make the post-season, but this team doesn’t look built for a long playoff run once they make it.

Prediction: 11-6, 2nd in NFC East