Blogging The Boys
The Myles Garrett conversation has begun.
One of the most discussed topics of the offseason so far for the Dallas Cowboys, an offseason that arrived mercifully after the team’s first losing season since 2020, is just how much the organization is committed to winning football games. This is an uncomfortable thing to call into question for any professional sports franchise, but the transcendent nature of the Cowboys brand allows for many other priorities around The Star such as popularity, relevance, and profit. The Cowboys have been trying to address the nuts and bolts of their football team via the coaching staff so far this offseason.
The hiring of Brian Schottenheimer remains somewhat confusing as a first time head coach, but his coordinator hires and many of the assistants have generated buzz as legitimate names that can bring a real direction to the team. Klayton Adams is here as offensive coordinator to help the running game find a spark again, and Matt Eberflus is back in Dallas to pick up where Mike Zimmer left off after just one season as defensive coordinator. While having an almost entirely new staff from the Mike McCarthy era is refreshing, the expectation from Cowboys fans is that the team will still pass up many opportunities to improve the roster these coaches have to work with in free agency or the trade market.
The next coaching staff in NFL history to will a significantly less-talented roster to a Super Bowl will be the first, and there is no denying the Cowboys need an influx of talent nearly across the board. Still, they will strongly carry the expectation of sticking to re-signing some of their own free agents, adding bargain-bin outsiders if any, and prioritizing the draft above all else until proven otherwise in a big way. The biggest possible fish for the Cowboys to send a different signal to their fans is reportedly asking for a trade though, with Cleveland Browns defensive end Myles Garrett asking out after eight seasons.
There is an adage in football that instead of trying to field the best overall and balanced team, one should lean as far as possible into their strengths and maximize them. If a position group feels just set enough to be above average on game day, add another starting-caliber player. If a position group is the best on the team, add another starting-caliber player. If a position group has a chance to be the reason a team wins games on a regular basis, add another starting-caliber player and make it consistently even more dominant. Being as close to unstoppable somewhere on the football field is the goal.
The Cowboys have a ton of work to do to make this team a contender again under a new staff, particularly in backing up their commitment to wanting to run the football again. Deuce Vaughn and his career 110 rushing yards in...
