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Season 62 Power Ranking Preview - #22

by adelfish | 4 years ago | 1 Comments

Season 62 Power Ranking Preview - #22

Welcome to the 2020 Red Zone Power Ranking Preview. In this long-running preview, I will be going team at a time, ranking them 32-1, discussing the user, the team, the schedule, etc.

COVERED TEAMS: Lions, Jaguars, Bengals, Patriots, Bears, Vikings, Dolphins, Seahawks, Rams, Giants

Isn't there a Taylor Swift song about being 22? Well, we have arrived at 22, and there couldn't be a more perfect user falling to this spot, as I know he is a major Swift fan. 

 

 

 

#22 - Dallas Cowboys (White Greg)

 

(6-10 Projected Record)

 

 

 

 

What an exciting fit for the NFC East, the Dallas Cowboys, and the league. White Greg, a young up and coming (maybe?) head coach heads to the Big D, in a talented NFC East, to prove whether or not he can finally win big games. 

In the NFC South last cycle, despite no playoff appearences the White Greg regime was always interesting, from his loud-mouthed declarations and constantly pestering his opponents, he is quite the antagonizer. 

He enters a much better division than last year's South, with the NFC East featuring three Super Bowl winners, including two from last cycle. Despite having maybe the best roster in the division, my hopes for this pairing are low. Will he prove me wrong? Let's take a look...

One Big Question

After struggling early in his career in Carolina, Coach Greg has no shortage of confidence. He heads to a division with a much better team, but with three very strong divisional opponents. Will the Cowboys back up their head coach's big talk?

Everybody knows that the Dallas Cowboys is a job you can't take lightly. Sure, you saddle up in Cincinnati or Buffalo, there aren't a ton of expectations. But to be hired in Dallas is a major responsibility, to the ownership, the fanbase, the brand.

The Cowboys went outside the box this cycle, after having cool, calm, collective Steven Greenhalgh lead them to another title last year, they signed Coach White Greg to a ten year deal. Talk about a 180.

Now in the brief time we got to know White Greg the Coach and GM, there were ups and downs. Most of the ups came in the GM aspect, as he did construct a very solid defense for his Carolina Panthers, along with ushering in a new quarterback era. He did well in free agency, trading, and drafting for the most part, but on the field is where he struggled. 

In a division with Weedseed, Adel, and Beech, I would rank WG as a clear 4th coaching talent in the division, and could compete for 3rd best GM. I just don't see a way he can beat the Eagles and Redskins consistently, and if Beech returns to early 2019 form, the Cowboys will finish last in the division. The only reason I have him in third is due to tiebreakers in my predictions, despite both the Giants and Cowboys going 6-10.

As the cycle goes along and he gets his feet wet, I think the Cowboys will improve, even challenge for a playoff spot. Inititally? I see struggles. 

The best thing that Coach Greg has going for him is the roster, which is very talented, but before we get into that, let's take a look at his schedule.

One Big Schedule Issue

The opening month for the Cowboys could actually get them off to a nice start...

@ Rams (Jim)

vs Falcons (Kelly)

@ Seahawks (Trent)

vs Browns (Prewitt)

I can see the Cowboys finishing 2-2 or 3-1 in that stretch, but all four of these rosters they'll be facing are strong. The questions will be if Jim and Trent are slam dunk wins for the Cowboys, and I'm not so sure they are right now. 

In October, the Cowboys have 3 NFC East games and a game against the Cardinals, and I favor them in only one of these four games (at home versus the Giants). I see them sitting at 4-4 at the midway point of the season.

Once again, in the final half of the season there are some very winnable games for Dallas, as they face the Vikings (Eikim), Bengals (Andrew), and Giants again (Beech). I see him going 2-4 in the division, along with wins against Minnesota and Cincinnati. Outside of those games, I see a loss against San Francisco in Week 15, and Baltimore in Week 13, putting them right at 6-10.

Reasons for Optimism

Offensively, there is plenty of excitement to go around for this Cowboys team. Starting with Dak Prescott, despite the uncertainty regarding his contract, Dak figures to be a top ten quarterback in the leauge going into Season 62, and Greg will have him under contract for the forseeable future. There is even great depth behind Prescott in case of injury, with backup quarterback Andy Dalton.

The weapons around Dak are what make this offense go, starting with Ezekiel Elliott at running back, with a fresh 5 year extension, he is the face of the Cowboys backfield going forward. He will be relied on heavily in this offense, but don't discount backup speedster Tony Pollard.

Amari Cooper is a superstar, along with Michael Gallup who is a great second option. With their 1st round pick, Dallas selected the highly touted Ceedee Lamb to join the fray, giving Dallas a truly dangerous trio of wide receivers. 

Up front, the offensive line is still very good despite the retirement of Travis Frederick. Tyron Smith is one of the best left tackles in the league, and on the other side is the ever-improving La'el Collins at right tackle, who had a career year in 2019. Zack Martin at right guard is one of the best interior linemen in the league, giving Dallas three elite blockers. The best part? All three are locked up for the next four seasons at least.

Defensively Dallas has some really nice pieces going forward, starting with pass rusher Demarcus Lawrence, who is one of the best edge threats in the league. I love the signing of Gerald McCoy at defensive tackle to join Lawrence, and the young Trysten Hill. The linebackers are deep, with Jaylon Smith and Leighton Vander Esch as one of the best duos in football.

The secondary is where it gets dicey after the departure of Byron Jones, but safeties Xavier Woods and HaHa Clinton-Dix should help take some pressure off the new cornerbacks. A major win? The Cowboys somehow landed rookie corner Trevon Diggs in the second round of the draft, and he figures to compete for the starting job immediately. 

Reasons for Negativity

Going back to the offense, despite having three of the best blockers in the aforementioned Smith, Martin, and Collins, the Cowboys have massive holes at center and left guard, and these will need to be fixed quickly. Currently they plan to start Joe Looney at center and Connor Williams at left guard....yeah. Fixing these holes on the line will only improve the offense for Dallas.

The only other spot on offense that needs work is the tight end position, since the departure of Jason Witten it has been a big hole for Dallas. Blake Jarwin is under contract, a big one, for the next four years, but has been trending downward since his best season in 2017. Replacing him and finding another high end weapon will be a priority for Coach Greg, Geisicki perhaps?

I mentioned the defensive line with Lawrence, Hill, and McCoy, but the Cowboys took some strange fliers this summer. Aldon Smith is under contract for $2 million, Dontari Poe for two years at almost $9 million, and the big $9 million price tag for the declining Tyrone Crawford. Smith is a low-risk move, but is he really going to see snaps? And Dontari Poe has never lived up to the billing, and is rotational guy at best behind Hill and McCoy.

I mentioned the cornerback situation is a bit sketchy despite the drafting of Diggs, as almost every single corner on this roster is on an expiring contract. I do like Chidobe Awuzie and Anthony Brown, but these guys are fine at best. Expect to see a big training camp battle for spots alongside Diggs, but the cornerback spot will need a makeover come Season 63 and beyond.

The big negative looming is how big the contract numbers for Prescott will be, as the Cowboys currently are slated to free up $45 million in cap next offseason, but you have to assume at least $35 million or more of that goes to Prescott. With most of the core under contract for at least three or more years, the Cowboys won't have much wiggle room after Prescott puts pen to paper. 

Last Word

White Greg is underrated, and did some very impressive things in his short time in Red Zone with the Panthers, but now gets thrown into a more difficult situation in the NFC East. Unable to live up to his self-proclaimed role as Moji's rival in the South, is he going to be able to rival the Eagles or Redskins, heck even the Giants? 

If he can continue to trend positively as a team builder, wins will come. The only thing I am really worried about is his inability to win big games. Remember, White Greg is winless in 'big games'. That needs to change this cycle if he is to go anywhere, and he currently has the roster to do it.