CBS Sports pegs Cowboys to be one of 2018's biggest disappointments

[GMO415]

Jason La Confora can shove his opinion.
https://cowboyswire.usatoday.com/2018/05/08/dallas-cowboys-2018-season-prediction-cbs-sports/

Post-draft, pre-training camp is oftentimes the honeymoon phase for NFL teams. Everyone is tied for first place and just added a bevy of young players aimed at helping both now and in the future. But even the world’s biggest optimists sometimes get checked by the realities offered by the opposition’s viewpoint.
With a glass-half-empty approach, what the Cowboys are building is easy for some to tear down.

Dallas is a team in flux. The lineup looks vastly different from just three seasons ago when Tony Romo, Dez Bryant, DeMarco Murray, and Jason Witten led them a 12-4 finish and divisional round appearance.


After a disappointing 2017, the Cowboys must face several questions. Even after a 2018 draft that drew favorable reviews, their new-look transformation is facing immediate scrutiny by several media outlets, including Jason La Canfora of CBS Sports, who named Dallas as one of his four teams primed to disappoint fanbases next season.

“Man, they end up spending a lot of time talking about just-retired or just-kicked-out-the-door former players, don’t they? Seems to be the motif of another offseason. Tony Romo a year ago. Jason Witten and Dez Bryant now. And of course they had their share of run-ins with the law, with David Irving the latest Cowboy to be dealing with potentially seriously off-field issues (last year it was Zeke Elliott). Seems like the plan is to go Back to the Future to like 1986 and run the ball 600 times. Good luck with that. Dak Prescott, I doubt, takes a big step forward with this supporting cast, and even with adding a linebacker in the first round I have some serious concerns about the viability of the Dallas defense. The division should be better this season, but the Cowboys will not be. And if it does go as expected, will Jerry Jones cling to a coach he can micro-manage? Could more change be in the air for the Cowboys?”

Things change fast in the NFL, especially with a high-variance team like the Cowboys. Who knows how this revamped team will fare in 2018, but from the new season’s outset, it’s just as easy to squint and see a possible Super Bowl contender as it is to do the same and see an underwhelming shell of a former powerhouse.

NFL predictions are often a fool’s errand this early in the season, and the person making the prediction should be just as scrutinized as the prediction itself.

Standing five months out from NFL football, anything is possible. At least Prescott will have all summer to work with his new receivers in order to make La Canfora eat his words.

 

[CATCH17]

I look at it as a win-win situation.

If Dallas is bad. Good, we will finally get a much needed coaching change (I hope anyways) and a high draft pick.

If Dallas is good. Then that's awesome as well.





My opinion... Everything depends on the pass game. If the pass game is productive then the Cowboys will be good.

A lot rests on the coaches shoulders this year and their old mentality with the pass schemes will have this team sinking quick so let's sit back and watch what they do.

 

[cowboyblue22]

as many question marks as the cowboys have its no wonder they are picked to be a disappointment vegas has them pick to win just a little over 7 games this season any one who has expections for the playoffs should temper them in the nfl power rankings they are ranked 14th or lower

 

[PA Cowboy Fan]

Dallas as one of his four teams primed to disappoint fanbases next season.

Same as usual then?

The more we get dissed the more I think the team will contend. Probably a one and done but the team always does better when nobody expects them too.

 

[RustyBourneHorse]

I look at it as a win-win situation.

If Dallas is bad. Good, we will finally get a much needed coaching change (I hope anyways) and a high draft pick.

If Dallas is good. Then that's awesome as well.





My opinion... Everything depends on the pass game. If the pass game is productive then the Cowboys will be good.

A lot rests on the coaches shoulders this year and their old mentality with the pass schemes will have this team sinking quick so let's sit back and watch what they do.

In fact, I've found that we typically do well when the expectations on this team are next to nil.

 

[zrinkill]

Feb 7, 2018

 

[jay94]

I look at it as a win-win situation.

If Dallas is bad. Good, we will finally get a much needed coaching change (I hope anyways) and a high draft pick.

If Dallas is good. Then that's awesome as well.





My opinion... Everything depends on the pass game. If the pass game is productive then the Cowboys will be good.

A lot rests on the coaches shoulders this year and their old mentality with the pass schemes will have this team sinking quick so let's sit back and watch what they do.

I agree with this assessment, but the problem is I believe our team lies right in the middle, I guess a series of serious injuries could maybe get you the pick and Garret fired, but I'm not even sure if Garret is out the door with another 7-9 W season and that is what I believe is going to happen, I hope I'm wrong.

 

[CATCH17]

I agree with this assessment, but the problem is I believe our team lies right in the middle, I guess a series of serious injuries could maybe get you the pick and Garret fired, but I'm not even sure if Garret is out the door with another 7-9 W season and that is what I believe is going to happen, I hope I'm wrong.

I agree..

The team is really built to have a 7-9 floor and a 13-3 ceiling.

I think they could sniff that 13-3 area more if they had better coaching.

What happens when you get to the playoffs though and this coaching just continues doing what they did in the regular season. That's a problem that nobody talks about.

 

[GMO415]

If everyone stays healthy, they could win 13 games...

 

[Billyd]

I THINK closer to 11-5 but i have a different opinion of how we get there..First of all, i think the running game is the key..Although it looked okay numbers wise last year, we all know it was disjointed first of the year..

Secondly I think the passing game although important, is not the thing that has to explode on the NFL..Two yearz ago we all jumped up and down with a rookie that had 3700 yards 23 tds, and 4 tos...The passing game wasnt that crazy but the efficiency was great..Why, cause the Nfl hadnt caught up to it, and Zeke was sucessfull most games..

Fast forward to now, Why would the passing game have to be more sucessfull? I think if the passing game is more balanced, with some sizzle here and there, Some play action, and more precision and efficiency (Scoring tds on most drives in the red zone) everything will be fine..

As far as these yahoos at CBs are concerned, at least two statements they make, imply they dont even follow the Cowboys enough to have a take..

 

[Billyd]

I agree..

The team is really built to have a 7-9 floor and a 13-3 ceiling.

I think they could sniff that 13-3 area more if they had better coaching.

What happens when you get to the playoffs though and this coaching just continues doing what they did in the regular season. That's a problem that nobody talks about.

I agree with some of that, however, Was Garrets coaching bad in 2014 playoffs? IN 2016 I agree that Linihan sucked, and Garrett should have stepped in and Done more in the first half..However how does one beat the refs in the playoffs..Lolol

 

[StarBoyz83]

Biggest dissapointments in what? I dont think many are expecting too much this season.

 

[Bobhaze]

The NFL is absolutely the hardest league to predict year to year, and whoever was good last year may not even make the playoffs this year. Who picked the Jaguars to make the AFC championship game last year at this time?

IMO, The thing this team needs to make major improvements must come from the coaches. I think there’s enough talent on this team to make some noise even in the playoffs.

But as was made crystal clear in the “All or Nothing” series, Garrett’s response to a butt whipping by another team is simply telling his players to “fight harder”. That’s my biggest concern. Is this coaching staff capable of making quality adjustments to what our opponents do?

For everyone screaming, “Just run the ball”, we must realize that the rest of the league has figured out what kind of defensive response is necessary to stop the Cowboys offensive attack. The next move is our coaching staff’s to make. Will they be able to do that? Is the question I think will determine our fate in 2018.

 

[Billyd]

Thats hilarious, The Nfl figuring out how to stop the run..No..

The Dallas Cowboys figured out how to stop the offense.Put a loser no talent guard at starting guard on the left side,let him blow up the running and passing game then send him to tackle.

THATS some crappy personnel evaluation and it smacks of a reach at three in the draft...Stephen..

LAST year to a large degree was self inflicted, and a result of Goobers witch hunt..I agree they didnt seem to move fast enough at adjusting...Linehan seemed much smarter when Romo called the plays!

 

[GMO415]

The 92 Cowboys passed to open up the run, kind of like what JG did against GB in the playoffs....he failed miserably and had to start the run early to save the game.

I think JG will now start with the run to open up the pass. But hellh have to change that up by game 4 .

 

[InTheZone]

I agree if a certain player does not progress and/or JG/Linehan continue to force their scheme on an opposing team who already figured them out after the first play.

 

[Idgit]

“Man, they end up spending a lot of time talking about just-retired or just-kicked-out-the-door former players, don’t they? Seems to be the motif of another offseason. Tony Romo a year ago. Jason Witten and Dez Bryant now. And of course they had their share of run-ins with the law, with David Irving the latest Cowboy to be dealing with potentially seriously off-field issues (last year it was Zeke Elliott). Seems like the plan is to go Back to the Future to like 1986 and run the ball 600 times. Good luck with that. Dak Prescott, I doubt, takes a big step forward with this supporting cast, and even with adding a linebacker in the first round I have some serious concerns about the viability of the Dallas defense. The division should be better this season, but the Cowboys will not be. And if it does go as expected, will Jerry Jones cling to a coach he can micro-manage? Could more change be in the air for the Cowboys?”
​

Seems legit.

I got no issue with thinking the Cowboys disappoint next season, with all the offensive upheaval, but the reasons here are pretty dumb. Irving doesn't really have a potentially serious off-field issue looming, and we don't need to go back to 1986 to see how our running game should work. 2014 or 2016 should suffice. Also not sure what issues he's got with the defense being viable. Lord knows I've been complaining for years about adding actual playmakers on that side of the ball, but we're been firmly mediocre for a while now, and we're young and deeply mediocre. No reason to expect a significant backslide there.

He should be going after the passing game, where the WRs are all midling question marks, we have no established TE, and the QB has something to prove based off of the last half of last season. Maybe throw in a crack about Tyron's back, to make it sound sexy.

 

[Starforever]

The Cowboys and LeBron are newsworthy. Winter, Spring, Summer, and Fall; both are in the news.

 

[Northern_Cowboy]

I agree..

The team is really built to have a 7-9 floor and a 13-3 ceiling.

I think they could sniff that 13-3 area more if they had better coaching.

What happens when you get to the playoffs though and this coaching just continues doing what they did in the regular season. That's a problem that nobody talks about.

I agree with the 7-9 floor but at best i think they could get to 10-6 and if we get to 10-6 i think it would be more because of our D than our O

 

[cowboy_ron]

Good, Dallas does better when no one expects them to do well......now if BSPN will follow suit I'll feel more comfortable.