For the last several years, the Dallas Cowboys have struggled to defeat quality opponents from outside their division. Sure, they’ve been able to handle the Philadelphia Eagles, but when facing off against the likes of the San Francisco 49ers, Buffalo Bills, Miami Dolphins and Green Bay Packers last year, they fell short, often in spectacular failings.
Of course narratives don’t necessarily have to be true to be believed. Dallas defeated the Detroit Lions last year, and they made it to the NFC Championship. The year prior the Cowboys had wins over the Cincinnati Bengals and Minnesota Vikings who combined for a 25-8 regular season record. Still, Dallas’ playoff failures have created the public impression that tough opponents can bully them. After last week’s win over the 3-1 “tough guy” Pittsburgh Steelers, the Cowboys now have a chance to reverse that narrative along with another.
The team had won 16 straight home games prior to the drubbing placed on them by the Packers in the 2023 wild-card round. Now, they’ve lost three AT&T Stadium games in a row, and if it weren’t for a 19-point fourth-quarter rally that fell short, the scores in all three would’ve been woefully lopsided.
But a win Sunday over the 3-1 tough guy Detroit Lions, seeking revenge for last season’s controversial finish, at AT&T Stadium would not only silence the big-game critics but also the internally-booing birds about their loss of a home-field advantage.
The Cowboys, sitting at 4-2 entering their bye week, after the littany of injuries to top stars on the heels of a tumultuous offseason would be a seismic shift in perception.
Dallas went all summer dealing with contract talks about Dak Prescott and Micah Parsons and a contract holdout with WR CeeDee Lamb. The entire defensive end room is currently ravaged with the top four edge rushers all sidelines simultaneously. Sam Williams is done for the season, Parsons looks like he’ll miss a second consecutive contest and DeMarcus Lawrence and second-round rookie Marshawn Kneeland are on the shelf.
The cornerback room is barely doing better with Trevon Diggs returning from an ACL tear, DaRon Bland having yet to suit up in 2024 and impressive fifth-round rookie Caelen Carson missing the last two wins. Through in adapting to the defensive scheme of Mike Zimmer which has turned things around after giving up over 450 rushing yards in back-to-back losses to the Saints and Ravens.
The Lions bring forth one of the league’s best rushing tandems in David Montgomery and Jahmyr Gibbs. Stifling Najae Harris is one thing. Corralling these two? That’d be remarkably impressive.
There are a number of narratives that can be laid to rest, at least temporarily, with a victory on Sunday.