We’re two weeks into the 2023 NFL season, and the Dallas Cowboys look like they’re prepared to steamroll the professional football landscape. As fun as it is to deride the Cowboys, let’s give credit where credit’s due.
Dallas has the league’s best defense (by far) — a suffocating unit that’s surrendered just 10 points in two games while seemingly making a field-tilting play every possession. That defense has already created seven turnovers, which complements a Dak Prescott-Mike McCarthy offensive medley that has yet to give the ball away and continues to play perfectly within itself. And by virtue of its own dominance, Dallas hasn’t really had to unleash its full offensive arsenal yet. But between usual flashes from CeeDee Lamb and Tony Pollard, it’s terrifying to consider what happens when Brandin Cooks re-enters this mix.
None of what the Cowboys are achieving right now should be surprising to anyone who saw their understated offseason. This is essentially the same exact team that won 12 games and advanced to last year’s Divisional Round. Except now it has Cooks and another lockdown corner in Stephon Gilmore taking snaps. These Cowboys were flat-out built to cruise through this regular season and bully everyone.
All of this makes the Cowboys seem like they’re prepared for a casual 13-14-win campaign, the NFC’s No. 1 seed, and, of course, the conference’s only playoff bye. So … when does the other shoe drop?
While these Cowboys are starting to resemble the best team in Big D in decades, no one in North Texas will remember their regular-season success if Dallas steps on countless rakes again come the postseason. It simply pales in comparison to the importance of the playoffs — especially in a football-crazed Texas town. The pressure’s on for the Cowboys. Let’s see if they predictably fall flat on their face or actually rise to the occasion this time.
Here are For The Win’s power rankings for Week 3 of the 2023 NFL season, featuring the Cowboys and some other top NFC juggernauts starting to settle in.