As bad as the Dallas Cowboys have played at times through the first three games of the 2020 NFL season, there’s been a lot of good mixed in there as well. The offense is working with a patchwork offensive line, but still able to put enough points on the board to win games. Defensively they’re struggling, but surprisingly enough are showing signs of improvement.
If the Dallas Cowboys can quit self sabotaging themselves early in games and play from ahead rather than behind, they could be a force to be reckoned with. It’s all these penalties and mental mistakes hurting them the most right now, but that doesn’t mean they can’t do a few things to make themselves better. In fact, I believe there are three moves they can make to do just that.
Let’s take a look…
Sign S Earl Thomas
Darian Thompson has had three weeks to prove himself a capable starter, but the only thing he’s proven so far is that he’s a liability in coverage. The Dallas Cowboys need to put an end to this experiment and go ahead and sign Earl Thomas to replace him as soon as possible. Thomas may not be what he once was, but he’s a heck of a lot more reliable than anything else the Cowboys have on the roster. With so many injuries at the cornerback position, Thomas’ presence on the backend could help solidify the Cowboys secondary.
Sign LB Darron Lee
The Dallas Cowboys LB play has been serviceable through the first three weeks the season, but if anything were to happen to either Joe Thomas or Jaylon Smith they’d be in some serious trouble. They have almost zero experience behind them, which is where Darron Lee comes into play. The former first-round New York Jets draft pick is currently serving a four-game suspension, but if signed would provide some much-needed depth in Week 5 and beyond. Relying on Leighton Vander Esch or Sean Lee to return healthy, or stay that way, would be unwise.
Reshuffle the Offensive Line
The Dallas Cowboys finished Week 3 with Brandon Knight (LT), Connor Williams (LG), Tyler Biadasz (C), Joe Looney (RG), and Zack Martin (RT) as their starting offensive line. They should stick with this starting five unless Tyron Smith is able to return this week. In that case, Smith steps back in as the starting LT with Martin returning to RG and Knight taking over at RT. Looney unfortunately becomes the odd man out because Biadasz proved to be the better player against the Seahawks. That’s a lot of moving parts, but probably the Cowboys best OL unit until La’el Collins returns, if he’s able to.
