The Dallas Cowboys have as much talent as any team in the league. If games were played on paper, they would be in contention for a Super Bowl every season. Unfortunately, it has to be decided on the gridiron and players/coaches have to be able to adjust to all situations in order to achieve victory.
So far in 2019, the latest version of “America’s Team” has left fans and media scratching their heads on a weekly basis. There’s no way to get a clear picture of what this team is or how good that can be because of inconsistency. In the first three weeks of the season, the Cowboys were undefeated and averaging 32 points per game. Several weeks later, they were 3-3 and right back to the drawing board.
The Cowboys have had the exact same record since then putting them at 6-6 for the season. It’s mind-blowing when you go up and down their roster and examine their talent. They have studs at all skill positions on offense, more than capable bodies in the trenches on both sides of the ball, an extremely talented linebacker core and good players in their secondary. So why can’t this team come out prepared in all phases on a consistent basis? That’s been the million-dollar question for quite some time now with this organization.
After getting embarrassed by the Buffalo Bills 26-15 tensions began to rise. According to Clarence Hill of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram, there was loud screaming coming from the Cowboys locker room.
The mystery of knowing exactly which player stepped up to address the team began. We now know it was veteran pass rusher Michael Bennett who was acquired by trade from the New England Patriots in late October. Even with only a month under his belt in a Cowboys uniform, Bennett is showing the leadership and championship pedigree he learned during his days with the Seattle Seahawks. Always being one to tell it like it is Bennett didn’t hold back when he spoke to the team as he tried to instill some urgency going forward.
“Because it’s important that we understand that it’s a small window that we have,” Bennett told the Dallas Morning News. “We’ve got all the great players. The only thing we’ve got to do is execute in adversity. The enemy against greatness is the unwillingness to change. We’ve got to be able to change some of the things that we’ve been doing to demand more from ourselves and become the people we want to be.
“Every opportunity is in front of us, but it’s just on us to capitalize. To win, you’ve got to sacrifice a lot. It’s going to hurt. It’s painful. You play through injury, but you do it because you have to. To win that championship, to win that Lombardi, there’s no feeling like that. And that takes a lot.”
One player that took Bennett’s words to heart was Dak Prescott. In a post-game interview, he backed up his veteran teammate and the leaders of the team.
“No belief has been lost. No confidence has been lost,” Prescott said. “This is simply execution and that’s on the players. That’s what that conversation was. Credit the leaders. Credit to Michael Bennett, those guys that started that. It was a great conversation, a lot of great words.”
So where do the Cowboys go from here? With three losses in their last four games and a potential tie for the division lead with the Philadelphia Eagles after this Sunday, the Cowboys have to treat each game as a playoff game. There’s no more room for error especially facing their third top-five defense in succession next week vs the Chicago Bears. Time will only tell if the Cowboys finish the season with their fourth division title in six years, but one thing is for sure, it’s put up or shut up time in Dallas.
