Over the next three days, a new opponent will arrive at AT&T Stadium, and the memory of the Arizona Cardinals’ defeat will fade away.
The Dallas Cowboys are a 2 and 1 football team with one of the better rosters in the NFL.
They are well aware of the criticisms, complaints, and negative opinions expressed by their fans, the media, and skeptics.
Can they change their perception with a big win versus the New England Patriots?
It seems more plausible than possible.
However, if they stay healthy and avoid mistakes, they have the talent to make a deep playoff run.
Dallas has young players who could make an impact as the season progresses, but the coaching staff will need to adjust their approach and get them more snaps.
These are the three names that come to mind.
Cowboys’ DL Chauncey Golston
Chauncey Golston continues to make the best of his opportunities
The Dallas Cowboys passed on Sam LaPorta, Nolan Smith, and Joey Porter, Jr. The list goes on and on.
They wanted an athletic, run-stuffing defensive lineman to accentuate their dominant pass-rushing unit led by Player of the Month, Micah Parsons.
Dallas picked Mazi Smith from the University of Michigan with the 26th overall draft pick.
To put it mildly, he has yet to live up to the hype, and his snaps are minimal in the season’s early going.
Chauncey Golston wasn’t as highly touted. However, he’s been showing some serious potential lately, and I’m excited to see what more he can bring to the table.
Chauncey Golston is becoming quite the weapon as an interior pass-rusher this season. Two straight games with a 20+% pass-rush win rate. #Cowboys
Putting him in will only create a large crater in the defense.
Technically, that’s true, but the fact that both Jonathan Hankins and Mazi Smith are sitting on 47.5 and 56.4 run grades, respectively, you’re not losing much in that area.
However, you are gaining more pass rush. Play to your strengths; if he falls in that area, I’m increasing his snaps.
Could Hunter Luepke help with the red zone efficiencies?
At this point, the Dallas Cowboys shouldn’t leave any stone unturned regarding the red zone.
To be fair, there were opportunities for Tony Pollard and Rico Dowdle to score, but the play-caller went a different direction.
Nevertheless, Hunter Luepke is the biggest running back who serves as a fullback on this roster.
Other teams have used their fullbacks to run the ball and have been successful along the way.
Tampa Bay and Mike Alstott stand out. Jon Kuhn is someone Mike McCarthy should remember and maybe a better comparison.
Hunter has only played in 30 offensive snaps in three games. The coaching staff has to be judicious in who snaps go to since there are only so many in the game.
This team will have to play the 49ers and Eagles, and they may have to stop with the trickery and line up and run it right at them.
Jermaine Arvie (born January 14, 1981) is life-long Dallas Cowboys fan from Louisiana. He has a Bachelors of Science degree in Finance and currently serves as a Senior Manager within a Fortune 50 corporation. Jermaine has written for Fansided as a Paid Contributor and now serves as a Junior Writer for Inside The Star, a site dedicated to Dallas Cowboys' talk year around. He currently resides in the Mansfield Texas area. Jermaine believes in family, faith and football. His social media outlets are included below. Feel free to reach out to him directly to talk football.