What’s Next for the Dallas Cowboys?

The Dallas Cowboys came into 2023 as a team expected to make a deep playoff run and potentially go to the Super Bowl. On January 22, 2023, the Dallas Cowboys squared off against the 49ers for the second time in a row in the postseason, this time in the Divisional Round as opposed to the Wild Card Round last year. However, once again the Dallas Cowboys failed to make it to the conference championship game as they lost to the 49ers 19-12. Dallas also hasn’t been there since the 1995 season which is when they won their last super bowl against the Pittsburgh Steelers 27-17. Let’s go through all the major concerns the Cowboys have going into the 2023 NFL off-season.

Owner, president, and general manager of the Dallas Cowboys Jerry Jones has decisions to make all across the board. The biggest decision to make is if Mike McCarthy is the right head coach for a team that on paper looks like one of the best offensive teams in the NFL. However, a common theme in the postseason has been McCarthy’s poor decision-making, especially in the 4th quarter. With bad play calling and poor execution, Mike McCarthy has been on the hot seat for a while but despite this, he has remained the head coach despite not being able to get his team past the divisional round. After last night’s game, Jerry Jones was asked if Mike McCarthy’s job is in jeopardy after the loss and he was on record stating "No. No. No. Not at all. And (our) decision to -- (stick with) our kicker -- was exonerated, with his field goal, in my mind, and I'm proud of him. But this is, uh, this is very sickening to not win tonight." Head coaches such as Sean Payton would be a terrific option due to his super bowl experience with the New Orlean Saints and his excellent playcalling. However, it is reported that he is off limits as he is currently meeting with the Denver Broncos after they fired their previous head coach Nathaniel Hackett after 15 games.

Aside from a potential head coaching change, another major issue that the Dallas Cowboys faced in the postseason was their kicking situation. Brett Maher put the entire world on notice by infamously missing four straight extra points against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the Wild Card Round. Against the 49ers the Cowboys were so unconfident with Maher that instead of kicking a field goal with the score tied 6-6 at the end of the first half, Dak Prescott elected to go for it on fourth down and miraculously converted it. That is before throwing a costly interception a few plays later to set up a Robbie Gould Field Goal to make the score 9-6 going into halftime. While Brett Maher was one of the best kickers in the regular season, even making a 63-yard field goal at one point, it is obvious that this situation hurt the Cowboy’s aggressiveness in key moments of the playoffs. The Cowboys more than likely will stick with Brett Maher as Prescott believes he just had a bad game at the wrong time.

The final adjustment the Cowboys need to consider making is evaluating whether or not Dak Prescott is the right quarterback for the future. During the regular season Dak Prescott despite being injured for 5 games to start the season threw for 23 touchdowns but a league-leading 15 interceptions. In the Divisional Round vs. the 49ers, Dak threw another two interceptions both of them costing the Cowboys 6 points. A year ago the conversation of who was the best quarterback in the NFC was a near-unanimous answer. In the present day, it is safe to say Daniel Jones of the New York Giants and Jalen Hurts of the Philadelphia Eagles have surpassed Dak. There is also an argument for him being the worst quarterback in the NFC East. The Cowboys have no choice but to keep Dak as he is on a 4 year/$160 million contract that he signed in 2021. Dallas provides a lot on the offensive side of the ball with elite running back Tony Pollard, as well as targets such as Michael Gallup, Cedee Lamb, and Dalton Schultz. With all of that talent, it is expected that Dak Prescott eventually takes the Cowboys to the NFC championship at bare minimum. If he doesn’t succeed in that let alone bring them to the super bowl, the Cowboys may have to assess the Quarterback situation more going forward.