The Dallas Cowboys came into the 2020-21 NFL season with a mountain of expectations on their shoulders. Many believed the campaign would end much better than a year ago when they choked away the NFC East Division title. Ultimately, this year turned out to be just as bad, if not worse.
Dallas Cowboys Season Gets Off to Rocky Start
The Cowboys’ season-opener against the Rams was a let down for everyone watching and even more so for Dallas fans. It should’ve been a win, but Mike McCarthy did his best Hue Jackson impression and seemingly tried to cost his team the game.
The Cowboys’ first win of the year was a fortunate one, thanks to one of the biggest chokes in NFL history by the Atlanta Falcons. Atlanta had a 99.9% chance of victory (according to ESPN) with 2:33 left in the game. Then Super Dak Prescott showed up and led the Cowboys to victory in a 40-39 comeback.
The Cowboys’ offense would be great in the games against the Seattle Seahawks and Cleveland Browns, but their defense couldn’t stop a high school varsity team. Dallas found out the hard way that it’s quite hard to win games when allowing 30+ points on a regular basis.
Cowboys Season Takes Turn for the Worst
Then the Cowboys season took a dark turn in their game against the New York Giants. In the third quarter, Dak Prescott was rolling to his left and got tackled. That tackle would produce a gruesome injury that words can’t really describe.
The injury would be the end of Prescott’s season. Andy Dalton would take over and lead the Cowboys to victory in a game that had far greater importance than the final score.
Unexpected Change at Quarterback
In Andy Dalton’s first start as a Cowboy, he would play the Arizona Cardinals on Monday Night Football. The game went completely haywire for Dallas as Kenyan Drake and the Cardinals steamrolled over the defense. Drake led the attack with 164 rushing yards and two touchdowns. The Cowboys were outplayed to the score of 38-10. The next week was no better as the Washington No Names held Dallas to three points and won 25-3. To make matter worse, Dalton took a vicious hit and sustained a concussion. On the bright side, this was the first time in five games that the Cowboys did not allow 30 or more points in a game.
Dallas Cowboys QB Carousel Continues
With Dalton sidelined, the Cowboys were forced to play the Philadelphia Eagles with Ben Dinucci under center. The offense failed to get anything going and the Eagles would win easily, 23-9. The Cowboys would go to their fourth different starting QB of the season when Garrett Gilbert took the reigns against the undefeated Pittsburgh Steelers. The Cowboys came out and played what looked like one of their best halves of football. They scored 13 points before the Steelers were on the board. The Steelers would ultimately come back and win 24-19, sending the Cowboys into their bye week with a 2-7 record.
Cowboys Come Out of Bye Week Strong
Coming out of the bye, the Cowboys would travel north to take on the Minnesota Vikings. It was a very back-and-forth game, as both teams would go shot for shot with it looking like whoever had the ball last would win. The Cowboys would end their four-game losing streak with a key road win as they tried to salvage the season.
The annual Thanksgiving game would bring the No Names back to town. The Dallas defense would keep it close enough for the first three quarters, but one play call changed the game. Mike McCarthy would call a fake punt, and it went very poorly. The Cowboys would be outscored 21-0 after that point in the game to lose 41-16. The loss ensured a season sweep by Washington and put the Cowboys firmly behind the chase in the lowly NFC East.
Win Streak Keeps Playoff Hopes Alive
The Dallas Cowboys would then travel to Baltimore to play the Ravens in a special Tuesday night game. A 34-17 loss might’ve looked a lot different coming down the stretch if not for an atrocious kicking night from Greg Zuerlein. That game did change something for the Cowboys though. The next three games against the Cincinnati Bengals, San Francisco 49ers and Eagles were all wins. Furthermore, Dallas outscored their opponents 108-57 in the three games combined.
Cowboys Glimmer of NFC East Hope Fades in Week 17
The three-game win streak would keep the Dallas Cowboys in contention to win the NFC East heading into Week 17. That would all go away after a 23-19 loss to the Giants that effectively ended the season. Once again, the Cowboys were on the outside of the NFL Postseason looking in.
Defense to be Main Priority this Offseason
Despite finishing with a 6-10 record, the Cowboys were just one game behind the eventual division winners. The Cowboys’ offseason focus needs to center around revamping the defense. Dallas has the 10th overall pick in the 2021 NFL Draft. The team also hired former Falcons head coach Dan Quinn to be their new defensive coordinator. This would appear to be a good sign that Jerry Jones will prioritize the defense going forward this offseason.
