Dallas City News

The Dallas Cowboys are back inside AT&T Stadium for the first time since last year’s deflating Wild Card loss to the Packers, a game that was so one-sided it nearly erases the memory that the Cowboys had won all eight regular season games at home to that point. The team’s home field advantage for the new season will be put to the test starting on Sunday against the Saints, and again the following week versus the Ravens. It shouldn’t take long to find out if the Cowboys can still be a dominant team on home turf, as both the Saints and Ravens present a challenge.

The Cowboys showed some signs of being the team that dominated games at home in 2023 on the road in Week 1, making enough big plays on offense and generating takeaways defensively. This was an encouraging sign considering how much Dallas struggled away from home a season ago, and now in Week 2 they draw a Saints team that also got off to a hot start with a 47-10 win against the Panthers.

Here is a closer look at what we might learn about the Cowboys after an early kickoff on Sunday.

Can offense be ready for a shootout?

The Cowboys offense was in no way great against the Browns. The fact they didn’t let Myles Garrett wreck the game working against rookie left tackle Tyler Guyton, got CeeDee Lamb involved in his first action of the season following a contract holdout, and saw Ezekiel Elliott look like his old self in flashes, are all positives. However, the negatives were going three and out three times in the second half to not fully put the game away on their own terms, going 4 for 14 on third down, and not having a receiver beyond Lamb or Brandin Cooks really establish themselves.

The Saints’ 47 points scored against the Panthers may very well be a mirage as they gained three possessions off turnovers and averaged 6.1 yards per play against one of the worst teams in the league from a year ago. The Panthers also had eight possessions where they held the ball for less than two minutes, constantly putting a tired defense on the field to deal with the Saints offense.

The Cowboys have much more trust in their defense to limit Derek Carr and this Saints’ offense, but coming away with points of their own, especially in the red zone, will be key to show they can play in high-scoring games against more high-octane teams.

Are linebackers ready for Alvin Kamara?

The Cowboys have rebuilt the linebacker position in the blink of an eye under Zimmer, and they looked much improved in Week 1. Second-year player DeMarvion Overshown stole the show in his regular-season debut, flowing sideline to sideline and staying off blocks to make plays all over the field. Eric Kendricks turned back the clock to complement Overshown by also being constantly in the right position and intercepting Deshaun Watson for the first takeaway of the year.

Dallas will face a different challenge this week, particularly out of the backfield, dealing with the Saints’ Alvin Kamara this week. Kamara’s speed around the edge and elusiveness will be a real test for these linebackers.

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Kamara was a weapon on the ground and in the passing game for New Orleans against Carolina. The Cowboys have committed a defensive back to dual-threat running backs like Kamara before, but will need Trevon Diggs, Caelen Carson, and Jourdan Lewis to also deal with Chris Olave and Rashid Shaheed at wide receiver.

The key will be limiting explosive plays for the Saints and making them earn every yard, and not letting Kamara keep the Saints in favorable down and distances all game by wearing them out on the ground. It will be up to a front seven not tested all that much against the Browns. Overshown may have the raw athleticism to matchup with Kamara in most situations, but look for the Saints to move him around to test who else from this Cowboys defense is up to the challenge.

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Will offensive line hold up against the blitz?

Coming into this season, Dennis Allen was not exactly a head coach on a lot of people’s radars in position to have a great season. The former defensive coordinator for New Orleans has a track record of limiting the Cowboys offense though, holding them under 14 points in matchups against them in 2018 and 2019, and 20 points offensively in his only meeting as DC against Mike McCarthy’s offense in 2021.

Now in year three as a head coach, Allen is having his way building a new identity for the Saints more focused on defense. The team has learned that Derek Carr may not be the elite quarterback capable of lighting up scoreboards he once was, but supporting him with a strong defense as a team that will always have a favorable home field advantage is still a winning formula. Allen and the Saints absolutely had this on full display against a divisional opponent in Week 1, stymying any chance the Panthers had with an aggressive defense that intercepted two passes and had four sacks.

Three of these sacks came from cornerback Alontae Taylor. Taylor is part of a talented secondary with Marshon Lattimore and Paulson Adebo at cornerback. Will Harris and Tyrann Mathieu are lurking at safety. This is a secondary very adept at getting physical with receivers and limiting their ability to win quickly off the line, which in turn gives the defensive-minded Allen the confidence to dial up pressures like the ones that got home from Taylor against Bryce Young.

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One of the surprises for the Cowboys coming out of Week 1 was how little pressure they saw from a normally aggressive Jim Schwartz defense in Cleveland, especially with two rookies making their first starts on the line. The Browns opted to trust their very talented front four to create pressures, something they did by sacking Dak Prescott three times, but the Saints present an entirely different challenge to this offensive line in the way they must be prepared to recognize extra rushers and communicate protections.

Tyler Guyton and Cooper Beebe are going to be tested early and often, and if the Cowboys can’t adjust to have open hot throws for Prescott to get the ball out of his hands and not be dependent on the downfield shots they were a year ago in these home games, it could be a very difficult game for the Dallas offense to find a footing in.

Can Demarcus Lawrence and Micah Parsons win against Trevor Penning and Taliese Fuaga?

On the other side of the Cowboys offense having to deal with pressures from the Saints, their defense will get to work against a less mobile QB than Watson in last week’s contest by rushing Carr. This is simply not a quarterback that is going to make many defenders miss or escape the pocket to deliver the ball accurately, and the Cowboys have to like their matchups on the edge with Micah Parsons and DeMarcus Lawrence both coming off big games. The Saints starting tackles are Trevor Penning on the right side and Taliese Fuaga on the left.

In his third season, Penning has dealt with injuries and made just his seventh start last week. The 2022 first-round pick is still realizing his potential out of Northern Iowa, but draws one of the toughest matchups in the NFL this Sunday in Parsons. Penning can be hard to disengage from when he’s able to lean into rushers and use his strong arms to push upfield, but the speed and hand play of Parsons may prove difficult for him to deal with if the Saints are forced to drop back regularly.

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On the other side, Fuaga is a rookie 14th overall pick from Oregon State that will also concede the corner against speed rushers and allow them to at least get to the level of the quarterback. This may be all the Cowboys need to do to make Carr feel uncomfortable, as Osa Odighizuwa, Jordan Phillips, and the rest of their defensive tackles will be pushing the pocket from the interior as well.

The Cowboys tried and true game plan of trusting Prescott to take care of the ball while having the same trust in their defense to bring down the level of play in opposing quarterbacks worked well in Week 1, particularly for the defense in Zimmer’s return to the NFL moment. It will take an extra level of intensity against Carr and the Saints this week.

Parsons and Lawrence are the players that set the tone for this defense up front, and another dynamic game from both of them could see Dallas make another big statement and control this game to start 2-0 on the year.