Hot Dallas Cowboys are not just winning, but they’re unselfishly rooting for each other
When looking for reasons why the Dallas Cowboys have been so successful to start the season, a list of standout players and coaches abound.
The headliners are obvious.
Quarterback Dak Prescott has been downright amazing, throwing three touchdown passes in three consecutive games, ranking second in the league in completion percentage and touchdown passes.
Running back Ezekiel Elliott has two straight games of 100 yards of more on the ground and is currently third in the NFL in rushing.
Rookie sensation Micah Parsons, who has played defensive end and linebacker, leads the team in sacks. He is second in quarterback pressures and fourth in tackles.
And cornerback Trevon Diggs has topped them all in superlatives with an interception in each of the first five games, tying a franchise record set by Don Bishop in 1961. He leads the NFL with six interceptions and is already a bettor’s favorite for NFL Defensive Player of the Year honors.
And that doesn’t even include the coaching prowess of offensive coordinator Kellen Moore, who has been a master in directing a unit that is first in the NFL in yards, second in scoring and second in rushing; or defensive coordinator Dan Quinn, whose unit is second in the league in takeaways and has improved to fifth in rushing defense after giving up the second-most rushing yards in franchise history a year ago.
But when the Cowboys themselves talk about their secret to their success, they point to their chemistry, their unselfishness and the brotherhood they have in the locker room in what has truly been a team effort.
“Everybody loves each other,” cornerback Anthony Brown said. “Everybody is for each other. Everybody has no ill will toward nobody. Everybody wants to see everybody succeed.
“Nobody is trying to take the spotlight from nobody. Everybody is just playing and when they play comes to you, everybody celebrates with you. That’s our goal. That’s our motto. I love where we are at.”
Brown has been with Cowboys since 2016 and has been a member of two teams that have won NFC East titles. He said no team has been as close or unselfish as the current Cowboys team.
“It’s definitely what you want,” coach Mike McCarthy said. “We’re definitely very high in that area, I love that about our players. I think it talks about the type of men we have. These guys want to win. Even the players who have had high individual success here in the past, that’s about winning. That’s all that matters. As long as it stays that way, we have a great chance.”
Said defensive end Randy Gregory: “We’re lucky to have a lot of guys who are selfless, including myself. We all understand that we’re not going to get where we want to get to, we’re not going to win the way we want to win and dominate if we don’t have everyone’s best play on the field. It’s good to see that, it really is.”
The unselfishness is epitomized most on offense where receivers Amari Cooper and CeeDee Lamb are second and third on the team in catches with 25 and 24 behind tight end Dalton Schultz with 26.
Of course, the Cowboys have a total of nine players with catches in 2021 including five with 10 or more receptions and seven with nine or more receptions.
McCarthy said the unselfishness is designed within the offensive system and it all starts with Prescott.
“The offensive system I’ve always been around, and frankly what I’ve built here is, you know, the system’s built around making the quarterback successful,” McCarthy said. “It starts there and it stops there. The ball needs to be spread around, and Dak’s doing a tremendous job of that. Our ball distribution is exactly what I’m looking for in the first five games. It’s a philosophical approach. It was made clear when we started this and Dak’s leading the way.”
And then there is the running back tandem of Elliott and Tony Pollard who have split time and carries since the beginning of the season. Elliott, a two-time rushing champion, came into 2021 wanting to lead the league in rushing again.
But he is also Pollard’s biggest supporter and biggest fan.
“It’s a brotherhood,” Elliott said. “Every week we all have the same goal, win football games. This is definitely a very unselfish team. I mean we all just want to see each other do well because we understand when we all do well we’re going to win football games. And that’s when everybody is going to be happy.”
The unselfishness is not just unique to the Cowboys offense. It’s also built into the team’s DNA on defense considering how many players they have used on defense through the first five games of the season.
Consider that through five games in 2020, the Cowboys rotated a total of 21 players on defense. It’s already 30 players in the rotation in 2021 due to injuries and COVID-19.
But it speaks to the team’s depth. It’s also a point emphasis in the rotations on the defensive end at linebacker in matching up against different offenses.
“Yeah, definitely. It’s probably even more so on defense,” McCarthy said. “I think it’s definitely been a benefit for us with our front people. You look at the safety position, different personnel groups. The linebacker position, too. This is the most depth of a linebacker group that I’ve ever been part of. You just try to keep all of those guys involved. It will definitely serve us a lot better in the long run.”
The long run is all that matters for the Cowboys.
They know they are talented enough to realize their dreams. But they believe it’s their chemistry and unselfishness which make the biggest difference in the end.
“That’s really all it’s about, you know what I’m saying?,” Lamb said. “Just getting to the championship. Doing our responsibilities right. It’s fun. You’re winning, you know what I’m saying? We’ve got great talent all around, and we kind of understand. It’s a bond that we are growing throughout the season, week in and week out. We’ve really got something special.”
This story was originally published October 13, 2021 at 5:17 PM.
