Where do national pundits rank the Cowboys heading into next season?
.jpg "Coach Mike McCarthy and the Dallas Cowboys are expected to remain among the NFL’s elite in 2023.")
The 2022-23 season has officially concluded with the Kansas City Chiefs winning their second Super Bowl in four seasons.
National pundits have already started to look ahead to next season dropping early NFL power rankings.
Most pundits expect the Cowboys to be one of the NFL’s best teams again next season.
Todd Archer, ESPN
This was the case in 2022 as well. But now Mike McCarthy enters a season in which he will call plays and have more say in the offense than he ever has. He will have a retooled offensive staff and potential changes in personnel on that side of the ball. He has won 24 games in the past two seasons and took the Cowboys a step further in the 2022 playoffs, but heading into the second-to-last year of his contract, McCarthy will need to have his best season, and that work starts in the offseason.
Vinnie Iyer, Sporting News
The Cowboys are changing offensive philosophy without Kellen Moore as Mike McCarthy and Brian Schottenheimer now try to deliver the necessary complementary group to Dan Quinn’s playmaking defense. They need to get Dak Prescott more reliable downfield passing help beyond CeeDee Lamb.
Matt Johnson, Sportsnaut
The conversations about trading Dak Prescott need to end. He is a very good quarterback, a player capable of hoisting the Lombardi Trophy if on the right team. Entering the offseason, the Cowboys’ offense just lacks the offensive weapons to beat a team like the San Francisco 49ers or Philadelphia Eagles in a playoff game. Dallas needs to stick with Prescott and just build a better team around him.
Mark Lane, Touchdown Wire
For better or worse, the Cowboys are committed to Dak Prescott. What do they surround him with? The defense should still be aggressive and generate takeaways as long as Dan Quinn is still defensive coordinator.
Matt Levine & Marissa Myers, The Wright Way Network
The Dallas Cowboys quieted many after beating the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the Wild Card round of the playoffs. They even kept things close in their loss to the San Francisco 49ers. Dak Prescott struggled with interceptions down the stretch of the season, but outside of CeeDee Lamb, and Dalton Schultz, he didn’t exactly have many reliable receivers. The potential is there, they just need a few more playmakers.
Dalton Miller, Pro Football Network
Retaining Dan Quinn for a third season as the defensive coordinator was the best news Dallas fans could have received. Many liked Moore, but everybody understands that Quinn was the more important piece to the Cowboys’ puzzle.
Quinn’s defense has been one of the best in the NFL over the past two seasons. If Dallas can finally address the No. 2 CB spot, it’s hard to find a flaw on that side of the ball.
The offensive side is more interesting. The Cowboys don’t have a No. 2 receiver, and Mike McCarthy will be calling the shots for the first time in nearly a decade. Has his offense evolved with the times, or will slant-flat become the new all-curls to Cowboys fans?
