The 2024 season was a harsh reset for Dallas. A 7-10 record, among their worst in over a decade, signaled an organizational failure. Mike McCarthy was out, a consequence of regression. Front office hesitancy on Dak Prescott and CeeDee Lamb extensions, while ultimately resolved, constrained vital offseason depth moves. Injuries then decimated the roster: Sam Williams tore his ACL. DaRon Bland missed ten games. Trevon Diggs and DeMarcus Lawrence also missed significant time. Prescott’s late hamstring tear sealed their fate. By January, the roster lacked depth, and the team lacked toughness.

Jerry Jones made a bold, arguably risky, move. He hired Brian Schottenheimer as Head Coach, betting on continuity over outside perspectives. The former OC hadn’t been a serious HC candidate in years, but Jones bet on continuity. Now, as the 2025 season looms, the pressure is immense. Can Schottenheimer fix a broken run defense (23rd in missed tackles by missing 93 tackles) and revive a stagnant ground game? Will Micah Parsons and CeeDee Lamb carry this team further? And with Lamb coming off another historic 1,000-yard streak, can the secondary avoid another collapse?

This isn’t just a rebound year. It’s a prove-it season for Dallas and for Schottenheimer. So, where do the Cowboys truly stand heading into 2025? Let’s break down their biggest strengths, fatal flaws, and why this season could define their future.

Exploring the Dallas Cowboys’ dominant traits

Cowboys enter 2025 with a rare luxury – two homegrown superstars leading the charge. Micah Parsons and CeeDee Lamb, recently ranked the NFL’s top homegrown duo, anchor this team’s identity. Lamb, fresh off a historic stretch of four straight 1,000-yard receiving seasons (a franchise first), remains Dak Prescott’s most dangerous weapon. But while the offense leans on Lamb’s explosiveness, the defense thrives behind Parsons’ relentless dominance. Even after missing four games last season, Parsons racked up 12 sacks and an elite 91.6 PFF pass-rush grade, ranking second among edge defenders. His presence alone transforms Dallas’ defensive ceiling.

Yet the Cowboys’ biggest strength isn’t just Parsons – it’s the suffocating pass rush surrounding him. Pro Football Focus labels this unit as the team’s most formidable asset, and for good reason. Despite last year’s struggles against the run, Dallas finished fourth in PFF’s pass-rush grading, generating pressure at a league-high 30.1% rate. Osa Odighizuwa, an underrated force inside, ranked 12th among interior defenders in pass-rush win rate. Second-year pro Sam Williams and sophomore Marshawn Kneeland add young explosiveness to complement Parsons’ dominance. “They might have struggled to stop the run last season,” notes Bleacher Report’s Alex Ballentine, “but Micah Parsons led one of the most productive pass rushes in the league.“

With new defensive coordinator Matt Eberflus emphasizing aggression, this group could reach another level. If Parsons’ contract holdout ends soon, opposing QBs will face a nightmare scenario: a deep, versatile front seven capable of collapsing pockets from every angle. For a team with secondary concerns, that pressure might be the ultimate equalizer.

But for all their firepower, the Cowboys’ flaws run just as deep. And if they can’t fix these glaring holes, all that star power might not matter.

The glaring holes that could sink Dallas

For all their firepower, critical flaws threaten the Cowboys: a porous run defense, an anemic rushing attack, and a fragile secondary. These weaknesses are interconnected, creating systemic vulnerabilities.

The run defense was nothing short of a disaster last season. Dallas missed 93 tackles against the run, ranking 23rd in the league – a shocking number for a team built on defensive firepower. While Micah Parsons terrorized QBs, opponents gashed the Cowboys for 4.0 yards per carry, exploiting sluggish LB  play and inconsistent gap discipline. New defensive coordinator Matt Eberflus inherits this mess, and his trademark toughness will be tested immediately. If Dallas can’t stiffen up front, even elite pass rushers won’t matter when teams grind them into submission.

Then there’s the running game – or lack thereof. After finishing near the bottom of the league in rushing last season, the Cowboys still haven’t found a clear solution. Their 2024 committee approach – a fading Ezekiel Elliott and journeyman Rico Dowdle – produced predictably dismal results. The team this season has parted ways with both Elliott and Dowdle. 

This offseason, they shuffled the deck with mid-tier signings Javonte Williams, Miles Sanders, and late-round draft picks Jaydon Blue, Phil Mafah. While first-round guard Tyler Booker should bolster the offensive line, The Athletic’s Saad Yousuf notes the backfield remains the team’s biggest question mark: “It’ll be up to the players on the roster to dictate if there will be a lead back or a committee. And if it is a committee, who will be a regular part of the rotation.” The hope rests on rookie Jaydon Blue, but banking on a fifth-round pick to revive the ground game is a gamble.

The domino effect of defensive woes

The secondary, once a strength, now looms as another liability. Last year’s injury-ravaged unit – missing Trevon Diggs for six games and DaRon Bland for ten. Though Bland is healthy and the addition of George Pickens via trade boosts the offense, ESPN’s Mike Clay remains skeptical, ranking Dallas’ roster just 18th overall. “Running back wasn’t a tough choice for a team that hasn’t prioritized the position recently,” he wrote, but the secondary’s inconsistency could be just as damaging.

The Cowboys have talent, but these flaws don’t exist in a vacuum. A weak run defense emboldens opponents to control the clock. A stagnant rushing attack puts too much pressure on Dak Prescott’s arm. A shaky secondary forces the pass rush to be perfect every snap. Unless Eberflus and the coaching staff patch these holes quickly, Dallas’ season might sink under the weight of its weaknesses.

Yet for all these concerns, the 2025 season presents an opportunity for redemption, for breakout performances. And for this new-look Dallas Cowboys team to rewrite their narrative.

Defining the make-or-break moments

The 2025 Cowboys are strategically overhauled. The George Pickens trade leads offensive changes, alongside guard Tyler Booker, running backs Jaydon Blue, Javonte Williams, and Miles Sanders. Defensively, LB Kenneth Murray and edge Donovan Ezeiruaku join Sam Williams’s crucial return. KaVontae Turpin‘s extension boosts special teams.

Yet for all these additions, expectations remain bifurcated. While The Athletic’s Mike Jones calls Dallas “underrated,” Vegas sets their win total at a middling 8.5 – a reflection of unanswered questions. Can Pickens mature into Lamb’s counterpart? Will Booker stabilize an O-line that surrendered 38 sacks last year? Does Murray solve the linebacker corps’ coverage woes?

Dak Prescott’s $240 million extension last offseason wasn’t just a payday; it was a mandate. After an injury-shortened 2024 derailed the offense, Prescott must now prove he can transcend regular-season success and deliver in January. His weapons, at least, are tantalizing. CeeDee Lamb, fresh off a historic production, teams with newly acquired George Pickens, whose explosive talent comes with Steelers-era baggage. If Pickens matures into the co-No. 1 receiver Dallas envisions, this offense could hum. If not, the weight falls heavier on Prescott’s shoulders.

The defense faces its reckoning. Micah Parsons remains a one-man wrecking crew, but Sam Williams’ return from a lost ACL year could tip the scales. Once a projected breakout star, Williams now battles to justify his second-round pedigree in a contract year. Meanwhile, the front office’s quieter moves – re-signing Osa Odighizuwa, hint at a bet on internal growth over splashy fixes.

This is the Cowboys’ tightrope walk: enough talent to surprise, but systemic flaws that could fracture their season. For Prescott, Lamb, Parsons, and Pickens, 2025 defines their legacies.