Sunday’s matchup with the Washington Commanders was an enormous one for the home team. Standing at 2-3-1, the Dallas Cowboys needed a win just to stay alive in the postseason race. In order to make it to the NFL trade deadline with a winning record, it would require running the table on their next three opponents. Objective 1 of 3 is now complete.
Winning 44-22, the Cowboys stayed alive in the NFC race to the playoffs. Their 32nd-ranked defense did just enough to the tattered and torn Commanders offense to secure the victory. Quarterback Dak Prescott finished with a dominant 264 passing yards, three touchdowns, zero interceptions and a 130.4 passer rating, with running back Javonte Williams adding 116 rushing yards on 6.1 yards per carry and one touchdown, and wideout CeeDee Lamb 110 receiving yards, 22 yards each catch and one touchdown.
As the Cowboys returned to .500, the hope stays alive after this first “must-win” game of the season. Along the way to survival, we learned some important things about America’s Team as well.
First thing learned: Cowboys can play man defense
Matt Eberflus has come under some fire in 2025 for his insistence on zone coverage. The personnel on hand indicates man coverage is the ideal coverage scheme to call in Dallas and many of the coverage struggles this season can be linked to Eberflus trying to fit a square peg in a round hole.
Over the week, Eberflus was seen running his back-seven through multiple man coverage situations in practice. The practice manifested on the field with the Cowboys running nearly half of their coverage snaps in man. It’s possible Dallas’ success was purely because of the poor competition they were facing in Washington’s backup receivers — the Commanders were without Terry McLaurin, Deebo Samuel and Noah Brown — but it’s also possible they found the secret to their survival going forward.
Second thing learned: Cowboys can stop the run
The Dallas Cowboys held the hard running Commanders to 136 yards on the ground. The 4.9 yard/carry average isn’t ideal but since the Cowboys are the worst-graded run defense in the NFL, it’s considered a win.
It turns out, more man coverage might be correlated with better run defense. An extra man in the box in single high safety coverage makes gap assignments simpler even if it does expose the secondary to big plays downfield.
It’s a pick-your-poison thing for the Cowboys defense, but at least Eberflus is willing to weigh his options.
Third thing learned: Dominant offenses are worth investing in
Seeing George Pickens, CeeDee Lamb and Javonte Williams all on the field together and playing at the top of their respective games is enough to leave Keith Sweat Twisted. It’s entertainment at the highest level and utterly memorizing even if the pass protection still looks suspect.
The dominance of the offense combined with the draft picks sitting in the arsenal says the Cowboys would be wise to further their financial investment in the unit. No one else in the NFL has two first round picks in each of the next two drafts, so Dallas is uniquely qualified to go all-in on their offense now, while going all-in on their defense come draft day over the next two Aprils.
To clarify: Pickens and Williams might be worth re-signing.
Final thoughts
The Cowboys are still alive. They needed a win in Week 7 to stay relevant and at 3-3-1 they are just barely that. Two more wins will make the case they are contenders and only then will they be justified in perusing the trade market. Anything short of using their first-round picks would then be justified, provided it was for a defensive player under team control beyond 2025. But that’s a potential story for a different day…
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This article originally appeared on Cowboys Wire: Lessons learned: Cowboys defense can actually adjust among major revelations from Week 7
Reporting by Reid D Hanson, Cowboys Wire / Cowboys Wire
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
