The Dallas Cowboys are chomping at the bit to move forward after another disastrous playoff loss. Following a flurry of offseason questions and storylines, the Cowboys are still viewed by many as a quality football team.
With the regular season just a week away, here are five bold predictions for the Cowboys ahead of Week 1.
5 Bold Cowboys Predictions in 2024
Dak Prescott Wins NFL MVP
This will be controversial, it will have pushback, and many people won’t like to hear it. But that’s OK.
Dak Prescott is a top-tier NFL quarterback coming off his best season, and he is primed to take another step up in his second season in Mike McCarthy’s offense.
Prescott easily could have won the award in 2023 after finishing the All-Pro year with 4,516 passing yards, 36 touchdown passes, and only nine interceptions. However, he didn’t, as the award went to Lamar Jackson instead, setting the stage for Prescott to get it done this time around.
Not a want, a need: to watch all 36 @dak passing TDs of the regular season 🤩 pic.twitter.com/iIhuQ1jTje
— Dallas Cowboys (@dallascowboys) January 10, 2024
With CeeDee Lamb back in the fold, the connection between Brandin Cooks and Jake Ferguson stronger than before, and Jalen Tolbert being an upgrade over Michael Gallup at WR3, the cast of receiving weapons around Prescott appears to be even better.
With uncertainty centering around Prescott and his future, you can’t discount the motivation factor that he is facing heading into the season. If Prescott doesn’t sign a new deal, that’s a chip on his shoulder to prove his doubters wrong. If he is signed, he’s now looking to prove the organization right.
Prescott is a polarizing figure and has a chance to be even more so with an MVP campaign in 2024.
Tyler Guyton Has a Pro Bowl Rookie Season
A lot is riding on rookie left tackle Tyler Guyton.
The former Oklahoma Sooner is expected to step in and fill the shoes of future Hall of Famer Tyron Smith. It’s a tall task, but it appears to be one that he has embraced head-on.
All indications out of camp are that Guyton has exceeded all expectations to this point and looks primed to be a true difference-maker on the blind side.
In limited preseason action, Guyton has looked to have vastly improved his technique from his college days. He also played with a mean streak that coaches love.
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In addition, Guyton has fully embraced the coaching and pointers those around him have been providing, and he appears to be a young player who completely gets what is in front of him opportunity-wise.
With Dallas needing him to step up in a big way in Year 1, Guyton finds his way into a Pro Bowl nomination, proving once again that no one drafts offensive linemen quite like the Cowboys.
DeMarvion Overshown is a Finalist For Comeback Player of the Year
There was a lot of hype and optimism centered around DeMarvion Overshown last season, as he was a rookie who looked set to make a real impact in his first season. However, he tore his ACL, putting that on hold for the time being.
Fast-forward to today and Overshown has picked up where he left off and, in a lot of ways, looks even better than the Cowboys had hoped.
Overshown will be the youthful presence in the middle of a defense anchored by veterans Eric Kendricks and Damone Clark. He is fast, instinctual, and not afraid to read and react to any given play, allowing him to play confidently and freely.
Under new defensive coordinator Mike Zimmer, linebacker play will be crucial to success. With a new sense of dedication to adding size to the interior defensive line, Overshown has a chance to be a real beneficiary in this scheme.
Cowboys Break NFC Championship Drought
Something has to give, right? After almost 30 years of not even making it to the NFC Championship Game, if it isn’t 2024, then when?
The Cowboys still have talent all over their roster, and with more added focus to get it right, the stars could be aligning for the team from the Lone Star State.
Just a look around the conference provides a bit of comfort as well.
Division rival Philadelphia faces intense pressure after crumbling in 2023, while the Cowboys’ big thorn in their side, the 49ers, have had a tumultuous offseason.
The Lions look to be a real contender, but Dallas has beaten them before and would feel confident it can do so again.
The Packers are young and good, but the Cowboys would surely want to right that wrong with extreme motivation.
The point is, the Cowboys are in the mix with all of these teams, and while this would mean they do something they haven’t done in nearly three decades, it would be foolish to assume they aren’t capable of getting over the hump this time around.
It remains to be seen if it will result in the Cowboys making and eventually winning the Super Bowl. But for now, they will take it one step at a time as they try to break down this barrier first.
All Parties Involved in the ‘Lame Duck Year’ Come Back in 2025
Much of the contention that faces the Cowboys this offseason has been centered around the unknown for the future. Prescott is unsigned beyond 2024, and the same goes for head coach McCarthy and defensive coordinator Zimmer.
The ever-looming possibility of a complete reboot for the Cowboys looms large if expectations aren’t met, but I’m here to say that 2024 will be good enough to keep all parties involved around for the future.
If Prescott wins MVP, as predicted, and the team finally makes it to the NFC Championship Game, there is no reason to believe Jerry Jones would want to start from scratch.
A lot would need to go right for the Cowboys for this prediction to come true, but the same could be said every year for teams who make and eventually win the Super Bowl.
Talent plus timing is how championships are won. Who’s to say that Dallas doesn’t do enough to keep all of its unknowns around a little longer?