With the NFL Preseason now a think of the past and comes the time for the 2015-16 NFL regular season to start, it’s time to take a look at the Cowboys of Dallas and what fans might expect this upcoming season.
In the 2014 season the fans did not expect much of the Cowboys, as their QB Romo was returning from injuries, and their defense not performing well, but their fans still had hopes for a playoff spot, but the team surprised all, as they had a very positive performance as they had their 1st playoff win in some five seasons. Thus, fans wonder if their team can make it to Super Bowl 50 this season, which if they won would be the 1st in some 21 years of NFL play.
Yes Dallas fans, your team enters this season with high expectations after their successful campaign last season. It was the 1st time in 4 years they had a winning season with a 12 wins and 4 losses last season. During that process they won the NFC East Title, which was the 1st time since back in the 2009 season. Their success in 2014 came from the strong performance of a good offense, as they ended the season at 7th is scoring at 29.4 points per game on average. They also finished with at 7th in the NFL for total offense, as they produced an average of 42.7 more points each game than in 2013 at which time they in total offense were ranked at 16th in the NFL.
Dallas started the offseason with the loss of star RB Murray leaving to play for the Eagles, and we are anxious to see if the Cowboy offense can perform at their 2014 level without their star RB, who signed for $42 million for 5 years with the Eagles for the best RB in the NFL in 2014? In 2014 he had 13 TD’s rushing on 1,850 yards and with his departure it will be up to WR Bryant to become the star after signing a $70 million deal with Dallas as he had 16 TD receptions in 2014.
On defense the Cowboys improved their roster by signing returning veterans and new players, with veteran S. Lee and rookie DB B. Jones and pass rushers rookie R. Gregory and Pro Bowler from 2013 in G. Hardy. The Cowboy defense is looking forward to these additions as last season they only had 28 sacks for the entire season. On the down side the star CB O. Scanbrick was lost for the season with knee injuries. This is a big loss since last season he had 9 passes blocked, 2 intercepts, 2 forced fumbles and 56 tackles.
Naturally the key player for the Cowboys is QB T. Romo who was their leader in the playoff run in 2014, as his season stats totaled some 3,710 yards with 34 TD’s and only 9 intercepts for the season, and was 1st in the NFL with a pass rating of 113.5 and a completion rate if 70 percent.
Even as Romo is the oldest player on the team, he still remains the most important coming into this 2015-16 seasons, and they are thankful that he at this point has no health issues. He stated that this offseason has been the best he has had in the past few years, and feels great going into this upcoming season.
For the Cowboys and Romo to succeed in 2014 they will need to play a balanced offensive game. Last season they ran the ball 48.9 % and that put a bigger burden on Romo and the Dallas passing game a 1st in his 12 year career.
Certainly an important game this season will be their rematch with the Packers of Green Bay, the team that knocked the Cowboys out of the NFC playoff title game last season with a 21-26 loss to the Packers. Thus, this year they can avenge that defeat on the 13th of December as they play the Packers at home at Lambeau field in the 14th week of the NFL.
If you Bet on NFL at a sportsbook, the prediction is that the Cowboys of Dallas will again win the NFC East for the 2nd straight year with 11 wins and 5 losses for the season!