Dak Prescott broke his ankle, but does that mean the Cowboys 2020 season should be flushed down the toilet? Well, not so fast? Is it possible that Andy Dalton can salvage the season? Losing Dak is a crushing blow, but maybe there’s room for optimism in Dallas?
Dak is far better than Dalton, but let’s not act like the ginger-haired man has never accomplished anything. He led a dysfunctional Cincinnati Bengals franchise to five playoff trips, two division titles, and four straight double-digit win seasons. Dalton, 32, should still have plenty of juice left in the tank.
Dalton didn’t just win division titles; he did so in an incredibly tough division. Pittsburgh and Baltimore have been competitive forever. Besting them for an AFC North is no small feat. It’s a hell of a lot more challenging than winning this shit show that is the NFC East.
Dalton had his most success when the Bengals surrounded him with talents such as Andrew Whitworth, Kevin Zeitler, Marvin Jones, and Mohammed Sanu. With them, the Bengals won. Mostly, when Dalton was on a cheap rookie contract, the Bengals won.
The Cowboys offensive line might be a mess right now, but this is still probably the best situation Dalton has ever been in. He’s never had a running back like Ezekiel Elliott in the backfield to make life easier. Most of the time, it was Gio Bernard who, in reality, isn’t a three-down back.
Think about the weapons Dalton has. AJ Green was a monster receiver back in the day, but he’s never had a trio like Amari Cooper, Michael Gallup, and CeeDee Lamb. Isn’t there a chance Dalton can perform with this group? This is a guy who threw 33 touchdowns in 2013. That’s three more than Dak’s career-high in a much more defensive and run centric AFC North.
Losing Dak is a considerable loss. Are we sure the Cowboys season is over? The NFC East is as bad as it gets, and the Cowboys roster still has the most talent from top to bottom. Dalton might have enough to get Dallas back in the playoffs. After all, they’re in first place right now with a record of 2-3…
