Brian Schottenheimer
Getty
The Cowboys face several roster decisions.
Dallas Cowboys fans are never looking for a handout, always hoping for the team to compete at the highest level in the league.
Unfortunately, while the Cowboys played well in their first game of the year, which opened up the NFL season on Thursday night against the Philadelphia Eagles, they still walked out with a 24-20 loss.
Despite the loss, the Cowboys played well.
Dak Prescott did what he had to do, despite some of his drops; CeeDee Lamb looked decent with 110 yards, and it seems like they might have something with Javonte Williams, who had two touchdowns.
And while everything looked as promising as it could have in certain areas, Brian Schottenheimer wasn’t too happy. His first time coaching the Cowboys as a head coach, Schottenheimer was hoping to get things started on the right foot.
According to the team, after the game, he stated that there are no moral victories. The Cowboys are only looking to improve in the standings, and every loss is a tough one.
“I’m proud of how they competed, but I don’t find any moral victories when this team’s built on a culture that’s all about winning,”Schottenheimer said. “You don’t find moral victories in losing.”
The Cowboys’ Defense Remains an Issue
It’s also important for the Dallas Cowboys to examine what went well for them during this loss. In the first half, the Cowboys looked incredible on the offensive side of the football. Unfortunately, as many suspected, their run defense had some problems.
Jalen Hurts ran for two touchdowns, and Saquon Barkley added another 60 yards with a touchdown on the ground.
“We came out on fire on offense in the first half and defensively we struggled a little bit, and then I thought we made some great defensive adjustments in the second half and we flipped it,” Schottenheimer said. “We gave ourselves a chance to win and offensively we didn’t really do enough.”
Should the Cowboys Be Worried About CeeDee Lamb?
Perhaps the most concerning sign of the night, despite Lamb not playing as poorly as some may suggest outside of the drops with 110 yards on seven receptions, it wasn’t ideal to see him drop the football multiple times.
Had he caught some of those passes from Prescott, the Dallas Cowboys likely would’ve been in a different position. However, Schottenheimer doesn’t believe there’s anything to worry about, adding that he’s a great player and this was a team loss.
“Don’t worry about CeeDee Lamb. Ceedee’s going to be fine,” Schottenheimer said. “What a great player. Again, this was a team defeat and we own that. We understand where we can go as a football team. We understand.”
The end goal for the Cowboys is still competing for a World Series, and if there was one thing that was shown on Thursday against the Philadelphia Eagles, it’s that they can compete with Super Bowl-contending teams. The Eagles are looking to go back-to-back after winning it all last season, so this was a good test for Dallas.
“I still think we can win a Super Bowl,” Schottenheimer said. “That’s the goal. It’s not going to change. I mean, we’ve got the right type of guys. We’ve got good players.”