While it undoubtedly felt like they had at times, the Dallas Cowboys managed to make it through the first eight weeks of this 2025 NFL regular season without losing two consecutive games, the closest instance being their Week 3 loss to the Chicago Bears and their Week 4 tie with the Green Bay Packers.
But that streak is obviously no longer a thing, as the Cowboys, coming off an embarrassing 44-24 defeat in Week 8 to the Denver Broncos, closed out the Week 9 slate on Monday Night Football with a disheartening and potentially devastating 27-17 loss to the Arizona Cardinals.
As per usual, the Dallas defense was dreadful. While the Cowboys did sack Cardinals quarterback Jacoby Brissett five times, they also allowed Kyler Murray's backup to complete 21 of 31 passes for 261 yards and two touchdowns. Brissett also added a score on the ground as part of an Arizona rushing attack that amassed 119 yards on 29 carries.
The Cowboys' offense racked up 333 total yards (210 passing, 123 rushing) but also committed three turnovers, with Jake Ferguson and Javonte Williams each losing a fumble and Dak Prescott, who also took five sacks, tossing his sixth interception of the year, although Dak's pick should be taken with a grain of salt, as it came on a late heave that ultimately would have meant nothing even had the pass been completed.
With the loss, Dallas is now 3-5-1 as we hit the official midway point of the regular season. And while not all hope is lost as it pertains to the Cowboys earning a trip to the playoffs, the outlook certainly isn't great, even with Jerry Jones making a couple of trades on Tuesday to acquire defensive tackle Quinnen Williams from the New York Jets and linebacker Logan Wilson from the Cincinnati Bengals.
Cowboys have dropped out of the top 10 in the NFC standings
Here's a quick overview of the NFC playoff picture heading into Week 10. The top seven teams, of course (four division winners, three wild cards), will earn postseason berths come January.
Updated NFC playoff picture
Philadelphia Eagles (6-2, 1st NFC East)
Tampa Bay Buccaneers (6-2, 1st NFC South)
Seattle Seahawks (6-2, 1st NFC West)
Green Bay Packers (5-2-1, 1st NFC North)
Los Angeles Rams (6-2, 2nd NFC West)
San Francisco 49ers (6-3, 3rd NFC West)
Detroit Lions (5-3, 2nd NFC North)
Chicago Bears (5-3, 3rd NFC North)
Carolina Panthers (5-4, 2nd NFC South)
Minnesota Vikings (4-4, 4th NFC North)
Dallas Cowboys (3-5-1, 2nd NFC East)
Arizona Cardinals (3-5, 4th NFC West)
Atlanta Falcons (3-5, 3rd NFC South)
Washington Commanders (3-6, 3rd NFC East)
New York Giants (2-7, 4th NFC East)
New Orleans Saints (1-8, 4th NFC South)
Any hope of winning the NFC East is pretty much gone, as the Cowboys are now three games back of the Philadelphia Eagles in the win column. And Dallas already suffering a loss to the Birds certainly doesn't help matters. So, it'd take a monumental collapse from the defending Super Bowl champs to lose the division.
Earning one of the three wild-card spots is going to be a tough road for Brian Schottenheimer's squad as well. For starters, they're already several games out of the No. 7 slot, which currently belongs to the Detroit Lions, who the Cowboys will see in Week 14 on Thursday Night Football. So, there's that.
Another big issue becomes a couple of the teams ahead of Dallas in the standings, those being the Chicago Bears and the Carolina Panthers, both of whom won in Week 9. The Cowboys, of course, have already lost to both, so if a head-to-head tiebreaker comes into play with either, Dallas gets the short end of the stick. The same can now be said of the Cardinals, who sit right behind the Cowboys in the No. 12 slot.
As for the 10th-place Minnesota Vikings, the Cowboys have a date with Kevin O'Connell's crew in Week 15 on Sunday Night Football, so we'll just have to wait and see how that one plays out.
Again, the Cowboys aren't completely out of it yet. And perhaps their new acquisitions will set off some sort of spark. But with a number of difficult games remaining, a list that includes matchups with the Eagles, Lions, Chiefs, Chargers, and even the Vikings, it's going to take a minor miracle for this team to get back to the playoffs.