For the first time in the Brian Schottenheimer era, the Dallas Cowboys will play a game inside AT&T Stadium this Saturday. It may be just the second of three preseason games, with many of the players expected to make the winning difference on real gamedays still sidelined, but Saturday night against the Baltimore Ravens is still an important box to be checked nonetheless. The Cowboys preseason week one loss to the Rams left a lot of fans feeling like they’ve seen that team on the field before when it came to recurring issues like penalties, run defense, and a lack of a push up front in the run game. Dallas will be looking to put more of their identity on the field against the Ravens, the second straight division winner from a year ago they’ll play in a tune up game.
The Cowboys defense may see more of former backup quarterback Cooper Rush, who attempted just four passes in the Ravens first preseason game against the Colts. One of Rush’s throws was intercepted, and he was also sacked once. Matt Eberflus’ defense struggled against unlikely standout Stetson Bennett for the Rams last week, so any extra motivation they can take into a matchup against Rush would be a welcome sign to see this defense get closer to game ready. On offense, the Cowboys will see a Ravens defense that gave up 366 yards to the Colts, and four completions of over 20 yards. The offense called by Schottenheimer did not shy away from trying to make big plays via the arm of Joe Milton in week one, but finishing those plays with better focus and execution will have to be a point of emphasis at home.
The Ravens defense forced the Colts into 19 third down attempts, with the average distance to gain being just over eight yards to go on the money down. This is also an area the Cowboys can look to find more efficiency in their run game to keep the offense on the field in more favorable situations.
What other signs of progress can the Cowboys show to create a buzz in front of their home fans and find more of the quality depth they’ll need this season? Let’s take a closer look at a few areas.
Get in the fight early
The preseason is, above all else, an opportunity to get live game reps and work on situations that come at full speed in ways that practice simply cannot replicate. The Cowboys should be on the higher end when it comes to translating their practices to games though, as they’ve notably done a ton of full 11 vs. 11 work in Oxnard.
The Cowboys did not get much of an opportunity to show how their practice work will translate to executing a winning game plan against the Rams, as they quickly fell behind 14-0. The scoreboard is far from the be-all and end-all when it comes to the preseason, in fact it matters next to nothing, but time and score also can’t be ignored when trying to get something out of these exhibitions either. This Dallas roster is yet again built to play with the lead and deter teams from running the ball and playing on their terms. The Cowboys need to establish this complementary style of football they’ve been seeking early on, whether it’s with big plays offensively, their own running game finding life, or creating takeaways on defense.
On Baltimore’s first five possessions of their first preseason game, they threw two interceptions and punted twice, yet a 22-yard rushing touchdown still put them ahead 7-3 as the Colts failed to capitalize. Getting off to a better start should be a point of emphasis for both teams, and if the Cowboys can show a sense of urgency in this department playing at home by being stiff against the run and settling Joe Milton into the game at QB, it would be a real sign of progress early on that can even make up for any second half mistakes that are always bound to come as players further down the roster get in the game.
(Photo by Tony Ding/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
(Photo by Tony Ding/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
Icon Sportswire via Getty Images
Get movement in the run game
It’s well understood by now that the Cowboys kept their passing attack fairly vanilla against the Rams, and this combined with trailing on the scoreboard against an aggressive and fast defense led to the offense as a whole struggling. A big area of concern where they don’t have players as dynamic as CeeDee Lamb and George Pickens waiting in the wings to open the field up is their lack of movement in the run game. The Rams defensive line was able to keep the Cowboys offensive line from regularly getting to the second level and blocking out in space. In a few flashes where they were able to, the Cowboys front actually looked good here, so getting more opportunities to do so would be welcome against the Ravens.
Even in their vanilla mindset against the Rams, the Cowboys also showed glimpses of a major point of emphasis Schottenheimer has been alluding to since day one. This is an offense that wants to make more of their run and pass options look the same and be multiple out of the same formations. The Cowboys are building a solid foundation to do so, but it won’t matter much if defenses aren’t truly concerned about their ability to get a push in the run game.
(Photo by Harry How/Getty Images)
(Photo by Harry How/Getty Images)
Getty Images
This game against the Ravens will also be the team debut for first-round pick Tyler Booker at right guard, which puts even more of a focus on how the athletic run blocker out of Alabama can help the Cowboys be the ground team they want.
No matter who is suiting up for the Ravens on either side of the ball, this is an opponent that by name alone brings the physical identity that the Cowboys have a long way towards achieving themselves. There are going to be a lot of eyes on the Cowboys offensive line and running backs to have their say in playing physical on Saturday night.
Sort out the situation at linebacker
One of the best players on either side of the ball for the Cowboys against the Rams was linebacker Marist Liufau, a player the team honestly may not need to see much more from before also putting him on ice until the regular season. If Liufau continues to play though, it could be an indicator of something else from defensive coordinator Matt Eberflus - his defense is still searching for answers at the position to play around the second-year draft pick.
The Cowboys’ most concerning position anywhere on defense from a depth and talent standpoint is still cornerback, but they have a long way to go in figuring out who will give them quality play, particularly against the pass, at linebacker as well. Dallas tried to help their defensive backfield against the Rams by dropping linebackers into coverage, but overall they struggled to get to proper depth and make plays on the ball. They were also late to fill against the run or scrape off blocks.
Darius Harris, rookie Shemar James, and Buddy Johnson led the way in snaps alongside Liufau at LB, with veteran Damone Clark taking a back seat. Hybrid player Markquese Bell was also in the mix. Safety Donovan Wilson did not play and versatile safety/corner Israel Mukuamu was mostly in a role at cornerback, where he did have an interception. The point is, the second and third levels to the Cowboys defense are a work in progress, and there are few opponents on the schedule this year ready to test teams out here more than the reigning Super Bowl champion Eagles, who the Cowboys will have to be ready for in less than three weeks.
Just like the Cowboys offense didn’t show all of their tricks against the Rams, the Ravens offense, when at it’s best, is designed around the dual-threat skills of Lamar Jackson. Without Jackson in the game, the Ravens are almost forced to be more basic of an offense, and this is something the Cowboys should look to take advantage of and work on their fundamentals defensively. By the end of Saturday night, this group will have only four more quarters of preseason football to get things right in Eberflus’ scheme before the games start to matter.
For a coach known specifically for acumen at teaching linebackers, taking over a defense that’s struggled mightily early in the season for multiple years in a row now, the task of getting this right as soon as possible is no easy one.
The Rams got virtually any play they wanted to against the Cowboys defense, by virtue of the downhill run game keeping them well on schedule. There are a lot of ways to look for progress from the Cowboys defense against the Ravens, but focusing on the rotation at linebacker, a position that lacks a “star” player waiting out the preseason to save them come week one, is a great place to start.
Clean up penalties
The panic around the Cowboys and penalties isn’t quite as high as it was last preseason, when Mike McCarthy’s talk about emphasizing mistake-free football ended up being just that - talk without execution. Even though the hiring of Schottenheimer can be seen as keeping things close to the vest in a lot of ways to McCarthy, the new Cowboys coach has talked about penalties in a different light. The team is practicing at full speed as much as possible, giving them ample opportunities to identify penalties and coach better technique. Schottenheimer also explained the difference between the types of procedural penalties that won’t be tolerated, and those that happen out of competitiveness that are more tolerable.
Unfortunately, the Cowboys penalties against the Rams were mostly in the procedural category. Even with experienced offensive linemen like T.J. Bass, Brock Hoffman, and Asim Richards in the game, they lined up incorrectly multiple times. The Cowboys also committed penalties in all three phases with the offense, defense, and special teams getting flagged in the loss.
With the Cowboys still at best being viewed as an outsider team looking up at the Eagles and Commanders in their own division, beating themselves while also trying to finish higher than third in the East is not a winning formula. This is a team that desperately needs to play clean games, so that every big play they make on offense or spark on defense is maximized to gain a winning edge. Far too many experienced players on this roster have had their say in putting up big numbers that end up being nothing more than empty stats when Dallas can’t beat top competition because of self-inflicted mistakes. For a lot of them, coach Schottenheimer may be the last one they play for looking to right this ship.
This weekend’s opponent in the Ravens was actually the second-most penalized team in the league a year ago, with four more penalties than the Cowboys who were fourth in the NFL. Saturday night can serve as something of a side-by-side comparison for the progress either team is making to correct this. The Ravens did come to AT&T Stadium last season for a week five regular season game and committed 13 penalties for 105 yards, compared to just six for 44 yards from the Cowboys, but it was the Ravens holding on for a 28-25 win after leading 28-6 in the third quarter.