It was only Week 3, but it sure felt like the Dallas Cowboys hit rock bottom on Sunday afternoon in Chicago. After hanging in the game for the first half, the Bears dominated Dallas in the final two quarters en route to a 31-14 win.
It’s clear that if the Cowboys want to be even close to a playoff-caliber team, they have plenty to fix on both sides of the ball. If Dallas wants to be competitive against the Green Bay Packers this Sunday, they’ll need to switch some things up. With that thought in mind, today we look at three players the Cowboys should use more against Green Bay.
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1) TE Brevyn Spann-Ford
Coming into this season, there was plenty of optimism that the Cowboys’ tight end group would bounce back in a big way. Dallas was confident that 26-year-old Jake Ferguson, back healthy after an injury-riddled 2024 campaign, could return to his 2023 form when he caught 71 passes for 761 yards and was named to his first Pro Bowl.
While Ferguson has clearly been a focal point of the offense three weeks into the season, his ability to gain yards after the catch and make plays down the field has been nonexistent. On the year, the former fourth-round pick has caught 27 passes for just 183 yards. Ferguson is currently averaging 6.8 Y/R, which would be by far the lowest mark of his career.
With former second-round pick Luke Schoonmaker unable to make an impact, the Cowboys may need to explore additional options at the tight end spot. Thankfully for Dallas, they have a guy sitting behind the two who may be able to step in and contribute.
That guy would be 25-year-old tight end, Brevyn Spann-Ford. The former undrafted free agent has not seen the field much this season, but when he has, he’s made the most of his opportunities.
One thing that the former Minnesota Gopher has done well this season is help in the run game. On the year, Spann-Ford has an extremely impressive 93.9 Pro Football Focus run blocking grade, by far the best of any Cowboys tight end.
Late in the fourth quarter of Sunday’s matchup, Spann-Ford showed what he can do with the ball in his hands. While the play was called back due to a penalty, the tight end put on display his impressive athletic ability, leaping over a defender and gaining some impressive yards after catch.
Spann-Ford’s not going to come in and be a starter, but there’s no reason he should only have 36 offensive snaps on the season. The Cowboys should start working Spann-Ford into the tight end rotation more this week and see if he can bring an element to their offense that the other two tight ends on the roster currently cannot.
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2) DBs Markquese Bell and Juanyeh Thomas
Three weeks into the season, it’s been made abundantly clear that whatever the Cowboys are doing at the safety spot is just not working. Whether it’s Donovan Wilson not fitting into Matt Eberflus’ scheme or Malik Hooker losing a step and not being able to cover the middle of the field, Dallas’ safeties have looked like the worst in the NFL through three games.
Both Hooker and Wilson have coverage grades on the season below 50, and the duo has allowed a combined 12 catches for 218 yards in coverage, good for over 18 yards per reception.
With how bad the defense has been overall, the Cowboys need to seriously shake things up heading into this week’s matchup with the Packers. One way to do so would be to swap out Hooker and Wilson for the two young safeties on the roster, Markquese Bell and Juanyeh Thomas.
Dallas has not given either player a real shot this season. Thomas has played just 10 defensive snaps, and Bell has yet to see the field. With how bad Dallas’ safety play has been, this cannot continue. Even if the young duo has its own share of issues, it cannot possibly be worse than the product Hooker and Wilson have put on display over the last two weeks.
It’s time for the Cowboys to make a big change at the safety spot, and they should do so by swapping out Hooker and Wilson for Bell and Thomas this Sunday.
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