The Dallas Cowboys are one of the very worst team in the entire NFL.
We have reached the final week before Thanksgiving which means that serious football is being played left and right. This is true for just about everyone else other than the Dallas Cowboys.
It’s hard to believe that the Cowboys have gone six straight games at home where they have fallen into a 20-point deficit of a hole. That just sounds so impossible. But that is what this season has offered us. We are witnessing the impossibly bad on a weekly basis and it never, ever stops.
Such is the case with the latest batch of our power rankings and how outlets across the NFL view America’s Team. We are in the dark ages, my friends.
You can view last week’s rankings right here.
1 – Detroit Lions (LW: 1)
They are so good that we know this season is going to end one of two ways.
Either the Lions steamroll everyone and win it all or they have the most painful loss we have ever seen in the playoffs.
2 – Buffalo Bills (LW: 3)
Maybe this is finally the year? It doesn’t seem like Bills fans feel that way just because they knocked off the Chiefs, but it remains true nonetheless. Buffalo knows the real test comes in January and at the very least they appear prepared for it.
3 – Philadelphia Eagles (LW: 5)
It is such a bummer that they are so reliably good again. Saquon has changed everything about how they close games. It is impressive to watch which sucks. Blah.
4 – Kansas City Chiefs (LW: 2)
I’d imagine that your first loss coming on November 17th is a pretty solid feeling, but when you are Kansas City your expectations are different from everyone else.
They will be fine. No worries here.
5 – Green Bay Packers (LW: 9)
It seems like they are playing with fire a little bit and not necessarily a reliably good team. They have a huge matchup this week, but ultimately they are definitely a playoff squad.
6 – Pittsburgh Steelers (LW: 11)
How are they doing this?!
Mike Tomlin is so impressive. Russell Wilson deserves his props. Everything about the operation is just first class and I envy that so much.
7 – Baltimore Ravens (LW: 4)
When they are on they are almost impossible to beat. It is just a matter of them being on in the most important moments as evidenced by last week.
8 – Washington Commanders (LW: 6)
Was last week the beginning of their return back to earth? This may be true in the grand scheme, but with the Cowboys coming up they will feel tall once again soon enough.
9 – Minnesota Vikings (LW: 7)
Obviously they won, but they do seem to be losing a little bit of luster as November moves on.
I am not prepared to doubt Kevin O’Connell, but this is a team worth watching.
10 – Houston Texans (LW: 12)
They won and I am in no way bitter about it.
But they played with their food against a really bad Cowboys team. I don’t know that that totally screams contender.
11 – Arizona Cardinals (LW: 10)
My Cardinals are back from the bye and ready to dance.
12 – Los Angeles Chargers (LW: 15)
Sunday night was impressive, even if they tried their best to ruin it.
Justin Herbert was masterful and if he plays like that they have a legit chance.
13 – San Francisco 49ers (LW: 8)
Of course the year that they fade away is the one that the Cowboys are nowhere near competing.
Also any 49ers fans wanting to get rid of Kyle Shanahan are being silly.
14 – Denver Broncos (LW: 18)
Look at Sean Payton go! This team is sort of interesting.
The most impressive thing has to be how they are developing Bo Nix. What a turnaround.
15 – Tampa Bay Buccaneers (LW: 13)
Welcome back from the bye here as well.
16 – Los Angeles Rams (LW: 17)
To this point I don’t have any real passionate stance on the Rams.
They exist and are fine, but they are mostly boring and not a real factor.
17 – Seattle Seahawks (LW: 19)
Kudos to Geno Smith for getting it done late and in the clutch. Seattle is always fun.
18 – Indianapolis Colts (LW: 23)
The last few weeks have been rather volatile, but what a moment for Anthony Richardson even if it was against the lowly Jets.
Perhaps the future does in fact exist.
19 – Atlanta Falcons (LW: 14)
Just when we started to trust this group a little bit they completely and totally collapsed.
Atlanta will still probably win the NFC South, but what more beyond that? Not much, I imagine.
20 – Cincinnati Bengals (LW: 16)
It is such a shame how poor their record is. They are playing some really great football, but coupling it with horrible football in the most important moments.
That is not an ideal combination.
21 – New England Patriots (LW: 20)
They exist. That’s all. They just exist nowadays.
22 – New Orleans Saints (LW: 24)
It turns out firing your head coach who was not very good does in fact lead to a bump in team morale. Who knew?!
23 – Carolina Panthers (LW: 21)
They have won more games (1) than the Cowboys have since trading away Jonathan Mingo.
24 – Tennessee Titans (LW: 22)
Do we consider this a lost year or a rebuilding one for Tennessee?
They have always been a little significant, but wow they are there right now.
25 – Cleveland Browns (LW: 25)
At least they lose in weird ways to make things interesting.
26 – Miami Dolphins (LW: 26)
They have quietly won two games in a row, but I maintain that Mike McDaniel takes no heat whatsoever for the team’s subpar performances generally.
27 – Chicago Bears (LW: 30)
Obviously they lost and in heartbreaking fashion and will probably be a team Dallas is competing with when it comes to head coach candidates.
But they rose because they lost in less embarrassing fashion than everyone else.
28 – Jacksonville Jaguars (LW: 27)
Case and point.
29 – New York Jets (LW: 28)
Another example.
30 – Las Vegas Raiders (LW: 31)
See what I’m saying?
31 – Dallas Cowboys (LW: 29)
A true and total disaster that is an offense to football. To be clear that is the only offense they have right now.
32 – New York Giants (LW: 32)
The bottom of the barrel.
NFL.com: 25 (LW: 24)
This feels generous!
Dallas’ fifth straight loss was a slow, painful bleed. It was not Brandon Aubrey’s night, and on those rare occasions, it’s usually also not the Cowboys’ night. First, the kicker shanked his 40-yard try near the end of the first half, which was shocking for him. Then he made a 64-yarder, no biggie. But down 20-10, Dallas took the points off the board after Houston was hit with a personal foul on the play, with the Cowboys opting to try for a touchdown instead. You know how that worked out: They ultimately turned it over on downs, getting zero points on the drive. Cooper Rush finished with only one pick, but the Texans dropped multiple other potential interceptions, and the Cowboys quarterback lost a fumble early in the fourth quarter that ended up a Texans defensive touchdown (via Tyler Guyton’s fumble of Rush’s fumble). Then a penalty wiped out a miracle fourth-down conversion, and that was that. Rush battled, but Zack Martin got hurt late, the blocking crumbled more, and there’s just no point putting a bow on this one. KaVontae Turpin’s touchdown was amazing, and then the Cowboys never gave it to him again on offense before the final drive of the game, down 34-10. Also amazing.
ESPN: 24 (LW: 23)
As always they had a few superlatives.
Preseason hot seat: Owner/GM Jerry Jones
Current temperature of hot seat: Hot
The poor 2024 campaign does nothing to change Jones’ status as owner and general manager, but the fans have been as vocal with their displeasure of this season as any in recent memory. It will all add up to the Cowboys starting over again in 2025 and Jones still calling the shots. — Todd Archer
USA Today: 29 (LW: 29)
No change.
The sky is literally falling at AT&T Stadium, where “America’s Team” has now lost its last six games … and trailed by at least 20 in all of them. Even worse Monday night? Houstonians largely took over North Texas.
Yahoo: 25 (LW: 24)
A slight bump down.
At least the Cowboys kept Monday night’s game vs. the Texans interesting for a little while. The biggest challenge Mike McCarthy has — assuming he finishes out the season as head coach — is making sure Dallas doesn’t become a complete embarrassment. There’s nothing left to play for.
CBS Sports: 26 (LW: 25)
Alright then.
Seven more games and it’s all over. This season has to be considered a total failure. Big changes are coming.
The Athletic: 26 (LW: 25)
No one seems to be moving Dallas all too far.
Jerry Jones might fire Mike McCarthy tomorrow. He might keep McCarthy for another 10 years. He might leave McCarthy a part of the team in his will. Honestly, who knows with Jones? He kept Jason Garrett for 10 years even though Garrett won only two playoff games. McCarthy won 12 games in each of the last three regular seasons, but Monday night was the Cowboys’ fifth straight loss.
Sports Illustrated: 24 (LW: 26)
The Cowboys… rose?
A weekend of entertainment in Dallas: a boxing match in which a YouTuber in his 20s beat a tired old man nearing his 60th birthday followed by a falling chunk of metal the size of a Great Dane fell from the roof. Chance of a death on both accounts … surprisingly high!
Dallas Cowboys Movement Week To Week
Every week (per suggestions from you wonderful BTBers) we will update this graph to note how the Cowboys moved in power rankings according to each of the outlets that we curate.