What is going on with Trevon Diggs and the Dallas Cowboys? – Todd Archer, ESPN.com Will Trevon Diggs ever suit up again as a member of the Dallas Cowboys? It’s a simple question: What is going on with Dallas Cowboys cornerback Trevon Diggs? Late last week, Diggs said he expected to play against the Minnesota Vikings after a two-month absence […] What is going on with Trevon Diggs and the Dallas Cowboys? – Todd Archer, ESPN.com Will Trevon Diggs ever suit up again as a member of the Dallas Cowboys? It’s a simple question: What is going on with Dallas Cowboys cornerback Trevon Diggs? Late last week, Diggs said he expected to play against the Minnesota Vikings after a two-month absence from a concussion and a stint on injured reserve with a right knee injury. On Saturday, he was told he would be inactive again. “I was upset,” Diggs said. He watched the 34-26 loss Sunday from the sideline. After the game, owner and general manager Jerry Jones said, “Diggs isn’t healthy enough to be out there for us. Period.” During the week leading up to the game, coach Brian Schottenheimer alluded to things beyond Diggs’ health. He said coaches needed to see consistency in “everything” from Diggs, just as they see it from quarterback Dak Prescott, tight end Jake Ferguson and defensive tackle Kenny Clark. When Schottenheimer was named head coach in January, he said he wanted to “build the best culture there is in professional sports” and he was unafraid to have “difficult conversations” with players, coaches or anybody in the organization. Schottenheimer said he believes Diggs is buying into the culture he is trying to establish. “No. 1, Trevon and I sat down and we had a very detailed conversation on Saturday,” Schottenheimer said Monday. “I told him not only the reasons why but also the standards and expectations. So again, I’m always going to have real conversations. I would never not play a player and not explain to them why they weren’t going to play. I know he feels he’s ready, but in our long conversation, I thought I made it very clear. And so I’ll leave it at that.” Whatever they discussed, Diggs said after the game he still didn’t know why he was not active. “From the first conversation that we had, it was practice. I guess I wasn’t showing them what they wanted to see in practice,” Diggs said. “This week, I showed them what they wanted to see in practice and it’s still the same result. I don’t know what else I need to do or what to show. At this point I feel like it’s not even, it’s not up to me or what I do. It’s really up to them, and what they want to do. I’m just showing up every day. I’m going to go to work.” Jerry Jones says remaining schedule is ‘big criteria’ for Matt Eberflus’ future – Nick Harris, Fort Worth Star-Telegram It sounds like the final three weeks of the season will be a significant part of Matt Eberflus’ evaluation. After a loss on Sunday night against the Minnesota Vikings that all but evaporated any chance at the Dallas Cowboys making the playoffs, owner Jerry Jones has begun to finally voice some frustration around the makeup of the defense. In the loss, the Cowboys allowed Vikings first-year starting quarterback J.J. McCarthy throw for a career-high 250 yards, becoming the fourth quarterback to post a season-high total against the Dallas defense in 2025 (Russell Wilson, Justin Fields, Caleb Williams). Two more have posted the second-highest totals of their respective seasons (Jordan Love, Jalen Hurts). The criticism has circled around Cowboys first-year defensive coordinator Matt Eberflus all season, but it seems as though the pressure is beginning to close in. “We let their quarterback have a big day on us,” Jones said on his weekly radio interview on 105.3 The Fan. “That wasn’t the plan. We could have used more pressure, without question, at different times. The result was that we let [McCarthy] make some pretty significant plays out there. Plus, he played pretty well. It seems like we’re always saying that about these quarterbacks. Some of them hadn’t played as well, but when they play us, they play better. I think that’s telling, too.” Jones has been in Eberflus’ corner for most of the season, crediting the defensive issues to the product of having three coordinators in as many seasons (Dan Quinn in 2023, Mike Zimmer in 2024, Eberflus in 2025). But after the recent struggles, the tune seems to be changing. “Bottom line, I’d say we’ve been pretty off-balance,” Jones said. “Because of the way our defense has presented and the issues regarding our defense which I didn’t expect.” Jerry Jones inducted into Sports Broadcasting Hall of Fame – Staff Writers, DallasCowboys.com Jerry Jones’ imprint on the NFL extends beyond owning the Cowboys. Jones joins the likes of broadcasting legends like Lee Corso, Greg Gumbel, Pam Oliver and others that are set to be inducted in New York City in December. “I immediately thought, ‘My goodness, this is quite an honor,’” Jones told DallasCowboys.com when he received the news. “It’s an honor for the Dallas Cowboys, because we have a perception of being substantive relative to broadcasting, relative to journalism. It has everything to do with why I’m as aggressive or as active or a combination of that and appreciative of the people in the profession.” Aside from his duties as owner of the Cowboys, Jones has been instrumental in the overall impact behind the scenes of the entire NFL that have helped it become the most popular sport in the United States. A large part of that was his contribution to securing televion rights deals. In 1992, several league owners wanted to organize a give back to networks. Jones saw an opportunity for economic growth instead, and took advantage of an opportunity that then-NFL commissioner Paul Tagliabue offered him to come join in on contract negotiations with the

The Dallas Cowboys are all but eliminated from playoff contention in 2025, and if the Philadelphia Eagles beat the Jayden Daniels-less Washington Commanders on Saturday, then they officially will be next time they take the field themselves. Given that Christmas is still over a week away, it is a tough pill to swallow. We are […] The Dallas Cowboys are all but eliminated from playoff contention in 2025, and if the Philadelphia Eagles beat the Jayden Daniels-less Washington Commanders on Saturday, then they officially will be next time they take the field themselves. Given that Christmas is still over a week away, it is a tough pill to swallow. We are going to see the Cowboys miss the playoffs in consecutive seasons for the first time since 2019 and 2020 so it has been a minute since they were this bad this consistently. Our discussion prompt for today is pretty simple in this regard: Who do you blame the most? Why? Most are likely to point the finger in the direction of Jerry Jones. Brian Schottenheimer is taking a lot of heat. Matt Eberflus is hardly popular these days. Dak Prescott plays quarterback for the Cowboys and with that comes certain… cons. Answers will likely be all over the place here. Let’s have at it. See More: Dallas Cowboys Roster

Every week, we gather to discuss the latest news about the Dallas Cowboys and seek our writer’s perspective on each headline. Welcome back to the roundtable. This week we have Sean Martin, Jess Haynie and Tom Ryle.  The Cowboys have to win out, the Eagles have to lose out for Dallas to make the playoffs. Do we see […] Every week, we gather to discuss the latest news about the Dallas Cowboys and seek our writer’s perspective on each headline. Welcome back to the roundtable. This week we have Sean Martin, Jess Haynie and Tom Ryle. The Cowboys have to win out, the Eagles have to lose out for Dallas to make the playoffs. Do we see that happening? Mike: Short answer here is it’s alive, but it’s a parlay I’d never bet. Winning out is hard enough, asking the Eagles to simultaneously lose out multiplies the improbability across every remaining week. Could it happen? Sure, football is noisy, injuries pop, and weird December games swing on a bounce. Let’s also not forget that the Eagles have failed at this stage of the season before. But the realistic stance is to treat this as a one-week season. If Philly stumbles once, great. If not, Dallas’ focus switches to the draft, my favorite time of year, including Christmas. Sean: Sadly, not at all. Enjoying the Eagles slide was fun while it lasted, but we can’t lose sight that the best thing that happened during it was that the Cowboys were also playing well. Without that element, there is no enjoyment in rooting for a team to limp into the playoffs, and that’s exactly what Dallas would be doing if a miracle happens in these last games. I do think the Cowboys will beat the Commanders and Giants to end the regular season on a win streak, but whether its two games or three with how they’ve played at home is hard to say going into the final home game versus a hot Chargers side. Jess: Their Buffalo game feels like a loss, but Washington sweeping Philly with a division title on the line just isn’t in the cards. And even if that miracle happens, this Cowboys team may not even win their next game. It feels like segments of the team have checked out this season. I think many of us are ready to do the same. Tom: TBH, I wish they were eliminated already. I’m tired of finding a way to hope when my more rational side has known for weeks if not months that this Dallas team is just too flawed to be a contender. I’m not going to let myself get sacked back in again. After the collapse against Minnesota, do you see Matt Eberflus as defensive coordinator next season, or does he get fired? Mike: I’d lean toward a narrow second chance, with guardrails, and I know the readers will be going mad over that sentiment. The collapse last week was about repeatable fixes with rush-lane integrity, tackling technique, and explosive-play prevention. Midseason changes with Logan Wilson and Quinnen Williams gives Eberflus tools he didn’t have in September. If Eberflus returns, it should be with clear benchmarks and cleaner communication toward his plan. Miss those standards early next year and Brian Schottenheimer should pivot, but meet them and you’ve stabilized a unit that has potential. The Cowboys have been churning through defensive coordinators the past seven years, and getting another next season would make that six different coordinators in eight years, and that is only going to disrupt cohesion further. I now hide under my desk while the readers take shots. Sean: The larger sample size points towards Eberflus not returning, in my opinion. This was a near consensus opinion through the fanbase through the early-to-mid portion of the season, and now that feeling has returned after getting shredded by J.J. McCarthy and the Vikings. Without a single win against his former division, I just don’t think there’s enough Eberflus can point to in defending his job status for next season. Jess: This team needs a defensive coordinator who will adapt to his players, and who has actually shown a consistent acumen for the job in the last five years. Eberflus seems to have been figured out in most league circles. He isn’t adaptable enough, either to the talent at his disposal or to what opponents are showing. Wrong guy for the job, probably for any team at this point. Tom: While the offense has some issues, the defense has just outright failed on multiple occasions. So many games we had to watch the opponents just march down the field in the fourth to get a win, while the defense radiated confusion. If Schottenheimer gets to make the call he can’t hesitate. Frankly, I don’t think it matters who decides because Jerry has to be disgusted, too. What’s the biggest improvement you want to see this week against the L.A. Chargers? Mike: The biggest improvement needs to be in consistency. That means winning early downs, finishing drives in the red zone with touchdowns instead of field goals, and playing defense with disciplined rush lanes so Justin Herbert doesn’t get free extensions that become explosives. If Dallas can keep their penalties down, get the ball out on time, and stop the chunk plays on the back end, the Chargers game is winnable. Sean: Getting George Pickens involved somehow, and not with an arbitrary bubble screen. For as long as I can remember covering the Cowboys in this capacity, this team can field a number one offense without getting the chemistry at WR correct enough to make it mean anything. There have been few common denominators, but no shortage of talent. The duo of Lamb and Pickens was too good in too many games this season to not continue trying, but they have to show more starting in this Chargers matchup. Jess: Forget improvements; it’s time to prepare for 2026. Give Klayton Adams a crack at calling plays. Give more reps

After Sunday night’s loss to the Vikings, the Cowboys are all but eliminated from the playoffs. Dak Prescott even admitted as much. Understandably, all the ire has turned to Matt Eberflus yet again, and Jerry Jones even seemed to make room for the possibility of making a defensive coordinator change once the season wraps up. […] After Sunday night’s loss to the Vikings, the Cowboys are all but eliminated from the playoffs. Dak Prescott even admitted as much. Understandably, all the ire has turned to Matt Eberflus yet again, and Jerry Jones even seemed to make room for the possibility of making a defensive coordinator change once the season wraps up. That decision would be easy to justify, too. While Eberflus has produced really good defenses throughout his career, it hasn’t been good in Dallas. The Cowboys enjoyed a brief boost in efficiency after the trade deadline, but it quickly fell apart, and they’re back to being one of the worst defenses in the league. So while Eberflus remains the coordinator, here are nine names off the top of my head that would make the defense considerably better next year, should they decide to make a change. Jim Schwartz Let’s start with the whale: Jim Schwartz is currently wrecking quarterbacks’ Sundays as the Browns defensive coordinator. Getting him to Dallas would not exactly be easy. That said, the Browns are 3-11 and rumors continue to persist around head coach Kevin Stefanski’s job security. If he gets fired, Schwartz would be very available. Even if Stefanski sticks around, he may opt to shake up his staff, or Schwartz may want to jump ship for somewhere more stable. The Cowboys aren’t exactly the model of stability, but Brian Schottenheimer has earned plenty of good will by now, and Schwartz would immediately be welcomed warmly. Schwartz’s scheme would also mesh well with the current roster. He cut his teeth under Jeff Fisher and Gregg Williams, and emphasizes physicality and aggression over everything. Schwartz loves playing press man coverage and, while not blitz-happy, his Browns do currently rank 10th in blitz rate. He’s more selective with his blitzes, like Mike Zimmer last year, but uses simulated pressures to find ways to win with four. Stealing Schwartz away from the Browns would be as close to a home run as the Cowboys could get. His track record on defense is impeccable, and he was named the Assistant Coach of the Year back in 2023, his first year with the Browns. Jim Leonhard One of the NFL’s best defenses over the last two years is undoubtedly the Broncos, where Vance Joseph has enjoyed a career revitalization after once being fired by the Broncos as head coach. While Joseph isn’t going anywhere for a lateral move, his top assistant might. Jim Leonhard is the Broncos’ assistant head coach and pass game coordinator on defense. He’s been there the past two seasons, during which time Denver is third in the league in EPA/play allowed. Before that, he was the defensive coordinator for his alma mater Wisconsin, during which time the Badgers were 46-20 and dominated on defense. Leonhard also became Wisconsin’s interim head coach during the 2022 season. He finished 4-3 down the stretch and looked to be the favorite for the full-time job before Wisconsin stunned everyone and poached Luke Fickell from Cincinnati. Now that Fickell is 17-21 in four seasons, though, many Badgers fans feel regret over that decision. Leonhard is a rising star in the coaching ranks. He’s likely to be a head coach soon, possibly even replacing Fickell in a year from now, but will also be on plenty of teams’ radars for defensive coordinator jobs. But the Cowboys have an in: Leonhard played for the Jets from 2009 to 2011, during which time Schottenheimer was the offensive coordinator. Leonhard would be able to modernize the defense the way Schottenheimer and Klayton Adams have done for the offense. Together, that grouping could create a potent team. The only real downside is Leonhard’s success in Dallas would almost surely be short-lived before he gets poached, but that’s a good problem to have. Mike Pettine The Vikings have one of the best defenses in the NFL, so why not find a guy from their staff? Brian Flores is unlikely to leave Minnesota for anything less than a head coaching gig, but Mike Pettine currently serves as the assistant head coach and outside linebackers coach. What’s better is he has ties to Schottenheimer. Pettine was a longtime disciple of Rex Ryan, working alongside him in Baltimore for several years before becoming his defensive coordinator with the Jets. During that time, Pettine’s defense went up against Schottenheimer’s offense every day, as Schottenheimer was the Jets offensive coordinator at the time. Pettine later spent two years as the Browns head coach, which went about as well as any other Browns head coach, before spending the 2017 season as a consultant with the Seahawks. While his stint in Seattle predated Schottenheimer’s time there, Pettine learned a lot from Pete Carroll in that span, and Schottenheimer has spoken regularly about his bond with Carroll. Pettine has been with the Vikings every year under Kevin O’Connell’s tenure, predating Flores, but he may be looking for another coordinator gig. And if Flores isn’t leaving for a head coaching gig soon, Pettine may have to look outside the building for that chance. Why not reunite with a coach he’s known for some time? Ken Norton Jr. We all know Jerry Jones likes to go back to the well of what worked before, and the Cowboys defense hasn’t been quite the same since Dan Quin left. So why not poach an assistant from Quinn’s Commanders staff, even though Washington’s defense has been as bad, if not worse, than Dallas? Ken Norton Jr. currently coaches the linebackers in Washington but he has seven years of experience as a defensive coordinator with the Raiders and Seahawks. Before that, he spent five seasons coaching linebackers for the

The Dallas Cowboys hopes of making the playoffs faded dramatically this week after the loss at home against Minnesota. In a game where trench warfare became all too easy for the Vikings, the final result was forged along the lines. How did the rookie class for Dallas perform during the Week 15 clash? Let’s dive […] The Dallas Cowboys hopes of making the playoffs faded dramatically this week after the loss at home against Minnesota. In a game where trench warfare became all too easy for the Vikings, the final result was forged along the lines. How did the rookie class for Dallas perform during the Week 15 clash? Let’s dive in and find out. OG Tyler Booker (Game stats- Snaps: 71, Pass Blocks: 41, Pressures: 2, Sacks: 0, Penalties: 0) Booker’s night against the Vikings came in the middle of a rough outing for the Cowboys’ offense as a whole, but he again looked like one of the steadier pieces up front. Dallas gave up 19 total pressures and two sacks as a unit. Within that, Booker put up a 65.7 offensive grade for the game, one of the better marks on the Cowboys’ offense and looking more in control than the issues both offensive tackles had during the game. In pass protection, the story was less about Booker repeatedly losing one-on-one and more about the Vikings’ pressure looks overwhelming Dallas collectively. None of the sacks allowed came from Bookers assignment and individually he allowed only two pressures during the game. With Prescott hurried 14 times on the night, there were inevitably a few snaps where the right side was part of crowded pockets, even if Booker wasn’t the primary culprit on the worst breakdowns. In the run game, the Cowboys did most of their early damage downhill, and the interior trio of Tyler Smith, Cooper Beebe and Booker helped get Javonte Williams and Malik Davis into the end zone from tight red-zone situations before the offense bogged down into field-goal mode. There were no high-profile penalties tied to Booker, which fits his general profile as a relatively clean rookie technician rather than a grabby, boom-or-bust mauler. Taken in total, this was a solid in a bad night performance. The Cowboys’ line was overwhelmed by a defense that generated pressure consistently, but Booker held up reasonably well, continuing to look like a long-term answer at right guard even as the rest of the offense faltered around him, most notably the guy to the right of him. DE Donovan Ezeiruaku (Game stats- Snaps: 39, Total Tackles: 2, Pressures: 1, Sacks: 0, TFL: 0) Ezeiruaku’s night against Minnesota was more about steady work than splash, and it played out against the backdrop of a defense that never really got McCarthy uncomfortable. He logged 39 defensive snaps, one of the heavier workloads on the Dallas front, but finished with just two tackles, one tackle for loss, and no sacks. That tackle for loss came late, when he knifed in to stone Jordan Mason for no gain on a third-quarter run, one of the few snaps where the edge really dented Minnesota’s ground game. The problem was what happened on all the other downs. As a unit, Dallas produced zero sacks and only ten total pressures on J.J. McCarthy, while allowing him to average 10.4 yards per attempt and post a 108.0 passer rating on a clean jersey, giving the young quarterback a career day. With no direct hits or sacks credited to Ezeiruaku, his impact as a pass rusher was non existent. When Dallas’ team pressure numbers are that low to end a game, it’s hard for any edge to come out of it looking dominant, and the Cowboys’ performance failed to affect the quarterback at all. In the bigger picture, this game was a big dip in production. Against Detroit and Philadelphia he’d flashed more disruption, but here he was more of a role-player being somewhat sound on edges, one nice stop in the run game, yet swallowed up by a collective pass-rush no-show. The fairest verdict is that Ezeiruaku was competent but largely quiet in a game where Dallas desperately needed their best defensive rookie to effect the field, but Eberflus never really gave him the platform to do it. CB Shavon Revel Jr. (Game stats- Snaps: 62, Total Tackles: 6, PBU: 1, INT: 0, TD Allowed: 1, RTG Allowed: 118.3) Revel played what was probably his most grown-up game so far against Minnesota, even if the night will be remembered more for the defense’s collapse than for anything he did individually. He featured on defense for 54 snaps, matching DaRon Bland for the most on defense for Dallas and effectively making him a full-time outside starter with Trevon Diggs still out. On the stat sheet he finished with five total tackles, plus one recorded run stop, but no interceptions or pass breakups. That came in a game where J.J. McCarthy threw for 250 yards and two touchdowns with a 108.0 rating. With Dallas failing to record a single sack and managed just one quarterback hit, the corners were asked to hold up in coverage for a long time with very little help from the rush. Revel’s work one the night was steady, but not without issues. With Bland on one side and the rookie on the other, the Cowboys played more man than usual, and the plan against Jefferson largely worked. The Vikings’ star was held to just two catches on eight targets for 22 yards, well under his usual production. Revel had a key third-down moment where he drove on a route, wrapped up short of the sticks and forced a punt, the kind of routine, technically sound play that coaches love from an outside corner. It wasn’t completely clean from Revel. Revel, along with other corners, got flagged for big penalties during the game, a reflection of how frustrated the entire secondary became once Minnesota started attacking downfield. For a rookie coming off an ACL tear

The Dallas Cowboys were thoroughly outmatched on Sunday night against the Minnesota Vikings, a team that found out just hours before kickoff that their 2025 season was over for all intents and purposes after being eliminated from the playoffs. Meanwhile, the Cowboys knew before the game that their playoff hopes were clinging to life support. […] The Dallas Cowboys were thoroughly outmatched on Sunday night against the Minnesota Vikings, a team that found out just hours before kickoff that their 2025 season was over for all intents and purposes after being eliminated from the playoffs. Meanwhile, the Cowboys knew before the game that their playoff hopes were clinging to life support. They had to win their final four games, and even if they pulled that off they were not guaranteed anything. Still though, in the name of controlling what you can control, it was their chance to prove that they were ready to fight to the end. That didn’t happen. Here is our Stock Report from the fallout. It is an almost-fully down type of event. Stock Down: Brian Schottenheimer As noted, this was a game that the Cowboys had to have. They knew it. We knew it. Everyone knew it. Dallas was coming off of a Thursday game and had the mini-bye to rest up and prepare for their final sprint where they needed to run their race and hope for help outside of it. But as we sat down hoping to see a 10-round fight for a playoff spot over the next few weeks, the Cowboys got knocked out in the first. They didn’t even make it to inside of a week to Christmas for the party to be over. We can understand and rationalize that this is not easy. The Cowboys are trying to do something difficult and were trying to climb out of a huge hole (a self-inflicted one to be clear). But these last two weeks have undone some of the good will that Brian Schottenheimer earned for powering his team through the previous three wins (talking about football to be clear here, obviously this team has been dealing with a tragedy that transcends a game). It is harder to look back on the three wins and feel like they were stout and not more of a result of an Eagles team struggling with their identity and the Chiefs falling apart (oh and the Raiders). Brian Schottenheimer had a chance to pass the test on Sunday, passing in general would have been fine, and he flunked it. His team was unprepared and he was conservative to make things even worse. Stock Down: Matt Eberflus I do not enjoy ever calling for anyone to be dismissed, but I have no idea how the Cowboys are continuing to go at this. Eberflus has had a mostly terrible season and while he deserves the context of having his best player traded away before the season began, that does not justify things like rushing three players on a critical fourth down. The comparisons here to Mike Nolan are obvious and this situation feels like that one in that it cannot go on any longer. The Cowboys have a huge defensive problem, and just allowed a quarterback in J.J. McCarthy who is just now learning the game to waltz all over them. What? How? Why? What? Again? How??? Stock Down: Jerry Jones It is obviously easy to always point the finger at Jerry Jones when things go wrong with the Cowboys, but it is necessary here. This team has been dealing with fixing themselves since he and the rest of the front office broke them even more after the 2023 Wild Card Round. This 2025 team was never built together properly, and when they tried to get more involved at the 11th hour, it was too late. There are no lessons being learned here. This team is repeating the same mistakes and actions and hoping for different results because reasons. Stock Down: George Pickens It is hard to know who to blame here, but Pickens was a huge non-factor on Sunday night. The contrast for me is that CeeDee Lamb bounced back mightily after a tough game against Philly a few weeks ago and Pickens did not do so in this game following his outing against Detroit. To be clear, I am very much still Team Extend Pickens ASAP, but I am also curious as to why he seemed to be a lower priority for offensive involvement than KaVontae Turpin at one point. What’s the deal? Stock Down: Caelen Carson The Vikings picked on a weak link. We are deep enough into the Caelen Carson era at this point to be able to say that the Cowboys don’t exactly have an All-Pro on their hands. Stock Down: Kenneth Murray It is interesting how the Cowboys seem miffed with Trevon Diggs, and still trot Kenneth Murray out week to week. Murray is quite frankly the worst defensive starter on the team. He is out of position on multiple occasions each game, and the only explanation for it all is that the coaching staff trusts him because he has earned it through time that we do not see. That matters if it is the case to some degree. But to what extent? How can the Cowboys put him out there when he is such a point of weakness? Why? These are more than fair questions. Stock Down: Brandon Aubrey He missed two field goals in a game that the team ultimately lost by eight points. That is pretty relevant. The Cowboys might not have won the game if Aubrey hadn’t missed any kicks, and we all know he has more than earned his keep through his time on the roster. Stock Up: Bryan Anger The toss backwards on the fake field goal was awesome. Stock Up: Javonte Williams and Malik Davis You could call this the Klayton Adams award, but the Cowboys have some serious running backs on their hands. Javonte

Dak Prescott explains the frustrating lack of targets to George Pickens in Week 15 loss to the Vikings – Mauricio Rodriguez, A to Z Sports Two games is enough for a trend, and George Pickens not being involved in two straight losses is a concerning one for the Cowboys offense. Throughout the week, you heard […] Dak Prescott explains the frustrating lack of targets to George Pickens in Week 15 loss to the Vikings – Mauricio Rodriguez, A to Z Sports Two games is enough for a trend, and George Pickens not being involved in two straight losses is a concerning one for the Cowboys offense. Throughout the week, you heard it all about the Vikings’ aggressive defense led by one of the most blitz-happy defensive coordinators in the NFL, Brian Flores. Leading up to the game, Prescott even reminisced about that one time Flores sent Cover-0 (man coverage, no safety help, 6-7 man blitz) over 20 times versus Lamar Jackson. And yet, the Cowboys weren’t ready for it. When asked about Pickens’ lack of involvement, Prescott pointed toward the Vikings’ Cover-0 looks. “Honestly, just the zero looks and things like that,” Prescott said. “Simple as that, anytime we were in a passing situation or passing downs and they were giving us that look, we tried to throw him just a quick smoke — not early, well late honestly — and maybe we should have done it earlier. Maybe we should have just thrown him a slant. A lot of ‘maybes.’ I’m frustrated. This was one of the toughest ones I’ve been a part of.” Maybe Prescott is right about the slant routes, though it sure felt like the Vikings — just like Detroit a week ago — were sitting on it. The Cowboys failed to have a changeup going into this one. Brian Schottenheimer’s offense shut down by Cover-0 looks Prescott attributed the “zero” looks to why he struggled to get Pickens the football, but that wasn’t it. Instead, he thinks that’s what overall made the Cowboys struggle in a must-win matchup. “The zero [looks] that we talked about throughout the week, gave it to us a bunch,” Prescott admitted. “We didn’t have a good enough answer, and when you don’t have a good enough answer for that, especially against Flores, you’re going to see it again and again. That’s what happened.” Though Cowboys players didn’t execute, the lack of a good answer also falls on head coach Brian Schottenheimer and his coaching staff. After the game, Schottenheimer was willing to admit it. “They did a good job with their blitz packages,” Schottenheimer said. Cowboys’ Trevon Diggs publicly steamrolls Matt Eberflus after SNF disaster – Jerry Trotta, The Landry Hat Matt Eberflus’ defensive scheme being the right one for Dallas is also trending the wrong direction after Sunday night. While Jerry Jones is quietly losing faith in Eberflus, he stopped short of throwing him under the bus. Trevon Diggs did not follow Jones’ lead. Here is what Diggs said after the game about why he thinks the defense has struggled to click this season (h/t to Jon Machota of The Athletic). “It could be the change in defensive coordinator,” Diggs said. “That’s hard to deal with, changing plays, changing personnel, finding what fits, finding what scheme fits your players that you have, and then trying to find a balance that you can run with. I think we made some great additions, like on the interior with adding Quinnen and Kenny Clark and that was good. I feel like it’s headed in the right direction.” Diggs did his best to sugarcoat that quote by saying that the defense is heading in the right direction. It’s also possible that Diggs was referring to the Cowboys’ revolving door of defensive coordinators, and not just Eberflus, who is the team’s third DC in as many years. Mike Zimmer replaced Dan Quinn last year, before Eberflus replaced Zimmer this season. 10 thoughts on the Cowboys devastating 34-26 loss to the Vikings – Dan Rogers, Blogging The Boys The Cowboys didn’t match the energy of a Vikings team already out of the playoffs at home, which was a bad look. 5. A not-so-special special teams Things didn’t go well on offense. Things didn’t go well on defense. And sadly, things didn’t go so well on special teams. After the successful fake field goal, it all went south. Aubrey uncharacteristically missed two field goals, which is always a bad sign that things are not going well. KaVontae Turpin let a punt bounce that rolled all the way back near the goal line. Even when Turpin had a nice return, they got flagged for a hold that negated the run. It was just bad on all three phases of the game. 6. Gotta be more aggressive When the Cowboys started their opening drive with a fake field goal, this game looked like you’d see Schottenheimer being aggressive on fourth down. But several times when the Cowboys’ offense stalled out, he kept opting to trot Aubrey on the field. Normally, it would be hard to argue with his decisions, but the Cowboys’ defense makes this a precarious situation. Settling for field goals wasn’t going to cut it, and that should have made the head coach inclined to take more chances and leave the offense on the field. The Cowboys attempting so many field goals in the first place was one issue in the loss, but Brandon Aubrey not being automatic on two of them was another. Aubrey also, notably, made four other field goal attempts, the first time in his career he’s tried six field goals in a single game. And yet, Aubrey is human. Having missed only two field goals all season through 13 games, the two-time Pro Bowler doubled that total Sunday night, sending both a 51- and a 59-yard try wide right. After the game, the former soccer star took the two errant boots in stride, having already analyzed what went wrong. “Struck the

With the 34-26 loss to the Minnesota Vikings in Week 15, we can basically close the book on the Dallas Cowboys 2025 NFL season. Although there is still a mathematical chance the Cowboys can sneak into in the playoffs, the disappointing loss to Minnesota makes hoping for it feel futile. This Week 15 matchup with […] With the 34-26 loss to the Minnesota Vikings in Week 15, we can basically close the book on the Dallas Cowboys 2025 NFL season. Although there is still a mathematical chance the Cowboys can sneak into in the playoffs, the disappointing loss to Minnesota makes hoping for it feel futile. This Week 15 matchup with the Vikings was definitely chocked full of more negatives than positives, although things looked like they may go Dallas’ way early on. With way this game played out there wasn’t much good to comment on, but there was definitely plenty of bad and ugly which will discuss below. THE GOOD – Focus more on the future If we are being completely honest with ourselves, then there was nothing really good about the way the Dallas Cowboys played Sunday night against the Minnesota Vikings. The only real positive we can take away from this game is that the Cowboys can now start focusing on more of the future now that their playoff hopes have effectively ended. They’ll of course attempt to finish the season out strong, but the more they lose in the final three games, the better their draft pick will be. For all of us who enjoy the draft season, it’s something to keep in mind the next few weeks. In a game where there was a lot of bad, the one thing that stood out the most was how poorly the Cowboys defense played. They made J.J. McCarthy look like one of the top quarterbacks in the league, allowing him to throw for 250 yards and two touchdowns with a quarterback rating of 116.67. Dallas’ defense continues to give up too many big plays, something that has plagued them all year. This bad performance once again puts into question whether or not Matt Eberflus will keep his job after the season, or if the Cowboys look for a new defensive coordinator. THE UGLY – Brandon Aubrey The usually reliable Brandon Aubrey unfortunately didn’t have his best game Sunday night against the Vikings. He attempted a total of six field goals, but missed two of them. It’s hard to tell exactly what kind of impact those missed FGs may or may not have on the outcome of the game, but regardless, it was unexpected and disappointing to see Aubrey do anything but split the uprights. We can just chalk this up to him having a bad game, because we all know the caliber of kicker he usually is in the trust the Cowboys have in him. See More: Dallas Cowboys Roster