Dallas Cowboys 2025 NFL Season Preview

Dallas Cowboys 2025 NFL Season Preview originally appeared on Athlon Sports.

[Editor’s note: This article is from Athlon Sports’ 2025 NFL Preview Magazine. Order your copy today online or pick one up at retail racks and newsstands nationwide.]

The Cowboys go into 2025 the same way they have gone into every season — with Super Bowl aspirations. Can this season possibly turn out differently than the past 29?

The Cowboys are 251-217 with 13 playoff appearances and a 5-13 playoff record since they last won the Super Bowl in 1995. That’s also the last time they reached the NFC Championship Game, which is the longest drought in the conference.

On his way out the door in free agency, defensive end DeMarcus Lawrence, who spent 11 years in Dallas, questioned the Cowboys’ leadership and all but said that the team had no chance to win a Super Bowl. Former teammate Micah Parsons went after Lawrence on social media, suggesting the criticisms were unfounded. But facts are facts.

The Cowboys took a step back last season, going 7-10, and that led to the team and head coach Mike McCarthy parting ways. Brian Schottenheimer, the Cowboys’ offensive coordinator last season, now gets a chance to try to do what Chan Gailey, Dave Campo, Bill Parcells, Wade Phillips, Jason Garrett and McCarthy couldn’t do. Odds are against him.

Offense

Schottenheimer’s hiring provides some stability and familiarity to the offense. But owner Jerry Jones revealed that Schottenheimer sometimes had to “bite his lip” at McCarthy’s play-calling, with Schottenheimer having philosophical differences with McCarthys’s scheme. Schottenheimer hired Klayton Adams as his offensive coordinator, but the head coach will call the plays. He promises more pre-snap motion and shifts, along with play-action.

It’s been a while since Dak Prescott has been in uniform for a Cowboys’ regular-season game.© Tim Heitman-Imagn Images

The thing that will help the Dallas offense the most is keeping Dak Prescott healthy. The quarterback missed nine games last season with a serious hamstring injury that required surgery. He has missed 26 games the past five seasons. Prescott has heard the whispers that his legs aren’t what they used to be after a dislocated ankle in 2020, a right calf strain in 2021 and his torn hamstring in 2024. He ran 241 times for 1,221 yards and 21 touchdowns in his first four seasons and only 179 times for 717 yards and eight touchdowns over the past five. Prescott, though, still was the 2023 MVP runner-up and led the league in touchdown passes that season, the reason the Cowboys made him the highest-paid player in the NFL. The Cowboys replaced backup Cooper Rush by trading for Joe Milton III, who will compete with Will Grier for the No. 2 job.

The Cowboys paid a big price for not addressing the running back position in free agency or the draft a year ago. Their ground attack ranked 24th in attempts, 27th in yards and last in touchdowns with Rico Dowdle and Ezekiel Elliott. The Cowboys upgraded the position this offseason by signing free agents Javonte Williams and Miles Sanders and by drafting Jaydon Blue (Texas) and Phil Mafah (Clemson). The Cowboys will run the ball more, and they believe they will run it better than they did in 2024.

Wide receiver CeeDee Lamb needed more help than he got last season, though he again showed that he was one of the top players at his position in the NFL. The Cowboys didn’t get enough from Jalen Tolbert, Brandin Cooks or KaVontae Turpin, prompting a trade-deadline deal for Jonathan Mingo, who didn’t do anything to contribute after arriving. The Cowboys failed to draft a receiver in April, but they did trade for George Pickens, giving Lamb a true No. 2 receiver across from him. Pickens greatly improves a wide receivers room that also includes free-agent signee Parris Campbell, Tolbert, Turpin and Mingo, among others.

Tight end Jake Ferguson made the Pro Bowl in 2023 but regressed last season. In a contract year, he knows what’s at stake. The Cowboys drafted Luke Schoonmaker in the second round in 2023, and he has 35 receptions for 306 yards and three touchdowns across two seasons, hardly the production the team expected.

In his fourth season, left guard Tyler Smith suddenly finds himself as the leader of the offensive line. Center Cooper Beebe and left tackle Tyler Guyton started as rookies, and they should play better this season with a year of experience. The Cowboys, though, are prepared to move Smith to left tackle in place of Guyton, and Beebe to guard, if Guyton doesn’t show improvement. The Cowboys used the 12th overall pick on Alabama left guard Tyler Booker, who will move to right guard in the NFL. He has big shoes to fill in replacing the retired Zack Martin, a future Hall of Famer who was one of the best ever at his position. The Cowboys signed veteran guard Robert Jones in free agency and have Brock Hoffman returning, giving them depth inside. Terence Steele will start at right tackle for a sixth consecutive season despite efforts to upgrade the position.

Defense

For the third time in three seasons, the Cowboys have a new defensive coordinator, and for the third time in three seasons, he is a former head coach. After two-plus seasons leading the Bears, Matt Eberflus returns to Dallas, replacing Mike Zimmer, who replaced Dan Quinn. Eberflus has one of the best defensive players in the league to work with in edge rusher Micah Parsons, who has 52.5 sacks, 112 quarterback hits and nine forced fumbles across four seasons. Dante Fowler Jr. has returned after a double-digit sack season in Washington and will replace Lawrence. Sam Williams (returning from a knee injury that kept him out last season), Marshawn Kneeland and second-round pick Donovan Ezeiruaku will be part of the rotation. The Cowboys re-signed defensive tackle Osa Odighizuwa, who is a star in the making, and they have Mazi Smith and Solomon Thomas with first-round pedigrees at the nose.

The Cowboys upgraded at linebacker with a trade for Kenneth Murray Jr. and the signing of middle linebacker Jack Sanborn, who followed Eberflus from Chicago. They also drafted Florida linebacker Shemar James. But strongside linebacker DeMarvion Overshown is expected to miss the season after tearing three ligaments in his knee, which required surgery in December.

Cornerback Trevon Diggs’ status is uncertain after undergoing knee surgery in January, which prompted the Cowboys to draft East Carolina’s Shavon Revel Jr. in the third round. Revel is returning from a knee injury but should be ready for the start of the season. He is being counted on to start opposite DaRon Bland. Kemon Hall will replace Jourdan Lewis as the team’s full-time nickelback. A trade for 2022 first-round pick Kaiir Elam has added depth to a secondary that saw multiple injuries last season. Donovan Wilson and Malik Hooker return as the starting safeties.

Specialists

The strength of the team is its special teams. New coordinator Nick Sorensen, the 49ers’ defensive coordinator last season, inherits one of the best kickers (Brandon Aubrey), punters (Bryan Anger), long-snappers (Trent Sieg) and return specialists (KaVontae Turpin) in the NFL.

Final Analysis

Schottenheimer was the players’ choice to be their head coach, and he has won over fans since replacing McCarthy. But coaching, however good, can take a team only so far. The Cowboys, who won the NFC East in 2023, were leap-frogged by the Philadelphia Eagles and the Washington Commanders last season. The Cowboys, with an upgraded roster, will have to prove they have caught up to their division rivals.

This story was originally reported by Athlon Sports on Jun 16, 2025, where it first appeared.

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Dallas Cowboys 2025 NFL Season Preview

Offense

Defense

Specialists

Final Analysis

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