USAT: Cowboys Wire audio clip

USAT: Cowboys Wire

Mar 26, 2022

The NFL is one of the most competitive sporting leagues in the world. On average, half of the playoff teams from the previous year fail to make the postseason the following season. The salary cap and free agency are largely responsible for that trend. - Last season, there were seven new teams to make the playoffs from the 2020 campaign, and the Dallas Cowboys were among them. It’s hard to win consistently in the NFL and according to the oddsmakers, the early prediction is the Cowboys are expected to take a step back for the 2022 season. - After winning 12 games and the NFC East last year, the gambling experts aren’t exactly expecting a repeat performance for the Cowboys. The win total for Dallas has been set at 10.4 for the upcoming season. - - .@DKSportsbook released early NFL win totals. I put them together with the division, conference, and Super Bowl futures. pic.twitter.com/edmVRjR1wa - — Sebastian (@mrcaseb) March 25, 2022 - - - While the Cowboys are still predicted to win the division, which is the easiest path to the playoffs, the gap between Dallas and the rest of the division is estimated to shrink. However, the same predictions have the Philadelphia Eagles also winning slightly less games than they did last years (9 down to 8.4), while the Washington Commanders are expected to improve, but not by much (7 up to 7.4), and the New York Giants are projected to win a little over three more games in 2022 (4 to 7.3). None of Dallas’ rivals are going to the postseason according to this model. - Ironically, a worse Cowboys teams is still anticipated to win the division. That would be quite the feat since no NFC East squad has repeated as division champion since the 2001-2004 Eagles. - As free agency is still going and the draft is still over a month away, projections will change but for now there is reason to believe the Cowboys could regress. - For starters, the Cowboys have lost four key players from last year’s roster that could make repeating a 12-win season difficult. Wide receiver Amari Cooper, left guard Connor Williams and right tackle La’el Collins are all gone from the league’s top-rated offense. All three have been starters for the past three years and the team must now replace them. - As good as CeeDee Lamb is, he still has work to do to fill Cooper’s shoes as the No. 1 WR in Dallas, and neither Terence Steele, nor Connor McGovern are better than their predecessors at either offensive line position. The draft should bring help, but it remains to be seen if the Cowboys upgrade. - On defense, the Cowboys lost out on defensive end Randy Gregory, and replacing the edge rusher will be difficult. The defense had a major turnaround last season and Gregory was a big part of their success. - Dallas must also play a first-place schedule in the upcoming season. Winning the division brings a tougher schedule, in theory, the next year. That means the Cowboys have the Green Bay Packers, Tampa Bay Buccaneers and the Super Bowl Champion Los Angeles Rams on their 2022 slate. That’s a bit of a tougher road than the one the team went down in 2021 when they played the Minnesota Vikings and Arizona Cardinals instead of the Pack and Rams. - Another reason for a possible reduction in wins could come from an improved NFC East. Despite the predictions that none of the Cowboys’ rivals will be very good, each team has the potential to be better. The Eagles and Giants both hold multiple first-round picks, the Giants also hired a new coach (Brian Daboll) to fix the offense, and the Commanders have Carson Wentz to improve the quarterback position. It appears like the Cowboys will have a tougher time winning the division. - These are just predictions of course, and anything can happen. There are still many factors that could alter what any team in the NFL will look like before the season arrives. - Yet last year’s offseason models did have the Cowboys fighting for a playoff spot and set their over/under at 9.5 wins. The expected improvement did come for the franchise and they made their postseason return. - It’s still early to have a feel for if the Cowboys will regress in 2022, but that appears to be the prevailing thought in early Spring. - You can chat with or follow Ben on twitter @BenGrimaldi - - - - - - - - - - - - Email - - - - - Sign up - - - - - - - - Like this article? - Sign up for the Cowboys Wire email newsletter to get our top stories in your inbox every morning - - - - An error has occured - - - Please re-enter your email address. - - - - - - Thanks for signing up! - - - You'll now receive the top Cowboys Wire stories each day directly in your inbox.

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Mar 17, 2022