Toughest stretch in the Dallas Cowboys 2020 Schedule is Familiar

The Dallas Cowboys 2020 schedule is out and right away it’s easy to spot the toughest stretch – and I’ll give you hint: It’s in familiar territory

We’ve known who the Dallas Cowboys are slated to play in 2020 for quite some time now. In fact, we’ve even known where their going to play for a while as well. What we didn’t know is when exactly. Well, wait no longer because the Dallas Cowboys 2020 schedule has been released and there’s a lot to discuss…

The first thing most people look for when the new NFL Schedule gets released is when the Dallas Cowboys have their bye week. Too early and there’s no reprieve on the back-end for a playoff hopeful team like Dallas. Too late…actually, too late is just fine.

Luckily for the Dallas Cowboys, they don’t have a bye week until the middle of November. That gives them the chance to take a breath in Week 10, rest up, readjust, and rev up for the final lap of the regular season. Week 10 is a great week to have a bye.

Next we look at the big hitters their slated to play. The toughest opponents on the Dallas Cowboys 2020 schedule is thought to be the Seattle Seahawks (in Seattle), Philadelphia in Philly, Pittsburgh Steelers, Minnesota Vikings, San Francisco 49ers, and the Baltimore Ravens.

We take those tough opponents and look for two things:

1. clusters
2. and cold weather games

To identify the toughest stretch we need to look at if there are clusters of tough opponents, obviously. But we also need to factor in location and weather. Playing an outdoor game in a cold weather climate late in the season is much different than playing that same opponent early in the season in traditionally good weather.

Historically, the Dallas Cowboys have never liked playing in poor conditions and given the makeup of the current roster, that’s likely to continue in 2020. Not only are the Cowboys a team from the south that practices and plays in controlled climates, but many of the key players are from southern schools. Add in the fact Dallas is going to base their fortunes on a high-powered passing attack when poor weather often seems to favor power running and strong defense, and you have reason to be concerned about those cold weather away games.

While I see the three game stretch of Philly, Pittsburgh, and Minnesota as the most pivotal for a hopeful team like the Cowboys, there’s a bye week stuck in the middle of it and the only one that’s an away game is scheduled for November 1st (making weather not much of a factor).

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Considering the weather factor I’m highlighting December as the toughest stretch of the schedule. And isn’t it always December we seem to highlight as the toughest part?  In December the Dallas Cowboys have one outdoor game that stands out as a possible poor weather match-up. Additionally, it’s against one of the best teams in the NFL AND against a team perfectly designed for poor weather: The Baltimore Ravens.

In December Dallas has to play in Baltimore and then travel to Cincinnati. Nati should be a “W” even if the weather is poor, but it’s hard to envision leaving Baltimore with a win.  Dallas follows those two up with a game against the NFC Champion 49ers and then against the NFC East Champion Eagles.

It’s likely the fate of their postseason hopes comes down to this final month of the season (they end the season against the Giants on January 3rd).

What do you think? Are you worried more about the three games around the bye week or that final stretch in the month of December?

• Published on 05/08/2020 at 11:01 AM
• Last updated at 05/08/2020 at 06:32 AM