Dallas Cowboys: This is why the Cowboys favor offense over defense

According to Forbes magazine, the Dallas Cowboys are the most valued sports franchise in the entire world at over five billion dollars and counting. The Cowboys are worth so much because of their five super bowl wins, eight Super Bowl appearances, being the most watched sports team in all of US sports, and being loaded with star power and story lines.

Hence, why they’re called “America’s Team”.

Although the Dallas Cowboys have produced some elite, defensive talent with had Hall of Fame careers, it was the offensive stars of those famous Cowboys teams that won over the fans of America, and ultimately drove the cash cow for television networks.

Think Roger Staubach, Don Meredith, Bob Hayes, Don Perkins, Duane Thomas, Tony Dorsett, Drew Pearson, Danny White, Troy Aikman, Emmitt Smith, Michael Irving, Deion Sanders, Tony Romo, and Dez Bryant to name a few. All offensive stars.

Fast forward to 2021, and the Dallas Cowboys continue to use the same blueprint for success to build their brand. And even though the Cowboys like their defensive stars (to some degree), the Cowboys favor offense over defense simply to sell tickets and add more dollars to its billion dollar brand.

You might not believe in this theory on the Dallas Cowboys favoring their offensive personnel over their defense to sell tickets, but just follow the history of this proud franchise and you’ll find your answer.

Offense is exciting and sells tickets, defense doesn’t

Don’t believe me, just look at the attention paid to offensive players drafted and retained compared to the defensive players on the roster. The first proof of evidence is when Dallas drafted wide receiver CeeDee Lamb with its 17th overall pick in the 2020 draft instead of drafting a defensive player to fix major need.

Oh to be clear I was fine with the Lamb pick.

From an offensive standpoint, the Cowboys didn’t really need Lamb because they already had a Pro Bowler in wide receiver Amari Cooper, along with Michael Gallup, Cedrick Wilson, Noah Brown, Blake Jarwin, and Dalton Schultz. They wanted Lamb because, not only would he add more offensive firepower to the Cowboys offense, but Lamb would instantly make Dallas’ offense much more exciting for the fan base, the NFL, and more exposure from the major networks.

More exposure means more money for owner/general manager Jerry Jones to buy another $250 million dollar yacht and buy another Papa Johns pizza franchise. Jerry reportedly owns 120. My Gawd! That man has plenty of money!

An exciting and explosive offense that features a high volume aerial attack led by a quarterback that throws a bunch of touchdowns is more watchable than a low scoring defensive game any day of the week. Even though Dallas started the season 2-3 with Dak under center, its offense was explosive and averaged over 30 points a game, with Dak setting franchise and league records in the process.

And Jerry knows this strategy all too well.

Back in 1995, Jerry signed free agent and Hall of Fame cornerback Deion Sanders to a massive contract to play corner and wide receiver. Yeah, Jerry signed Deion to help him win another Super Bowl, but Jerry also knew Deion would sell tickets because of his stellar play, and would truly live up his nickname, “Primetime”.

Watching Deion play football was pure bliss for 60 minutes a week – even when he missed tackles because he made a “business decision”. Sure, Deion played defense the majority of the time but he could intercept a pass at any given moment and he break a return a punt/kickoff for a touchdown at any given moment.

Or Deion would do both like he famously did against the New York Giants on a Monday game when he returned an interception and a punt for a touchdown. Of course, Deion is the exception for a defensive player, but he played enough snaps on offense to be a threat and sell tickets.

Also, Deion joined an offensive juggernaut with Aikman, Smith, Irving, Jay Novachek, Kevin Smith, and the best offensive line of all time. Dallas’ defense was a top-5 unit, but those offensive stars stole the show and was the main attraction each and every Sunday.

The NFL is a pass-happy league

Its not by mistake that the NFL protects the quarterback like a newborn baby, An NFL quarterback is protected like an endangered species because the league wants its quarterbacks to pass for 300/400 yards every Sunday, A team without a quarterback is akin to a ship with holes in it, eventually its going to sink like Dallas did last season.

So protect the quarterback and you can have high scoring games that fans can watch. That further leads to why Dallas has surrounded Dak Prescott with so many offensive weapons, and why nobody should be surprised if they select tight end Kyle Pitts out of Florida with the 10th pick is he’s available.

Dallas’ front office will tell you its because of BAP (Best Available Player) on why they selected him, but I will tell you its because he’s an added weapon to an already loaded offense that can sell more tickets. Further, defensive players don’t push “the main attraction” button like offensive players do unless its a Deion type player or a Hall of Famer like Lawrence Taylor.