The Dallas Cowboys played some clean football earlier in the season, going from Week 4 to Week 7 without committing a single turnover. Unfortunately, the Cowboys' offense is trending in a dangerous direction after back-to-back multi-turnover games, highlighted by three in the Monday night loss to the Arizona Cardinals.
The turnovers are especially a concern because there isn’t one player at fault. Running back Javonte Williams and tight end Jake Ferguson both lost fumbles against the Cardinals, in addition to an interception late in the game by quarterback Dak Prescott. Even wide receiver George Pickens fumbled the ball, but the Cowboys were able to recover. Still, this is a collective failure to value the ball and precious offensive possessions.
Cowboys Must Fix Fumbling Issue Before Bye Week Is Over
Turnovers are never good, but for a team with arguably the worst defense in the league, it’s even worse. The Cowboys' offense already has a sense of pressure in needing to go out on the field and score 30 to 40 points a game to stay competitive because the defense is almost penciled in to give up just as much. If the attack suddenly can't do its job, Dallas will be in even worse shape.
To put it plainly, playoff-contending teams usually aren’t turnover-prone. It can be a sign of a lack of discipline, a lack of fundamentals, or even sometimes just bad luck. However, when it becomes a pattern like it seems to be with the Cowboys, the latter fades out of question.
Dallas ranks in the bottom half of the league in both takeaways per game (26th) and turnover differential (T-22nd). This is a problem, meaning the Cowboys have struggled to force turnovers on the defensive side of the ball. So, if the offense continues to give opponents extra possessions, it could spell all kinds of trouble for America's Team down the stretch, potentially creating some bad habits, too.
Prescott, however, has been reliable in this aspect throughout his career year, despite his six interceptions halfway through the season. A few of those picks have come late in games when Prescott needed to push the ball downfield or try to create something out of broken plays. Through the ebbs and flows of the game, the Cowboys' franchise QB has optimized every offensive possession to the best of his ability, which is what is needed from the leader of the team.
The Cowboys have two weeks in between games with a multitude of things to address, and the turnovers have to be at the top of the list. It is absolutely imperative for them to fix this in the final push to try and salvage the season.