The Dallas Cowboys are coming off their best win of the season, beating the Washington Commanders 44-22 in Week 7. Despite putting up this number of points, the focus of the postgame fallout has been on the defensive improvements.
This is extremely telling for a unit that was giving up 30.7 points per game heading into an important divisional matchup. Finally, defensive coordinator Matt Eberflus made the adjustments he had been teasing over the past weeks. There is reason for hope that perhaps a coach who appeared completely lost has found much-needed answers.
Dallas played man defense far more often against the Commanders, lining up in man coverage for more than 50% of their snaps while using five-man pressures more often as well. This opened up time for Dak Prescott to get the offense going and build an early lead that put all the pressure on the Commanders.
It is exactly what other teams have been doing to the Cowboys over the last weeks of the season. Opponents grabbed the early lead and played enough defense to put incredible pressure on Prescott and the offense. All of this was set up by adjustments that in truth should've been made weeks ago.
Matt Eberflus' Week 7 Adjustments Could Be Turning Point for Dallas' Defense
Making these simplistic adjustments and seeing instant results is all the more infuriating. These are changes that fans expected Eberflus to make weeks ago when the defense was in the running as the league's worst unit. Before last week's game, the Cowboys' defense allowed 411.7 total yards per game. Against the Commanders, Eberflus' unit only gave up 341 total yards and 5.3 yards per play.
Seeing the payoff of the changes validates past frustrations with the coordinator. With that said, it is also exciting to see life breathed back into a season that appeared lost a week ago.
Now, the Cowboys have a chance to grab control of second place in the division and put the franchise back into wildcard contention. Everything about the changes appears maintainable and leaves reason for excitement for the season ahead.
The loaded Dallas offense needs this level of support moving forward to win a lot of games. Holding the opposing offense between 20-24 points is going to give the Cowboys' offense a great chance every week. Even allowing slightly above this number, Dallas fans are feeling great about their ability to consistently reach 30 points as one of the league's most talented units.
Eberflus, making the needed adjustments, gives hope and takes a level of scrutiny off head coach Brian Schottenheimer. There were question marks surrounding the coaching decisions and whether or not the defensive coordinator should've been fired weeks ago. Regardless, all of this heat has quickly cooled, and its place is a level of excitement and hope.
If the Cowboys can get back to playing a capable brand of defense and perhaps make a deadline addition or two, this is a playoff team that is going to be a handful in any first-round matchup.
Breathing life back into the dreams of a fan base who have already been put through the emotional wringer early in the 2025 season will perhaps serve as a corner turn for a franchise that once again appears relevant.