3 Cowboys on Thin Ice Heading Into Week 2

Week 1 was fun for the Dallas Cowboys. They went into Cleveland as the underdog (for some reason) against the Browns and made it look easy. They frustrated Deshaun Watson all game, shut down the running attack, and had several highlight-reel touchdowns en route to a 33-17 victory.

Now, they head home to AT&T Stadium where they will host the New Orleans Saints who are coming off an even more explosive win. New Orleans won 47-10 in a track meet against the Carolina Panthers to kick off their season.

It's true the Panthers were a mess and Dallas is a far superior opponent. Even so, it takes talent to threaten a 50-burger, so the Cowboys need to take this game seriously. They also need more from these three players who enter Week 2 on thin ice.

3. Mazi Smith, Defensive Tackle

One week into the return of Mike Zimmer and the Cowboys' defense seems to be headed in the right direction. That doesn't mean, however, there were no concerns.

The primary one at this point has to be defensive tackle. After first-round pick Mazi Smith had a lackluster rookie campaign, there were hopes that Zimmer could help him turn things around. While the D-line as a whole held up against the run, Smith proved to be a work in progress still as he received a low grade of 30.1 in run defense.

He finished with just 23 snaps while 35-year-old Linval Joseph picked up 13. He performed much better with a grade of 61.3 against the run according to PFF.

It's still early in the season but the Cowboys have options, including recently-acquired Phil Hoskins. Smith might have the draft pedigree but Zimmer wasn't with the team when he was selected, so he's going to have to prove he can get by on his performance alone.