With the Cowboys now two games into the season, the 2027 free-agent picture is starting to take shape, and Sunday’s win over the Commanders gave a few players a chance to move the needle after a flat opener.
Dee Winters was the clearest winner. Even with a shoulder injury costing him a few series, he still piled up nine tackles to tie Caleb Downs for the team lead. He also jumped on the fumble forced by Jaishawn Barham, a play that may have been the real turning point in Dallas’ lopsided victory.
That was a much better showing from Winters after he looked as lost against the Giants as anyone on the defense. With Overshown now out again, the Cowboys need Winters to steady the middle of the field.
Barham may wear the green dot as a rookie, but Winters is the veteran who has to keep his responsibilities clean. This game at least moved him in the right direction.
George Pickens, meanwhile, remains the big-name free agent whose stock has yet to catch fire. Dallas’ expected franchised receiver managed just 40 yards on six catches against Washington.
That came after a rough Week 1 in New York, where he had three catches for 28 yards. It was an improvement, but not nearly enough to quiet the early concerns.
The rest of the Dallas passing game did plenty of damage. CeeDee Lamb went off for 153 yards and two touchdowns, and Jake Ferguson also scored twice.
Pickens was still left in the background, and if this pace held, he’d finish 2026 with only about 77 catches and 578 yards. That’s the kind of output you’d associate with Ryan Flournoy, not one of the league’s supposed elite wideouts.
Dallas’ offense gives defenses a “pick your poison” problem, and this week it looked like Dan Quinn’s plan was to take Pickens away. Lamb’s huge day could change that dynamic in Week 3, but Pickens needs the production to follow soon.
With a lot of money on the line this spring, the “kumbaya” feel around the offense will be tested if his numbers don’t start climbing. He has said and done the right thngs since arriving, but the pressure is only going to grow.
Up front, the Cowboys’ free-agent group is still stuck in the mud. The run game and run defense have both been issues through two weeks.
T.J. Bass has filled in for Tyler Smith and done enough to be serviceable, but the gap is obvious.
If anything, the early returns support the idea that Bass can be a strong backup without necessarily being a long-term starter.
The defensive line has had an even rougher start. Washington ran for 182 yards, and the Giants also controlled the ground game in Week 1. Even if Jayden Daniels’ 69 rushing yards are removed, Washington’s backs still combined for 110 yards on 24 carries.
Quinnen Williams and Kenny Clark are drawing the biggest share of the blame, and they deserve it, but Otito Ogbonnia and Jonathan Bullard haven’t helped matters either. They were added for their run-stopping reputation, and so far that hasn’t shown up. Nobody in Christian Parker’s group has made much of an impact in that area yet.
In Other News...
Cowboys Face Early Pressure As Ravens Test What This Team Really Is
The Cowboys head into Week 3 with a road trip that is unusual even by NFL standards, as they get set to meet the Ravens in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. It will be the first NFL game played in Rio, adding another layer to a matchup that already carries plenty of weight for Dallas, which is trying to sort through injury reports while dealing with an early-season test against one of the leagues most dynamic offenses.
Baltimore brings Lamar Jackson and the kind of quarterback-driven pressure that can expose a defense quickly, and Dallas will have to answer that challenge while also looking for more from a running game that has lagged through the opening stretch. With both teams working through health concerns and the stage expanding beyond the usual September spotlight, this matchup feels like an early read on what the Cowboys really are. [Read more 🡒]
Lamar Jackson Just Added Extra Heat To Ravens-Cowboys In Brazil
Lamar Jackson added a little edge to a cross-continental matchup that already had plenty of intrigue, taking a pointed swipe at the Cowboys long-held Americas Team label ahead of their meeting with Baltimore in Brazil. The Ravens quarterbacks remark leaned into the obvious geography of it all, a small but notable jab as Dallas gets ready for an overseas showcase far from the usual spotlight at home.
For the Cowboys, it only sharpens the backdrop to a game that comes after Baltimores recent loss and arrives with Jackson carrying a winning record against Dallas. The setting is unusual enough on its own, but a comment like that gives the trip a little more bite, turning a neutral-site opener into something that feels a bit more personal before the teams even take the field. [Read more 🡒]
Cowboys Defense Suddenly Has A Ravens Problem Fans Need To Watch
The Cowboys Week 3 injury report brought a familiar kind of midweek concern, but this time it comes with Baltimore looming. Dallas listed Cobie Durant, Malik Hooker, P.J. Locke, DeMarvion Overshown and James Houston ahead of the Ravens matchup, and the availability picture is still shifting as the week goes on. For a defense that wants to match up with a physical opponent, the status of a few key pieces matters almost as much as the game plan itself.
Brian Schottenheimers updates offered a clearer read on the most notable names, though not necessarily the kind of news Dallas wanted. Overshown is considered unlikely to play because of a hamstring injury, Locke is still working back from plantar fasciitis and could be back within four weeks, and Durant is rehabbing a hamstring issue. Hooker, meanwhile, is continuing to recover from a fractured forearm and is not expected back this week, leaving the Cowboys with some real uncertainty in the secondary as the Ravens game approaches. [Read more 🡒]