The Cowboys walked out of Week 3 with a loss in Rio de Janeiro and a whole lot of questions hanging over them. Dallas had the game within reach against the Baltimore Ravens at Maracana Stadium, then let it unravel with costly mistakes in all three phases. That kind of finish tends to ripple through the NFL’s power rankings, and this week the Cowboys found themselves sliding back toward that familiar gray area between contender and pretender.
The loudest concern is the same one that keeps following this team around: the late-game stuff. Brian Schottenheimer took his share of heat after the loss, and he also took the blame.
That matters, at least for now. As one league observer put it, “We talk often about the magic dust wearing off of coaches in Year 2 and, for some of the lucky ones, in Year 3.
While Brian Schottenheimer is certainly a candidate, I thought his complete and total willingness to take the blame for Dallas’s poor playcalling down the stretch was an appropriate self-own that will diffuse a season that hasn’t started according to plan.”
Schottenheimer’s first year got him some patience. Year 2 is a different story. The play-calling and clock management against Baltimore were rough, and now the Cowboys need a cleaner response when they head to the Houston Texans at NRG Stadium in Week 4.
George Pickens is another name that keeps popping up in the conversation. He was productive against Baltimore with seven catches for 82 yards, but the bigger picture still isn’t where Dallas wants it.
Todd Archer noted, “Pickens looked great in training camp, and he was the WR12 in our draft rankings. So it's surprising to see he has not scored or registered a catch for at least 20 yards.
His production was better against Baltimore (seven catches, 82 yards), but the Cowboys need to get Pickens involved more. A team that lived on big plays in 2025 hasn't been as effective on them this year.
Pickens is averaging just 9.6 yards per catch, and he has gone five straight games without a touchdown. -- Todd Archer”
That’s the tension with Pickens right now: he flashed, but he hasn’t fully broken through. Dallas needs him more involved early, not just as a cleanup option after the game has already started to tilt.
Dak Prescott is in the middle of the same conversation, because the ending against Baltimore put a spotlight on everything he does and doesn’t control. One report pointed to a missed chance to find Pickens wide open in a critical moment, then framed Prescott’s career in blunt terms: “Dak Prescott missed a wide-open George Pickens in a critical moment Sunday, but the Cowboys were ultimately undone by a bad defense and poor game management.
It was a perfect microcosm of Prescott’s 11-year career: really good but not good enough to overcome everything else. Since being drafted in the fourth round in 2016, Prescott is fifth in the league in passing yards (36,719), sixth in passing touchdowns (250) and 10th in EPA per dropback (0.12).
He has two playoff wins.”
The defense is getting hit just as hard, maybe harder. Christian Parker’s unit has become a clear liability, and the Baltimore game only sharpened that view.
The middle of the field was exposed on the decisive sequence, Lamar Jackson hit Zay Flowers for 27 yards, and Tyler Loop finished it off with a 56-yard game-winning field goal. Dallas has now allowed nearly 400 total yards in all three games, and the fixes need to come fast.
Parker is working with a defense that has not been easy to stabilize. There are eight new starters, and four players have already missed time.
Starting safety Jalen Thompson is likely headed to IR, and starting cornerback Cobie Durant has already been hit with the designation. That kind of churn makes it hard to know how much of Parker’s scheme has truly taken hold, but the results so far have been rough enough to put him under the microscope.
For now, the Cowboys are left with the same challenge that keeps coming back: turn the frustration into something sharper, cleaner and more consistent. Week 4 against the winless Texans is the next chance to show it.
In Other News...
Jerry Jones Just Turned Cowboys Loss Into An Accountability Fight
The Cowboys left Maracan Stadium with more than just a loss to the Ravens. A sequence of shaky play-calling helped turn a promising stretch into a field goal, and the late-game clock management only added to the frustration as Dallas tried to regroup from a trip that exposed some familiar issues on offense. With the Texans up next, the attention around the defeat has already shifted from what happened on the field to who should answer for it.
Jerry Jones made sure the conversation did not stay on the scoreboard. The Cowboys owner and general manager publicly questioned the coaching staff's decisions, while offensive coordinator Brian Schottenheimer accepted responsibility for a key third-down call. For a team trying to steady itself before another divisional test on the calendar, the bigger question now is whether this becomes a one-game critique or the start of a broader accountability push. [Read more 🡒]
Cowboys Safety Crisis May Force A Move Faster Than Expected
Early in the 2026 season, the Cowboys are already dealing with a thin safety room after injuries have hit Malik Hooker, P.J. Locke and Jalen Thompson. The result is a depth chart that suddenly looks vulnerable, and it has pushed Dallas toward evaluating outside help before the problem gets any worse.
Several names are already in the mix as the team weighs its next step, including Caleb Ransaw, Cole Wisniewski, Donovan McMillon and free agent Donovan Wilson. However the Cowboys choose to patch the spot, the urgency is real, because safety is one of the few areas where an early-season injury pileup can force a move faster than a team planned. [Read more 🡒]
Cowboys Rookie Defender Made A Strong Case In Brazil
The Cowboys trip to Brazil ended with a crushing loss to the Ravens on a last-second field goal, but the game still offered a useful early look at several rookies on Dallas defense. Caleb Downs, Malachi Lawrence, Jaishawn Barham and LT Overton all had moments that stood out in a game that gave the staff plenty to evaluate beyond the final score, especially with the spotlight on how the young players handled a high-pressure setting far from home.
There were encouraging flashes in the groups performance, and at least one of those rookies made a strong case with the kind of play that tends to catch coaches attention quickly. Still, the outing also showed the usual rookie growing pains, with each player leaving Brazil having given Dallas reasons to feel better about the future and reasons to keep coaching the details moving forward. [Read more 🡒]