The Dallas Cowboys are in a peculiar position entering the NFL season.
They have the best quarterback in the NFC East, but the rest of their offense is slowly leaking oil.
Dallas just lost their starting left tackle, Tyron Smith, for at least the first 3-4 months of the season.
Also, they have done nothing to replace Amari Cooper or the injury to Michael Gallup.
The Cowboys’ front office seems ill-prepared heading into the 2022 season.
They have not put Dallas in the best position to win.
With that being said here are three things that must happen for Dallas to repeat as NFC East champions.
Fix The Offensive Line
Due to the aforementioned Smith injury, the Cowboys’ offensive line is in some trouble.
They have no starting caliber left tackle on the roster that can step in for Smith.
But, what they seemingly want to do is move the first-round pick, Tyler Smith, to left tackle.
They took Tyler Smith in the first round with the intention of him being the long-term left tackle.
But, Dallas hoped that his reign at left tackle did not begin this season.
If not Tyler Smith, the Cowboys could look to sign Jason Peters, Eric Fisher, or Darryl Williams.
All of them have played left tackle in the NFL before and could help Dallas.
The trickle-down effect of the Tyron Smith injury will make it difficult on the rest of the offensive line.
Zack Martin remains great but the rest of the line will have to step up and give this offense a chance to succeed.
Have A Top-10 Defense
More than any year in the past, the injuries to the offense will force the Cowboys to rely on their defense.
The Cowboys bring back Micah Parsons and Trevon Diggs, two players that helped this defense lead the league in turnovers.
MICAH PARSONS IS UNREAL.
Forces the fumble that’s returned for a Cowboys TD 💪
(via @NFL)
pic.twitter.com/aqexB5vKs6— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) December 12, 2021
Finishing top-10 in both scoring defense and yards allowed will be crucial to the Cowboys’ success this year.
While the defense may not lead the league in touchdowns again, their ability to create turnovers will help the offense in field position.
Dallas should line Parsons up in a plethora of spots this year so he can affect the game in many different ways.
The defensive rookie of the year had 84 total tackles and 13.0 sacks last year.
It would not be a surprise to see him get 15+ this season.
This Dallas defense led by Dan Quinn will have the opportunity to be good again in 2022, and the Cowboys will need it at least until the offense gets healthy again.
Stay Healthy
Health will forever be one of the biggest reasons why any team has success in the NFL.
In a league with a 100% injury rate, having depth is always key.
Dallas is loaded on defense with plenty of depth on all three levels.
If quarterback Dak Prescott were to miss any time, the Cowboys would be done.
Their roster is not good enough to be led by a backup QB.
Also, CeeDee Lamb is by far their best pass catcher, he needs to stay healthy or the Cowboys are in trouble on offense.
Dak Prescott connects with CeeDee Lamb for their first TD of the season 😤
(via @NFL)pic.twitter.com/ws6bWihaqZ
— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) September 10, 2021
The Dallas front office solidified the defense will a ton of depth, but they forgot about the offense.
If Tyron Smith is the only injury that the offense suffers this year, they have a chance to be good.
But, if any other Dallas offensive player goes down this team could be in trouble.
