The Dallas Cowboys are a veteran team that has been waiting to get back on top for a long time. The Cowboys have not been NFL champions since their win over the Pittsburgh Steelers in Super Bowl XXX, following the 1995 season.
There have been multiple playoff failures, and the Cowboys would have to show dramatic improvement to beat out the favored Philadelphia Eagles and get back to the top of the heap this year. The idea that Dak Prescott, Mike McCarthy and Jerry Jones will get to lift the Vince Lombardi Trophy in February is still something of a longshot, but the Cowboys are in the picture.
They appear to have the best defense in the league thanks to Micah Parsons, who is coming off a 13.5-sack season. He is the best defensive player in the league, and the rest of the Cowboys will follow his lead.
The Cowboys are a veteran team, and that means they will depend on Prescott, Parsons, CeeDee Lamb, Tony Pollard, Zack Martin, Leighton Vander Esch and Stephon Gilmore.
But championship teams are not just the result of veterans who come together. They need a few key rookies to make unexpected contributions at key points in the season, or their dreams will go unfulfilled.
Prior to their game Saturday night against the Seattle Seahawks, the Cowboys had four rookies who liked like they might be able to make key contributions this season. By the conclusion of that 22-14 loss, that number dipped to two.
Third-round draft pick DeMarvion Overshown looked like a dynamic performer at linebacker. However, the former University of Texas star suffered a torn ACL and will miss the 2023 season. Overshown had been tabbed by Parsons as player who could be a difference maker for the Cowboys.
In addition to Overshown, the Cowboys also lost tight end John Stephens in that game to another torn ACL. Stephens, an undrafted rookie free agent from Louisiana, was much more of a longshot to make the team, but he had been impressive in training camp. His season is also over.
While Overshown and Stephens won’t help the Cowboys this season, the Boys could get quite a bit of help from rookie running back Deuce Vaughn. The 5-foot-6 dynamo from Kansas State has demonstrated explosive quickness and drive throughout the summer.
The Cowboys are leaning on Pollard for their running game this year, but he should get a huge assist from the pint-sized Vaughn.
The sixth-round pick made multiple defenders look foolish in the preseason opener against the Jacksonville Jaguars, and he also scored on a 14-yard run vs. the Seahawks.
“I feel like I was more comfortable as far as playing faster,” Vaughn said. “Last week, I felt like there was a couple times, whether it was in pass protection or running the football, I wasn’t playing as fast because I was thinking a little more. But another game under my belt and I felt like I played faster.”
The other rookie could make a vital contribution this season is tight end Luke Schoonmaker. The second-round draft pick from Michigan has size, strength and skill at 6-5 and 250 pounds. While he has been slowed by plantar fasciitis this summer, he will be in the rotation at tight end as long as the condition does not worsen.
He caught 35 passes for 418 yards and 3 touchdowns last year and he is also a solid blocker.
There is little doubt that the big-name veterans will lead the way for the Cowboys. However, the rookies will have to make a contribution, and it appears that Vaughn and Schoonmaker will play key roles in the journey for the Cowboys.
