Dallas Cowboys won't win NFC East in 2021

Like many national sports media outlets, Athlon Sports believes the 2021 Dallas Cowboys are loaded with talent on both sides of the ball. Athlon doesn’t believe the return of Dak Prescott and significant roster upgrades will be enough to win the NFC East crown.

Reasons for Dallas Cowboys fans to be optimistic this season

Prescott is back from injury. The wide receiver room may be one of the best in the league. Amari Cooper, Cee Dee Lamb and Michael Gallup will wreak havoc on opposing defenses. The offensive line has changed but is sound. Ezekiel Elliott is coming off his worst statistical season averaging just four yards-per-carry and 63.4 yards-per-game. We’ve seen Zeke bounce back and carry the Cowboys on his back. The mobility and threat of Prescott will only help the fifth-year ball-carrier.

Dallas has placed a major focus on defense through the NFL Draft and free agency. After the 3-4 experiment failed miserably a season ago, Jerry Jones hired former Falcons head coach Dan Quinn in the offseason, as defensive coordinator. Quinn brings back his famous 4-3. It’s impossible to deny the talent spread throughout the Cowboys’ defensive unit. 

The linebacker corps is beyond impressive. The Cowboys used their first-round NFL Draft selection on Penn State star linebacker Micah Parsons, filling out a unit already led by Leighton Vander Esch and Jaylon Smith. The secondary is led by second-year cornerback Trevon Diggs, who came into his own by the end of 2020. Diggs has the skillset to morph into the next great shutdown corner in the league, and it could happen quickly.

Getting pressure after opposing quarterbacks is sort of a coin flip. Demarcus Lawrence hasn’t been a dud, but his next-level production hasn’t been on display since the five-year, $105-million extension before the 2019 campaign. Randy Gregory has everything that makes defensive coordinators salivate, but he hasn’t been able to stay on the field.

Path to the NFC Title

This isn’t the “NFC Least” from 2020. In just one season, Ron Rivera has worked wonders in Washington. Nothing is certain, but it’s tough to envision the Cowboys outlasting the Washington defense — led by Chase Young, Montez Sweat and first-round selection Jamin Davis— to win the division.

The Eagles and Giants feel similar; although New York could catch teams off guard. Daniel Jones is not a bad quarterback and the Giants defense was crippling a season ago. The Dallas Cowboys added free-agent wide receiver Kenny Golladay and drafted Florida multi-purpose weapon Kadarius Toney. Saquon Barkley returns from a season-ending injury. If all of those weapons remain healthy, then the Giants could surprise everyone. 

Philly is riding on a young, unproven coach and second-year quarterback. It’s tough to envision the Eagles just rolling over in any game, but they shouldn’t be a major threat for winning the division, either. We tend to agree with Athlon on this one. Dallas is solid heading into 2021. Still, the end result is more about the competition the Cowboys will face, not their talent level.

Jerry Jones will not be happy at the end of 2021.