5 Bold predictions for the Dallas Cowboys' 2021 season
With the NFC East in a vulnerable state, expectations are high for the 2021 Dallas Cowboys. The team has all the tools to have a tremendous season this year.
Dak Prescott is back healthy after his gruesome injury last year. Ezekiel Elliott has reportedly shown up to training camp in "top shape." Amari Cooper, CeeDee Lamb and Michael Gallup are a trio of star wide receivers who could all be 1,000-yard receivers. The Cowboys also stacked their defense through the draft.
The New York Giants will be the Cowboys' biggest competition for the division title, but there are still question marks around quarterback Daniel Jones' ability to lead the offense. The Philadelphia Eagles are a team in transition, and then there's the eccentric Ryan Fitzpatrick in Washington, who could take the team to the playoffs or a top-five draft pick.
Dak Prescott is the best quarterback on the most star-studded offense in the division and anything less than a divisional round appearance will be a bad season for the Cowboys. Will they reach the playoffs? Or will they disappoint yet again?
Here are five bold predictions for the Dallas Cowboys' 2021 season.
Five bold predictions for the Dallas Cowboys' 2021 season
#1 - QB Dak Prescott wins CPOY and MVP in 2021
Dak Prescott was on pace for a historic season last year before suffering a horrible injury that ended his campaign. He was averaging an astonishing 371 yards per game through five games.
In 2019, he averaged 306 yards per game and finished the season with 4,902 yards, 30 TDs, and 11 INTs. He seems the clear-cut favorite to win the Comeback Player of the Year award ahead of Joe Burrow and Christian McCaffrey.
Dak Prescott currently has the sixth-best odds to win the MVP in 2021 at +1500. His ankle looks good and we'll get a better look during pre-season. With a high-powered offense at his disposal, Prescott can win the MVP award.
#2 - Dallas Cowboys has the sixth 1,000-yard trio in NFL history
The 2008 Arizona Cardinals were the last team to have a 1000-yard receiving trio in Larry Fitzgerald (1,431), Anquan Boldin (1,038), and Steve Breaston (1,006).
Amari Cooper, CeeDee Lamb, and Michael Gallup have the potential to eclipse 1,000 yards. Both Cooper and Gallup had 1,000+ receiving yards in 2019 and Lamb was just shy of the mark in 2020 without Dak Prescott for most of the season.
If Prescott can find his rhythm, Cooper, Lamb and Gallup could etch their names in the history books as the sixth trio to record 1000 yards in the same season.
#3 - Dallas Cowboys trade for CB Xavien Howard with Leighton Vander Esch in package
The Dallas Cowboys are one of the teams that could benefit from adding Xavien Howard. They need a cornerback alongside Trevon Diggs/Kelvin Joseph.
Leighton Vander Esch is in the final year of his deal and had his fifth-year option declined by the Dallas Cowboys. The team could make a move for Howard to further bolster their Super Bowl aspirations.
#4 - TE Blake Jarwin gets traded to the Buffalo Bills
The Buffalo Bills have been interested in acquiring Zach Ertz, but the Philadelphia Eagles seem willing to keep him around. Blake Jarwin was injured last year and Dalton Schultz stepped up with 615 yards and four touchdowns and will likely be the team's first-choice tight end.
If the Bills offer a good package, the Cowboys won't shy away from parting ways with the tight end.
#5 - Dallas Cowboys make it to NFC Championship Game
The NFC East title should be easy enough to capture, securing a playoff berth for the Dallas Cowboys.
The Green Bay Packers and Tampa Bay Buccaneers will battle for the #1 seed, meaning Dallas has to take one of them out to make it to the NFC Championship Game. Their best bet is to face the Packers over Tom Brady and the Bucs.