Dak Prescott, Amari Cooper, Ezekiel Elliott, Dallas Cowboys. (Photo by Ronald Martinez/Getty Images)
Marcus Spears says he is not optimistic about Dallas’ Super Bowl chances.
The Dallas Cowboys are one of the most storied franchises in the NFL and have won six Super Bowl titles thanks to great dynasties in the 1970s and 1990s.
But since their last world title in 1995, the Cowboys have been unable to replicate past success and have not even made it to an NFC Championship game since that last championship.
While Dallas has had some incredibly mediocre teams over the past 25 seasons, including in 2015 when they ended with a record of 4-12, they have been able to produce some very solid teams that made it to the playoffs.
And over the past four seasons, while being led by quarterback Dak Prescott and running back Ezekiel Elliot, the Cowboys have not put up a losing record, but have still failed to advance past the divisional round in the NFL playoffs.
A good deal of the criticism for the Cowboys either struggling to play well in the playoffs or for not even making the playoffs, like last year or in 2017, fell on former head coach Jason Garrett.
At the end of last season, after missing out on the playoffs with a record of 8-8, Cowboys owner Jerry Jones announced that Garrett’s contract would not be renewed. Now the Cowboys are under the control of former Packers head coach Mike McCarthy.
Despite the coaching changes, Spears thinks the Cowboys have larger flaws
The addition of a Super Bowl winning head coach has made many more optimistic, but not former Cowboys defensive lineman Marcus Spears. Spears appeared on ESPN’s GET UP! and explained why he thinks the Cowboys will not make it to an NFC Championship game within the next three years.
Spears said that although the Cowboys defense is good, they are not able to perform well against high-level NFL quarterbacks.
If you look at them against top-tier quarterbacks, they struggle mightily, and that is my issue.
He also went onto say that the Cowboys are certainly a talented team, but are in a conference with many other great teams who are led by elite quarterbacks, such as Aaron Rodgers, Russell Wilson, Tom Brady, and Drew Brees.
Spears does make a good point in that the NFC is a very talented conference with many other teams that are already more established than the Cowboys. The Packers, Seahawks, Saints, 49ers, and even the Falcons have had better success within the NFC over the past few years compared to the Cowboys.
But while the Cowboys have not shown themselves as an NFC Championship level team, Spears does not even mention McCarthy as the new head coach. As Spears admits, the Cowboys are a very talented team, and when talent is not producing like it should, it usually stems from the coaching.
The Cowboys addressed that problem by hiring McCarthy, and with better coaching, it is certainly more likely that the Cowboys won’t struggle against the best teams in the NFC, and will have a better chance of making a deep playoff run.