Why the Cowboys getting injured players back still may not be enough to save the season

Injuries, of course, are part of the game in the NFL, but the Dallas Cowboys seem to have been bitten by the injury bug harder than usual this year. They’ve had several key contributors sidelined due to various degrees of injuries so far this season, but fortunately a number of them could be making their triumphant return to the field shortly.

For the 3-3 Cowboys, this is good news. Any team who has some of their best players sidelined usually struggle to string wins together with their backups inserted into the lineup, and Dallas hasn’t been the exception. In fact, seeing them sit at .500 right now with the multitude of injuries they sustained is some encouraging with all things considered.

Think about it for a second. Dallas has been without their top four pass rushers for at least the past couple of weeks and their WR2 Brandin Cooks as well. If that wasn’t enough they’ve also had to overcome DaRon Bland missing in the secondary so far this season. And, that’s not even mentioning the players who have been banged up through the first six weeks.

So yes, the Cowboys sitting at 3-3 right now is a bright spot in what has been a rather frustrating start to the 2024 season for the organization. And if you’re looking for further encouragement, they could be welcoming back a number of reinforcements in the not-too-distant future, further strengthening their roster for the remainder of the season.

While getting some key reinforcements back in action inspires little bit of hope for the remainder of the season, it doesn’t necessarily mean the Cowboys will start playing better. Sadly, reinforcements or not, the Cowboys simply aren’t playing very well so far this season. It doesn’t matter who is suited up if the team as a whole is playing poorly.

The Cowboys need to improve in several areas both offensively and defensively. Offensively they need some semblance of a running game, need their receivers to be more detail-oriented to get open, and the red zone efficiency needs to improve dramatically. The expected reinforcements won’t help much there.

Defensively, the Cowboys have been trying to tread water with the number of bodies they’ve been without. Getting Micah Parsons back in action will definitely help rushing the passer and the season debut of DaRon Bland will no doubt help Dallas’ pass defense. But, even those two returning can’t improve the overall play of the entire defense.

Overall, the Cowboys need to improve in almost every aspect coming out of their bye week. If not, the incoming reinforcements may be too little too late. Just because key contributors will be back in action doesn’t necessarily equate to better play all around. The responsibility falls on the shoulders of each individual player moving forward.