Emmitt Smith believes Cowboys need more depth at wide receiver amidst offensive struggles
It’s only Week 3, but it’s safe to say that Cowboys fans are already worried.
Fingers are pointed primarily at the defense following Sunday’s Week 2 loss versus the Saints, and rightfully so, after they allowed 44 points and nearly 200 rushing yards— awful.
But we can’t let Dallas’ somewhat anemic offense, who has struggled for two straight weeks now, off the hook so easily.
Sure, they put up 33 points on the Browns, the league’s #1 ranked defense in 2023, but the Cowboys got to those 33 points mostly thanks to Pro Bowl kicker Brandon Aubrey’s four made field goals, as well as a 60-yard punt return for a touchdown by KaVontae Turpin.
In a recent interview with Sports Seriously, Cowboys Hall of Fame running back Emmitt Smith did not hold back when it came to his former team’s struggles on the attacking side.
“Offensively, we’ve got to get it together. The best thing we’ve got going for us right now is our special teams, and that’s kicking field goals,” Smith said.
Scoring touchdowns is the ticket in this league, and field goals aren’t going to cut it.
Meanwhile, Dak continues to struggle with explosive chunk plays, which could be due to the lack of depth at the wide receiver position. After CeeDee Lamb, and then TE Jake Ferguson, when healthy, there’s a huge drop-off.
When asked if the Cowboys should go out and get more help at wide receiver, Smith couldn’t have been quicker to say yes.
“Most definitely. No disrespect to Brandin Cooks or Jalen Tolbert, but somebody needs to emerge. It’s easier to just contain CeeDee through zones and limit his throws down the field, so someone else has to emerge as that legit go-to threat outside of CeeDee Lamb, and with Ferguson out, it’s making things really tough.”
Additionally, Smith thinks that the running back depth chart leaves a lot to be desired.
“They aren’t putting an emphasis or a focus on it. In the Cleveland Browns game, they went up against a very solid defensive front and we ran the ball effectively with Dowdle and Zeke— and we threw the ball effectively off of some of those runs.
Unfortunately in this game against the Saints, the Saints were scoring at such a high pace, we couldn’t keep up with it, so when that happens, the run game suffers. You try to slow the game down by running the ball, but if you aren’t running effectively, that makes things even worse.”
Smith is right— and It’s hard to imagine Dallas surviving this season without an immediate boost in offensive production. There are ways to resurrect it, whether that be with scheme or personnel changes (maybe it’s time to bring up Dalvin Cook from the practice squad?!), but they can’t afford to force the issue.
And as of now, no one can escape the blame. The Cowboys’ offense is struggling in all phases and everyone seems responsible.
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