Following a week off, the Cowboys came back stronger than ever, thrashing the Rams 43-20 to hand Sean McVay’s team their worst loss since 2019.
After a few inconsistent games to begin the season, the offense began to show true life, and both the defense and special teams scored points.
What does all this mean, then? Let’s examine the data in more detail to see how the Cowboys stack up in various efficiency categories. It’s important to note that, with the NFL season approaching halfway over, weighted DVOA—a mix of DVOA-based preseason projections and actual performance this season—will replace DAVE in next week’s analytics roundup.
Cowboys Efficiency at a Glance
| DVOA | DVOA Rank | DVOA Rank Previous Rank | DAVE | DAVE Rank | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Offense | -2.5% | 17th | 18th | 3.6% | 12th |
| Defense | -16.5% | 3rd | 4th | -9.8% | 3rd |
| Special Teams | 2.5% | 6th | 16th | 1.5 | 6th |
| Overall | 16.5% | 8th | 11th | 14.8% | 7th |
This week, the Cowboys improved in each of the three game phases, showing progress all around. The biggest jump came from their special teams, which went up ten spots, but that will only happen after a huge punt return, a blocked punt safety, and a 58-yard field goal.
The team’s DAVE total places them in seventh place, while their overall DVOA puts them up to eighth.
So the Cowboys are still in a very excellent position even if they are currently only somewhat behind their preseason projections.
It’s important to note that the Cowboys climbed two spots to eighth place in overall DVOA, while the Eagles fell two spots to ninth. That points to a rather evenly matched game this Sunday.
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The EPA-based team tiers also reflect a pretty good standing for the Cowboys. They’re currently fourth in total EPA/play, just slightly ahead of the Ravens.
It’s worth noting that the Ravens lead the league in DVOA by a pretty wide margin, so that’s esteemed company to be in. Also, the Eagles are seventh in total EPA/play and significantly behind Dallas defensively.
Offense
Cowboys Offensive Efficiency
| Grade | Rank | |
|---|---|---|
| Offensive DVOA | -2.5% | 17th |
| Pass DVOA | 14.6% | 13th |
| Run DVOA | -14.5% | 23rd |
| EPA/Play | 0.047 | 6th |
| EPA/Dropback | 0.141 | 7th |
| EPA/Rush | -0.092 | 15th |
On Sunday, the Cowboys offense executed almost everything flawlessly. They were far more efficient overall because they used a lot more motion, made more deep shots, and scored twice as many touchdowns as field goals.
In Week 8, the Cowboys had an incredibly successful day at work, finishing fifth in both EPA/play and success rate.
Their attacking performance increased overall, albeit by different amounts. The run game only moved up two points in the DVOA ranking, while the pass game saw a significant increase of four spots.
Overall, the run game performed better in the game; yet, there is definitely room for improvement, particularly when it comes to running in between tackles.
Dak Prescott’s Efficiency
| Grade | Rank | |
|---|---|---|
| QBR | 65.3 | 7th |
| EPA/play | 0.164 | 5th |
| CPOE | 3.8 | 10th |
| DVOA | 8.9% | 12th |
| DYAR | 320 | 12th |
Dak Prescott had a heck of a game. He hit 300+ yards for the first time this year and threw four touchdowns. Only three quarterbacks had a higher EPA/play or CPOE than Prescott this week.
He did have the one interception, though it came on a tipped pass. In fact, Pro Football Focus didn’t even chart that play as a turnover worthy play, as Prescott threw zero in this game. He did, however, uncork the deep ball with three big time throws and five attempts over 20 yards downfield, three of them resulting in touchdowns.
Cowboys Offensive Line Efficiency
| Grade | Rank | |
|---|---|---|
| Pressure Rate | 15.5% | T-3rd |
| Adjusted Sack Rate | 8.0% | 20th |
| Blown Block Rate | 2.42% | 11th |
| Pass Block Win Rate | 54% | 17th |
| Run Block Win Rate | 72% | 8th |
| Adjusted Line Yards | 4.16 | 14th |
Tyron Smith became a last-second inactive in this one after some optimism that he’d play. Chuma Edoga made his fifth start of the year and struggled, giving up two pressures and a sack. Edoga wasn’t the only one either, as both Zack Martin and Tyler Biadasz allowed a sack on the day.
Yet, the Cowboys remain near the top of the league in pressure rate despite ranking very low in adjusted sack rate. In short, the offensive line isn’t allowing many pressures but when they do, those pressures are turning into sacks at a high rate. That’s even with Prescott having the sixth-lowest time to throw, which is less than ideal.
Defense
Cowboys Defensive Efficiency
| Grade | Rank | |
|---|---|---|
| Defensive DVOA | -16.5% | 3rd |
| Pass Defense DVOA | -16.6% | 3rd |
| Run Defense DVOA | -16.5% | 9th |
| Pass Rush Win Rate | 59% | 2nd |
| Run Stop Win Rate | 30% | 23rd |
| EPA/Play | -0.150 | 3rd |
| EPA/Dropback Allowed | -0.146 | 4th |
| EPA/Rush Allowed | -0.157 | 7th |
The efficiency measures show that the Dallas defense has rebounded from their awful performance against the 49ers. Only the Browns and Ravens, who are both currently playing at historically high DVOA grades, are ahead of them in defensive DVOA.
To put things in perspective, Dallas’ DVOA grade of -16.5% is currently better than it has been in either of the previous two seasons played under Dan Quinn.
Although there is no assurance that this rate will remain so high, it does offer important context that this defense is outperforming previous years. Saying that before a game against the Eagles is a smart move.
Cowboys Pass Coverage
| Targets | Completions | Completion Rate | Passer Rating Allowed | ADOT When Targeted | Air Yards Allowed | Yards After Catch | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Trevon Diggs | 8 | 2 | 25.0% | 1.0 | 15.9 | 6 | 20 |
| Stephon Gilmore | 36 | 18 | 50.0% | 74.3 | 11.0 | 187 | 117 |
| DaRon Bland | 36 | 17 | 47.2% | 22.6 | 9.3 | 125 | 54 |
| Jourdan Lewis | 19 | 12 | 63.2% | 131.1 | 7.9 | 90 | 78 |
| Jayron Kearse | 18 | 15 | 83.3% | 82.4 | 7.8 | 109 | 59 |
| Malik Hooker | 8 | 6 | 75.0% | 116.7 | 12.5 | 78 | 70 |
| Donovan Wilson | 11 | 9 | 81.8% | 125.8 | 6.5 | 32 | 44 |
| Leighton Vander Esch | 7 | 5 | 71.4% | 87.2 | 0.4 | -1 | 44 |
| Markquese Bell | 18 | 14 | 77.8% | 89.4 | 1.7 | 11 | 87 |
| Damone Clark | 15 | 13 | 86.7% | 91.9 | -0.5 | -10 | 101 |
| Juanyeh Thomas | 3 | 1 | 33.3% | 42.4 | 1.7 | -5 | 10 |
The Cowboys’ lack of activity at the trade deadline caused a lot of concern, but the statistics don’t really show that there was a clear weakness that needed to be fixed. Still, the slot corner position would have to be the one place to strive and strengthen.
Jourdan Lewis is the only starting corner who permits completions more than 50% of the time, and he has not improved. Three of the nine throwing touchdowns allowed by the Cowboys can also be attributed to him.
That’s unfortunate that Lewis missed the season’s opening game, but it’s also important to keep in mind that a little more than a year ago, Lewis sustained a potentially fatal Lisfranc injury.
Perhaps the team believes Lewis is trending upward right now, which isn’t entirely without merit given his body of work. Even with his struggles, though, the Cowboys secondary has managed to dominate this year.
