There are a lot of people jumping on the Cowboys bandwagon, including the national media.
The Dallas Cowboys' offseason moves have seen a lot, and I mean a lot of people buying stock in Brian Schottenheimer's team for 2026.
Am I one of those? Not yet.
I am still waiting to see how all these defensive moves come together under Christian Parker, and what the offense will look like in Year 2 with Schottenheimer.
But there's no denying that there is a level of hope and optimism not seen for a couple of seasons, so that's nice. But I'm holding fire on the Cowboys doing this or Dallas doing that in 2026.
After all, we aren't even at training camp yet.
But that hasn't stopped a lot of people from giving their predictions for the 2026 season, with the Cowboys, for most, returning to the playoffs after a two-year absense.
NFL.com's Ari Bhanpuri has released his 2026 predictions for the Cowboys, and he has Schottenheimer's team finishing 11-6.
That's fine. But there's more.
Dallas wins the division and is the No. 2 seed in the NFC behind the 12-5 Los Angeles Rams. For reference, Philadelphia is 10-7 here.
“Injuries and a woeful defense undermined Brian Schottenheimer's debut campaign, but an offseason overhaul, including a new DC and several personnel upgrades, gives this club a totally different vibe entering 2026,” Bhanpuri wrote.
“I think it's plausible the Cowboys end the year as they begin it, with wins over both the Giants and Commanders. After all, assuming Dak Prescott is under center for Dallas' three division home tilts, you can go ahead and mark those as W's now -- the dude hasn't lost to an NFC East opponent at AT&T Stadium since Nov. 2017 (he's on a 19-win heater!).”
In his game-by-game predictions, Bhanpuri has the Cowboys rattling off the first three games, but by Week 13, Dallas is 7-6.
The Cowboys then rattle off four straight wins to I assume, overtake the Eagles for the division and clinch playoff football. That's not too outlandish is it?
The games of note that Dallas wins? At the Packers, at home to the Eagles, at the Rams, and the Ravens in Week 3. Bhanpuri has the Cowboys losing to the Houston Texans, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, San Francisco 49ers, and the Seattle Seahawks.
Plus, the Cowboys go 5-1 in the division as well.
So, an 11-6 record, I think if it were offered to fans right now, they'd take it, so too would they take being the No. 2 seed and division winner.
There are a lot of fans and media alike who are hopping on the Dallas bandwagon in 2026.
Time will tell if it is the right decision.
