The Cowboys missed out on the postseason for the second consecutive season. But they are involved in some playoff-related draft news.
For the second straight season, the Dallas Cowboys are watching the playoffs from the couch.
A 7-9-1 record tells us the Cowboys under Brian Schottenheimer in 2025 simply weren't a good football team.
Yes, the offense was a top-liner, but defense and special teams? Both were a disaster.
We have said many times that if the Cowboys had a competent defense, they would be a playoff team. But trading away Micah Parsons a week before the season began signaled that 2025 wouldn't be the year Dallas did anything productive.
The offense, for the majority of the year, was the straw that stirred the Cowboys' drink, but it was all undone by a horrific defense that couldn't stop allowing touchdowns.
And for Schottenheimer, he believes his team is good enough to be playing playoff football.
"You look back at our shortcomings and the teams playing this weekend, and I'm sick that we're not playing this weekend, we're good enough to play this weekend," Schottenheimer said.
Sorry to break it to you, Brian, but your record and the play of your defense, and even the offense at times, suggests you are not.
So ... the reality is, the Cowboys are observers this wild-card weekend, watching the likes of the Chicago Bears play the likes of the Green Bay Packers.
In 2025, Dallas played both teams - and couldn't manage a win as they got embarrassed at Chicago and tied Green Bay 40-all in OT at home.
We did learn this from the Saturday night outing, though ...
New info on Dallas' draft position.
The Cowboys' own pick is at No. 12 in April. By virtue of Green Bay's result here - a nail-biting 31-27 loss at Chicago - their pick in the Micah Parsons trade is locked in at No. 20.
That makes the 2025 failure seem a little more acceptable, right?
Looking back, games against the Detroit Lions and Minnesota Vikings were must-win games. Dallas lost both. Not to mention losses to the Carolina Panthers, Arizona Cardinals, and the 34-17 loss to the New York Giants to close the year.
But again, Schottenheimer and his desire to win the turnover battle 3-0 every week turned out to be his team's biggest bugaboo in 2025.
“Unfortunately starting with me, we didn't play good enough in terms of the ball, minus nine in the giveaway, takeaway ratio," Schottenheimer added. "That's terrible. We have to protect the football on offense.
"We did not do that at a high enough level, and quite frankly, we did not get enough turnovers."
The offense was forced to play near-perfect football just to be in games, and the defense couldn't get out of its own way. It allowed 30+ points in nine of the 17 season games.
Not to mention the constant miscommunication and explosive plays given up.
So, while there was plenty to like offensively, the Cowboys' shortcomings on defense and special teams mean that they aren't good enough to be in the playoffs this season.
And the 7-9-1 record is proof of that. ... as is the top-12 pick that now gets paired with pick No. 20.