So much hope and expectation are being placed on the defense under Christian Parker, so much so that failure isn't seen as an option.
As we turn our attention to minicamp and then training camp, the Dallas Cowboys' hype train has been going full steam since Caleb Downs was drafted.
With Christian Parker, the new hotshot defensive coordinator, taking over from Matt Eberflus, the hope and excitement surrounding the Cowboys right now are real.
They have a coordinator who is seen by many to be head-coach material and a stud in developing players.
There were a handful of free agency signings, headlined by Rashan Gary, Jalen Thompson and Cobie Durant, not to mention the other draftees like Malachi Lawrence, plus Quinnen Williams and Kenny Clark getting a full offseason to work, and a healthy DeMarvion Overshown, too.
All of that, along with the other coaching hires on defense, has some thinking a quick turnaround is nearly a foregone conclusion.
I get it. The way the Cowboys have moved this offseason has been polar opposite to previous years.
The coaching search was different; the entire process was, to be honest, plus free agency saw Dallas be a little more aggressive, and then the draft capped it all off.
But all of the Cowboys' hope and optimism are tied mostly to Parker and the defense being what many expect them to be. A far better unit than last season.
The offense is the offense. We roughly know what we are going to get from them. But the defense? That is a question mark right now.
Yes, we all have an idea of the impact Parker is going to make, and by all accounts, he is as advertised as a coach and the way he is teaching his players.
But I offer you this one question, Cowboys Nation, and it is enough to send a shiver down your spine.
What if it doesn't work?
Now, I'm not saying it won't, I'm simply saying that so much pressure has been placed on Parker's and Downs' shoulders to be the saving grace for the defense, that what if they struggle? I don't think it has even been discussed.
Remember, Downs is a rookie, and so too is Parker in terms of calling plays. A learning curve will take place.
What if this defense struggles? Given the offseason message of hope and optimism, that would be nightmare fuel for Cowboys Nation.
What if it takes seven, eight weeks, or the full year for Parker to get settled as a play-caller? What if Downs struggles?
For the record, I think Parker and Downs will be as advertised. What that looks like come the regular season in terms of what the defense can do, I don't know.
But so much is already being expected of this defense and its first-time play-caller that failure doesn't even seem like an option right now.
Which would make it such a devastating blow if it did.
