No team in the NFL is more popular than the Dallas Cowboys as they always are involved in the highest-rated and most-wagered games each year. The Cowboys enter 2020 with a new head coach. Here’s an overview of the Dallas Cowboys and their NFL Odds as it stands.
Dallas Cowboys Odds After Free Agency Week 1
2019 recap
Dallas was a major disappointment last year at 8-8, finishing second in the NFC East behind the Philadelphia Eagles. The Cowboys’ chances of winning the division essentially ended in a Week 16 17-9 loss in Philadelphia. Eagles cornerback Sidney Jones broke up Dak Prescott’s fourth-down pass to wide receiver Michael Gallup in the end zone with 1:15 left in the game. The Cowboys would have clinched their second straight NFC East title with a win.
Entering Week 17, Dallas had to beat Washington and have the Eagles lose to the Giants. The Cowboys did their part with a 47-16 win over the Redskins. Prescott threw four touchdown passes, three of them to Michael Gallup, while falling 1 yard short of Tony Romo’s club record of 4,903 yards passing in a season. Alas, Philly did beat the Giants.
That Washington would be the last as Cowboys coach for Jason Garrett.
Dallas Cowboys offseason moves
Owner Jerry Jones opted to not bring back Garrett for an 11th season and hired former Packers Super Bowl-winning coach Mike McCarthy. He brings plenty of experience to the Cowboys, winning 61.8% of his regular-season games in 13 seasons, from 2006 to 2018, with Green Bay. He led the Packers to the playoffs nine times, including a Super Bowl XLV win over the Pittsburgh Steelers. McCarthy also finished with 10 or more wins in eight seasons. McCarthy, the ninth head coach in franchise history, has an overall coaching record of 125-77-2.
For what it’s worth, former Cowboys star quarterback Troy Aikman, a Hall of Famer, loved the move.
“I don’t think they could have hired a better coach,” Aikman said. “I loved him when he was in Green Bay. I loved the way he approached it with us — he was always honest. I liked his style, liked the way his teams were prepared and his resume speaks for itself. I believe if he’s allowed to go and run this team the way that he has in Green Bay, I think they’ll have success.”
McCarthy will keep most of the offense the same, and offensive coordinator Kellen Moore will continue to be the playcaller.
The Cowboys as of this writing have not agreed on a long-term deal with QB Dak Prescott but he’s not going anywhere as the team slapped the franchise tag on him. With the move, the Cowboys have until July 15 to work out a long-term contract. If no deal is reached, Prescott will have to play the 2020 season on the tag. He is the sixth quarterback ever to receive the exclusive tag, and Kirk Cousins with the Washington Redskins in 2017 is the only quarterback who did not reach a long-term deal and played the full season under the tag.
Prescott threw for a career-high 4,902 yards — the second-best total in the NFL — and 30 touchdown passes last year. In his first three seasons, he had not thrown for more than 3,885 yards or 23 touchdown passes.
By putting the tag on Prescott, the team risked losing top receiver Amari Cooper but he was re-signed to a five-year, $100 million deal. The deal surpassed Saints receiver Michael Thomas’ $96.25 million extension to become the richest receiver deal in NFL history. Cooper’s $20 million average annual salary slots second behind Falcons receiver Julio Jones’ $22 million. In 2019, Prescott, Cooper and Ezekiel Elliott became the first trio in Cowboys history to have one player throw for 4,000 yards, another catch 1,000 yards and another rush for 1,000 yards.
Dallas said goodbye to long-time tight end Jason Witten as he signed with the Raiders. The team also lost safety Jeff Heath but replaced him with Ha Ha Clinton-Dix, who played with the Bears last year. Clinton-Dix has never missed a game with injury in his six-year career. Dallas also added defensive tackle Gerald McCoy, formerly of the Panthers. Last season in Carolina, McCoy had five sacks, 37 tackles, seven tackles for loss and 13 quarterback hits. He’s been a durable player for the majority of his career — missing only five starts over the last five seasons.
2020 opponents
- Home: New York Giants, Philadelphia Eagles, Washington Redskins, Arizona Cardinals, Atlanta Falcons, Cleveland Browns, Pittsburgh Steelers, San Francisco 49ers.
- Away: New York Giants, Philadelphia Eagles, Washington Redskins, Baltimore Ravens, Cincinnati Bengals, Los Angeles Rams, Minnesota Vikings, Seattle Seahawks.
Dallas Cowboys Odds to win Super Bowl 55
Dallas is +2000 to win the Super Bowl next February in Tampa.
