Dallas, TX
‘To live and work in Dallas is to love Dallas’ and other committed quotes of the week
“If you are super rich, $20 is nothing to you … if you’re poor, $20 is a massive amount. And so the use of toll roads is very much about creating a system of transportation that is reliable for people who have the ability to pay the toll cost.” — Yonah Freemark, a senior research associate at the Washington, D.C.-based Metropolitan Housing and Communities Policy Center at the Urban Institute, commenting on North Texas’ toll roads and the managed toll lanes. (Monday, The Dallas Morning News)
“I didn’t have much time to make a decision. I had to choose between prison and leaving Iran. With a heavy heart, I chose exile.” — A statement by Iranian director Mohammad Rasoulof, whose film “The Seed of the Sacred Fig” is competing in the Cannes Film Festival. Rasoulof said he was sentenced to eight years in prison, flogging and confiscation of property, which will add to a previous sentence. (Monday, Associated Press)
“They don’t go like a battering ram to attack the ship and sink it, and they might do so if that were their intention.” — Alfredo López, a marine biologist and spokesman for the Atlantic Orca Working Group, commenting on a group of killer whales that sunk a sailboat near the coast of Gibraltar (Tuesday, El País)
“We should not go back to business as usual, right? I have a child and a child on the way, My wife was scared out of her mind, not knowing what was going to happen, right? And nobody thanked us.” — Tyree Dean, an English teacher at Wilmer-Hutchins High School who was part of a walkout of students protesting the lack of security after a shooting incident at the school in April (Tuesday, KXAS-TV NBC5)
“It’s a wonderful celebration, and we hope … that Dorothy Jean inspires more students. … But this is still something so rare and unique.” — Leslie Manson, an Arizona State assistant professor, talking about Dorothy Jean Tillman II, a 17-year-old who just earned a doctorate in behavioral health. (Tuesday, ABC News)
“I was the only person I knew who wrote stories, though I didn’t tell them to anybody, and as far as I knew, at least for a while, I was the only person who could do this in the world.” — Canadian writer Alice Munro, in an interview after winning the Nobel Prize in literature in 2013. She died last week. (Tuesday, NPR)
“To live and work in Dallas is to love Dallas. … This is the right place to complete my service.” — Police Chief Eddie García, after the city announced that an agreement had been reached to keep him until 2027. (Thursday, The Dallas Morning News)
“People need to know that, you know, who they’re talking to on Instacart is not necessarily who’s going to show up at your house.” – “Law & Order” actor Angie Harmon who is suing Instacart after the delivery person allegedly shot her dog at her North Carolina home. (Thursday, The Dallas Morning News)
“The baby itself becomes a rounding error. It took us a while to wrap our heads around that.” — Dustin Marshall, an evolutionary biologist at Monash University, who discovered, along with his students, that the energy stored in a human baby’s tissues accounts for only about 4% of the total energy costs of pregnancy. The other 96% is extra fuel required by a woman’s own body. (Thursday, The New York Times)
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The Dallas Cowboys boasted one of the best offenses in the NFL this past season, but it wasn’t enough to get them into the playoffs. Even with Dak Prescott, CeeDee Lamb, George Pickens, and Javonte Williams, they were unable to make up for their porous defense, finishing the season 7-9-1.
This offseason, Dallas was on a mission to fix that defense. Jerry Jones vowed he would put in the work and while they might not have an elite unit, they definitely look improved on paper.
With the biggest moves this offseason done, let’s rank the position groups for the Cowboys, which begins with the most obvious strength.
Wide Receiver
CeeDee Lamb and George Pickens are arguably the best duo in the game, which makes this the Cowboys’ strongest position on its own. Throw in Ryan Flournoy, who had a breakout season in 2025, and it looks even better.
Dallas has depth beyond this as well, with KaVontae Turpin, who had 396 yards receiving last year, as their WR4. Even rookie seventh-round pick Anthony Smith has some upside.
Safety
Rookie Caleb Downs immediately makes this group better, but he’s not the only addition. The Cowboys also signed Jalen Thompson and P.J. Locke in free agency. For good measure, they also have Malik Hooker as they turned a perennial weakness into a strength this offseason.
Quarterback
Dak Prescott carries this group, especially after another spectacular season. Behind Prescott, however, the Cowboys are still strong with Joe Milton III and Sam Howell. Either player could wind up as the QB2 and could keep the offense going in the short-term.
Defensive Line
Defensive tackle has been a weakness for years, but Jones decided that had to change. Entering 2026, Dallas has Quinnen Williams, Kenny Clark, Otitto Ogbonnia, Jonathan Bullard, and rookie LT Overton, which is a solid group.
Offensive Line
The interior of the Dallas offensive line could make this one of the best groups overall with Cooper Beebe, Tyler Smith, and Tyler Guyton all standing out at their respective positions.
The problem is that offensive tackle has some concerns. Tyler Guyton hasn’t lived up to his draft status and Terence Steele hasn’t played up to his contract. Drew Shelton could eventually take over for one, but the rookie needs time to develop.
EDGE
There’s not an All-Pro on the edge like there was when Micah Parsons was in Dallas, but the group is much deeper this season. Rashan Gary, Donovan Ezeiruaku, Malachi Lawrence, and James Houston can all have big roles this season. They’re even going to try Marist Liufau on the edge, but the depth might be an issue for him.
Tight End
Jake Ferguson had eight touchdowns in 2025, which was huge. The problem is that he struggled with ball security, hardly had any yards after the catch, and finished with an average of just 7.3 yards per reception.
Luke Schoonmaker has been the TE2, but he could be pushed by Brevyn Spann-Ford. Undrafted free agent Michael Trigg is a player to watch, but he’s unlikely to produce much as a rookie.
Cornerback
Defensive coordinator Christian Parker is a fan of Shavon Revel, and if he can turn him into a starter, that would be huge for this position.
Right now, there are far too many questions, with the durability of DaRon Bland being chief among them.
Entering OTAs, there’s a chance free agent pickup Cobie Durant could be their best option at cornerback. He’s a solid addition, but they need someone else to step up as well.
Linebacker
We recently noted that linebacker remains the greatest need on this team. They did a great job by trading for Dee Winters and rookie Jaishawn Barham could wind up being a great fit.
That said, they need DeMarvion Overshown to stay healthy for this group to succeed. If he misses time, their lack of depth will hurt them.
Running Back
Linebacker might be the primary need, but running back comes in last here due to the concerns behind Javonte Williams.
There’s no denying that Williams is a stud. He broke out in 2025 with 1,201 yards but the depth is questionable. If second-year back Jaydon Blue improves, this position group would climb the ranks in a hurry. For now, however, there are too many question marks.
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Morton started 15 games in 1972 for an injured Staubach, who eventually returned in the playoffs. The Cowboys decided to trade Morton in 1974 to the Giants, who sent back a first-round pick, which turned out to be the No. 2 overall pick in 1975. The Cowboys used that selection to take Randy White, a 10-time Pro Bowler and future Hall of Famer.
Ironically enough, White’s best game was likely Super Bowl XII, when he was named Co-MVP with Harvey Martin. The Cowboys’ Doomsday defense dominated the Broncos, who were quarterbacked by Morton.
Overall, Morton played for the Cowboys, Giants and Broncos before officially retiring at the end of the 1982 season.
His career ended with 27,908 passing yards, ranking him 71st in NFL history, just ahead of Hall of Famer Joe Namath (27,663).
With the official NFL schedule coming this week, the Dallas Cowboys have revealed when, where and against who their Week 1 contest will be.
The Cowboys announced that they will square off against the New York Giants on the road in Week 1, with the game set for Sunday, Sept. 13, at 7:20 p.m. CT. So, it’s prime time for the Cowboys to start the season.
This is the second game we know about for the Cowboys this year. Of course, we know they will be playing on Thanksgiving, also.
The official schedule will drop on May 14, the NFL announced last week. Schedules for all 32 teams will be revealed on ESPN and the NFL Network, but each team will unveil its own schedule on social media, also.
The Cowboys were always likely to play a road game in Week 1 because of an Usher and Chris Brown concert taking place at AT&T Stadium that week.
Dallas will also be impacted by an Ed Sheeran concert in Week 7, so that’s another potential road game. They could also play on Monday or Thursday that week, or have a bye.
Cowboys’ strength of schedule
According to Warren Sharp of Sharp Football Analysis, the Cowboys are not going to have an easy road to make the postseason.
The Cowboys have the fourth-toughest schedule in the NFL going into the 2026 season, with only the Arizona Cardinals, Miami Dolphins and Carolina Panthers having tougher slates.
Dallas’ schedule is also the third-toughest in the NFC, and the most difficult in the NFC East.
Sharp does his strength of schedule rankings based on win totals from Vegas oddsmakers rather than utilizing the previous season’s records because that metric doesn’t factor in offseason changes.
The Cowboys will play home games against the Jacksonville Jaguars, Arizona Cardinals, San Francisco 49ers, Tennessee Titans, Baltimore Ravens, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, New York Giants, Philadelphia Eagles and Washington Commanders.
On the road, Dallas will square off against the Giants, Eagles, Commanders, Houston Texans, Indianapolis Colts, Los Angeles Rams, Seattle Seahawks and Green Bay Packers.
Of those opponents, seven of them made the postseason in 2025, a list that includes the Jaguars, 49ers, Eagles, Texans, Rams, Seahawks and Packers.
All of those teams should be as good in 2026, and teams like the Colts, Titans, Ravens, Bucs, Giants and Commanders have a very real chance to be improved as well.
It won’t be an easy road for Dallas to get back to the playoffs in 2026, but there’s at least hope following a defensive overhaul.
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