Welcome to Week 3 overreactions from the Dallas Cowboys whuppin’ in Chicago.
The Cowboys traveled to Soldier Field looking to do what the Detroit Lions did in Week 2: beat up on a bad defense. Turns out, Chicago was looking to do the same thing!
Cautious optimism has turned into catastrophizing, and we’re here for all of it.
It’s overreaction time.
Overreactions from the Cowboys’ Week 3 Beatdown in Chicago.
Matt Eberflus Won’t Make it Through the Season
It has been a rough start for The ‘Flus and his defense.
Last week, we said the Cowboys had the worst secondary in football. Turns out, that’s not true. They have the worst defense in football! Dallas ranks at or near the bottom in almost every statistical defensive category to start 2025.
Through three weeks, the Cowboys are giving up:
- 30.7 points per game (28th)
- 397.7 yards per game (30th)
- 6.5 yards per play (31st)
- 3.7 touchdowns per game (28th)
- a 53.66 third-down conversion percentage (32nd)
That’s really bad!
The pass defense numbers are particularly gruesome:
- 288 passing yards allowed per game (31st)
- 9.8 yards per pass allowed (32nd)
- 73.91 completion percentage allowed (29th)
Those numbers come despite opponents throwing the ball at the sixth-lowest percentage, and attempting just 31 passes per game (11th-lowest). This is passing efficiency at its finest. Just not the kind the Cowboys would want.
After an embarrassing showing against the Giants in Week 2, Dallas’ defense somehow managed to look worse.
The much-maligned Caleb Williams—the target of a lengthy and scathing profile by Go Long’s Tyler Dunne—had the best performance of his young career. 298 yards, four touchdowns, a passer rating of 142.6, and no sacks.
You know your defense is bad when, in back-to-back weeks, you give up 450 yards and three touchdowns to a washed-up Russell Wilson, and 298 yards and four touchdowns to a, “Are-we-sure-this-guy’s-even-good?” former first-round pick.
Oh, there’s more. After allowing only one play of 25+ yards to Philadelphia in Week 1, Dallas has given up 12 in the past two weeks. Twelve!
Eberflus’ zone scheme clearly isn’t working—NFL wide receivers are not supposed to be as consistently wide open as they’ve been against the Cowboys the last two weeks. Will anything change?
Given the state of the secondary, poor scheme fit, and non-existent pass rush, there’s no reason to believe things are going to improve. And if they don’t, Eberflus won’t make it through the season.
Brian Schottenheimer is to Blame for CeeDee Lamb’s Injury
Superstar wide receiver CeeDee Lamb was injured on the Cowboys sixth play of the game.
Was he the victim of a hospital ball? Did he land awkwardly coming down with a catch? Was he rolled up while blocking downfield? No, it was none of those things.
Lamb was injured on a carry. Not a run after the catch. A carry.
Taking a handoff right, Lamb had his leg bent awkwardly underneath him while being dragged down by Bears linebacker Noah Sewell.
We’re not talking about Deebo Samuel, DJ Moore, or Cordarrelle Patterson—big-bodied wide receivers whose physical profiles closely resemble running backs. Lamb is a slender 6-2 receiver who doesn’t need to be subjected to hits from defensive linemen and linebackers.
Here’s the most frustrating part: the Cowboys can actually run the ball! They don’t need to give Lamb carries. Javonte Williams and Miles Sanders have done a fine job of that, thank you. Nor have they had any trouble getting Lamb the ball through the air—he posted back-to-back 100-yard receiving games to start the season.
Lining up CeeDee Lamb in the backfield is more than just ill-advised. It’s coaching malpractice. Injuries can happen at any time and place on the field, so why subject your best offensive player to additional risk by trying to turn him into a running back for a play?
Lamb’s injury is 100% on head coach and play caller Brian Schottenheimer. This Cowboys season was already in a tenuous position because of their porous defense. If Lamb has to miss any extended time, Dallas’ chances of winning shootouts—and winning games, period—drops precipitously.
Injury Update
Per Jon Machota of The Athletic, Lamb has a high-ankle sprain—an injury that typically sidelines players for four to six weeks. Lamb insists he’ll play next week. Jerry Jones does too (of course, he’s going to say that). Unfortunately for both of them, the medical staff will have the final say. And even if he does suit up Week 4, the Cowboys will not be getting the best version of one of the most dynamic playmakers in the league.
Final Word on Cowboys Week 3 Overreactions
Earlier this offseason, we highlighted this matchup as the first of four games that would define the Cowboys’ 2025 season. Unfortunately, everything we worried about came to fruition.
It’s only Week 3, but the outlook for the rest of the year doesn’t look good. Matt Eberflus’ defense is a mess, and CeeDee Lamb might be on the shelf for more than a quarter of the season.
We’ll see you next week.
Main Photo: [Matt Marton] – Imagn Images
The post Week 3 Overreactions From The Cowboys’ Beatdown In Chicago appeared first on Last Word on Pro Football.