Can Dallas Cowboys Beat Super Bowl XLIX Teams?

If there’s one thing that really jumps out from the Dallas Cowboys 2015 regular season schedule, it’s the fact that both teams that just participated in Super Bowl XLIX will visit the venue formerly known as Cowboys Stadium.

There’s already talk in some circles about what Dallas can do to copy the Seattle Seahawks and New England Patriots in order to reach next season’s golden championship game in Santa Clara, California.

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Frankly, there’s only one quality that either of Sunday’s Super Bowl teams possess that America’s Team should have any interest in. The arrival of a better defense, specifically pass rush, would seem to push the Cowboys awfully close to their ninth trip to the big dance.

This is why the Seahawks have been the NFL’s best team over the last couple of seasons. We know that Seattle doesn’t boast this claim because of it’s offense, even if the running game is awfully good with the combination of quarterback Russell Wilson and running back Marshawn Lynch.

The truth is that Cowboys quarterback Tony Romo is already a better all-around quarterback than Wilson, a fact that perhaps is exemplified by his 2014 Greatness on the Road award. No, it’s not a Super Bowl ring, but Wilson hasn’t shown me the ability to win football games in any way he has to on a regular basis, especially not as a pocket passer.

This is why the young Seahawks passer is 1-1 in Super Bowls now.

Dallas running back DeMarco Murray, the 2014 Offensive Player of the Year, represents a highly comparable element to Seattle’s Lynch if we’re talking about running games that can win championships.

Now, whether or not Murray returns to the Cowboys next season is anybody’s guess at this point. We do know, however, that Dallas has built an offensive line that will blow holes open for any number of talented running backs that might emerge in place of Murray next season and beyond.

With respect to the Patriots, I don’t recommend emulating anything regarding this franchise. The repeated scandals committed by this organization make me quite comfortable with what the Cowboys already have, at least by comparison.

This includes head coach Jason Garrett over New England’s Bill Belicheck, who is clearly disrespected by some of the game’s greatest head coaches who never needed maneuvers like “Spygate”, “Deflategate” or any other “Gate” that might still be forthcoming.

In other words, when I think of Belichick as a head coach, it’s clear to me that without these scandals, which were proven mind you, I think of a guy who’s probably closer to the coach that we saw leading the Cleveland Browns to a combined record of 36-44 from 1991-95. This era was so bad that the franchise picked up and moved to another city and even changed it’s name for the 1996 campaign.

So, enough about copying other teams – Dallas really doesn’t need to do that.

I do believe that the Cowboys are just a stronger defense away from walking into any stadium in the NFL, including their own, and winning an NFC Championship Game and subsequent Super Bowl.

Look no further than 2015 Hall of Fame inductee Charles Haley to understand exactly what America’s Team is missing. Land this kind of player, either via free agency, trade or the NFL draft, and Dallas is right back in the mix of eminent contention in the NFL, period.

Concerning their most recent matchups with Seattle and New England, history would seem to bode pretty well for the Cowboys.

Dallas was the only team to beat the previous world champions in their own backyard in ’14 and next season’s rematch will be at home. Granted, the Cowboys still need to establish a home field advantage in Arlington, but this comes with winning and enthusiasm. This is present now, unlike before.

In other words, I don’t expect to see any opponent’s fans invading Dallas’ front porch the way those of the San Francisco 49ers did to open the season last September.

Where the Patriots are concerned, history is obviously not as recent given the fact that NFC teams only play AFC teams once every four years, at least barring a matchup in the last game of the season.

In 2011, Dallas was a mere two minutes away from beating the Patriots on the road. Given that the tight end who caught the winning touchdown pass with less than a half-minute remaining is now on trial for murder, will remaining and often-injured starting tight end Rob Gronkowski be enough?

Honestly, I love the matchup between any of the Cowboys cornerbacks – including a healthy Morris Claiborne – against the Patriots wide receivers, at least as things sit right now.

Indeed, get that pass rush beefed up and add to a relatively thin group of defensive tackles and fortunes could change significantly for the Dallas Cowboys in 2015.

Next: Why Dallas Cowboys 2015 Schedule is a Mixed Bag

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