Dallas Cowboys: 6 matchups to look forward to in 2020

What matchups await the Dallas Cowboys in 2020? Here’s six we’re looking forward to.

What fuels people more than some good competition? A good way for football fans to get ready for an upcoming season is to look at exciting matchups that lay ahead. The Dallas Cowboys have a number of them.

Many new names were added to the team this past offseason. Some are tested veterans, some are rookies, and some have missed quite some time.

There is a ton that awaits to be figured out. What matchups should we look forward to for the 2020 season?

Joe Looney vs Aaron Donald – Week 1

Now former Dallas Cowboys center, Travis Frederick, left a huge hole for Dallas to fill after he retired. Stepping in is the man that did so during the 2018 season as Frederick recovered from an autoimmune disease.

New Cowboys starting center, Joe Looney has spent four seasons on the Cowboys’ roster, but usually as a backup. In Week 1 of the 2020 season, he will have quite the test as he lines up against defensive tackle Aaron Donald.

While Looney has been a backup, Donald has been tearing apart the NFL. In six seasons, Donald made six Pro Bowls and is a five-time first-team All-Pro.

Cowboys fans are hopeful that Looney is better this upcoming season than he was in 2018. While he didn’t play terrible, he was part of the reason quarterback Dak Prescott was sacked 56 times.

I don’t think Looney is bad at blocking, I just think that Frederick was so good that anything less than elite looks bad. Looney has the blocking part down, what he needs to work on is his communication with the rest of the offensive line.

This Week 1 matchup is the hardest one-on-one matchup for Looney all season. If he plays well, then hopefully he will get more confidence and carry it throughout the season. If he plays poorly, then hopefully he shakes it off and gets ready for Week 2.

Donald and Looney played each other in the division game playoff in 2018. In this game, Donald was held to only two tackles with one being for a loss of yards. While Looney played a role in not letting quarterback Dak Prescott get sacked, Dallas only had 50 rushing yards.

This is probably one of the most underrated matchups this season. It will be good for the Cowboys and their fans to get a glimpse of how comfortable Looney is in his new role.

It will be important to monitor how he improved compared to the 2018 season. How he plays will be crucial to the success of the offense.