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3 Cowboys players who did not live up to expectations this season

By Joey Pollizze

Jan 22, 2023; Santa Clara, California, USA; Dallas Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott (4) throws during the first quarter of a NFC divisional round game against the San Francisco 49ers at Levi's Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports
Jan 22, 2023; Santa Clara, California, USA; Dallas Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott (4) throws during the first quarter of a NFC divisional round game against the San Francisco 49ers at Levi's Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports /
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The Dallas Cowboys finished the 2022-2023 season with a 12-5 record and second place finish in the NFC East. Their record helped them secure the fifth seed in the NFC.

But the season would only be a success if the Cowboys could do what they haven’t done in over 20 years: win the Super Bowl Even making the Super Bowl or the NFC Championship game would have been better than what the team has finished over the last 25 seasons.

However, yet again, America’s Team came up short.

After an impressive 31-14 win against Tom Brady and the Buccaneers in the Wild Card round, the Cowboys looked like the NFC’s most dangerous team. Dak Prescott threw for 305 yards with five total touchdowns and the Cowboys defense looked unstoppable.

Then, came the Divisional round and the Cowboys failed to carry that momentum from the previous week. The defense did its job against the 49ers’ offense by allowing just one touchdown in the game.

But, the Cowboys’ offense was a much different story. Prescott threw two big interceptions and the ground game only accounted for 76 yards in the contest. It wasn’t a pretty performance offensively and it cost them any hope of a Super Bowl run.

It was another season of disappointment and coming up short for the Cowboys. There’s a lot that went wrong for Dallas, and these three players did not live up to their season-long expectations, including in the playoff loss.

3 Cowboys who did not meet expectations in 2022 season

Dec 4, 2022; Arlington, Texas, USA; Dallas Cowboys wide receiver Michael Gallup (13) reacts after scoring a touchdown during the second quarter against the Indianapolis Colts at AT&T Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kevin Jairaj-USA TODAY Sports
Dec 4, 2022; Arlington, Texas, USA; Dallas Cowboys wide receiver Michael Gallup (13) reacts after scoring a touchdown during the second quarter against the Indianapolis Colts at AT&T Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kevin Jairaj-USA TODAY Sports /

3. Michael Gallup

By trading away Amari Cooper over the offseason, the Cowboys opened up more opportunities for Michael Gallup in the passing game. Gallup was just two years removed from a 1,100-yard season and the team was likely confident that he can get back to that type of production with Cooper gone.

So instead of keeping Cooper and letting Gallup walk, the Cowboys signed the latter to a five-year, $62.5 million deal for a cheaper price.

https://twitter.com/NFL/status/1466588137694523394

But with Gallup tearing his ACL in Week 17 of the 2021 season, there was little optimism that he would be ready for Week 1. On top of that, he likely wasn’t going to be 100% all season as he worked his way back from the injury.

Instead of having Cooper as the second wide receiver option for Prescott, they got Gallup — who was almost non-existent on the football field at times.

Gallup posted just 39 catches for 424 yards and four touchdowns in 14 games this season. He had just one game this season where he had five-plus catches and/or 50 yards in a game. He also had six games in which he had two or fewer catches.

Numbers like that aren’t remotely good enough to be the team’s second-best wide receiver option. Of course, coming off an ACL injury likely takes a player one full year to get fully up to speed on the field. But still, his season was a big disappointment for the Cowboys, who lacked another option outside of CeeDee Lamb.

This upcoming season is a big one for Gallup, whose cap hit is set at $13.8 million. The Cowboys can opt out of his contract after the 2023 season and assuming he doesn’t get back to his 2019 production, he might be on his way out.

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