Dan Orlovsky just dropped a harsh reality the Cowboys aren't ready to face

After a brutal loss on Thursday night to the Detroit Lions, the Dallas Cowboys' momentum toward a postseason appearance has come screeching to a halt. Now, their odds of making the playoffs have plummeted to just 9%, according to The Athletic.

What was set up to be a thrilling end to the season has shifted to become a brutal month-long reality check, forcing this front office to take a long look in the mirror before moving into the offseason.

The Cowboys' likely absence from the playoff picture is difficult to accept at first. Dak Prescott, equipped with an elite group of weapons, is playing some of the best football of his career. Brian Schottenheimer has rallied the locker room in a way that few experts expected. Especially after the Quinnen Williams trade, things seemed to be moving in the right direction for Dallas.

But one harsh truth has kept the Cowboys from accomplishing their goals this season. As NFL analyst Dan Orlovsky laid out, you can't compete in the NFL without having a capable defense.

Dan Orlovsky gives Cowboys' defense the reality check they need

The morning after the Cowboys' loss to the Lions, Orlovsky put the team's shortcomings in clear terms.

As he laid out, it's nearly impossible for teams that allow as many points as the Cowboys do to make the playoffs. The only team to make the postseason with comparable numbers on defense was the 2000 Rams, commonly known as the "Greatest Show on Turf."

This Cowboys offense may be playing at a high level, but Orlovsky showed that it takes an all-time great offense to overcome a defense as porous as theirs has been this season.

Sure, the defense looked improved for a few weeks after acquiring Williams. They allowed just under 22 points per game in the three contests following the trade. But they dug themselves into far too deep a hole in the first half of the season for one player to come in and right the ship. Even with Williams on the field, they gave up 44 points to a Lions team that had been struggling to find consistency on offense.

This season has made it clear that, no matter how well Prescott and the offense perform, the Cowboys need to have a competent defense to become a true contender in the NFC. Jerry Jones will have a lot of work to do over the offseason to get this unit where it needs to be.