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Every team in the NFL wants to be in “win now” mode, but not all of them can be. Becoming a winning team takes rebuilding through the draft and free agency, which takes time. For some teams, like the New England Patriots, the word “rebuilding” isn’t in their vocabulary. For others, like the Oakland Raiders or Cleveland Browns, rebuilding seems to be an annual chore.
Although the Dallas Cowboys have only finished above .500 once in the past five seasons, gutting the roster and starting over has never been an option. The main reason for that is the stability at the quarterback position in Tony Romo.
Just how rock solid has Romo been? Since taking over at the helm in 2006, the Cowboys have only had one sub-.500 season: 2010. That was the year Romo only played in six games, missing the rest to injury.
With that said, the Cowboys have never been in a better position to win a Super Bowl in the Romo era. Going into the 2015 season, Dallas has one of the most talented rosters in the league. Sure, we hear that almost every season only to be disappointed by an underperforming squad, but 2015 is different. The mixture of youth, veterans and players with chips on their shoulders make this team dangerous.
There are no severely weak spots on the roster, but there are positions of strength. The offensive line is likely the best in the league. Romo is a top-10 quarterback. Dez Bryant, Terrance Williams and Cole Beasley are matchup nightmares. And on defense, Dallas’ pass rush has the potential to be great.
Add in the fact that this team will play with a chip on its shoulder after getting bounced from the playoffs on a “non-catch,” and the Cowboys have never been more motivated. Greg Hardy will come off of his however-long suspension and be a force on defense. La’el Collins and Randy Gregory are playing to prove 31 other teams wrong for passing on them, and Byron Jones has already looked impressive in OTAs.
Of course, injuries do occur and the rookies have played exactly zero snaps in this league, but the potential for this team has never been at a higher level. There’s no doubt this is the year Dallas has to make a Super Bowl run. Hardy is only on a one-year contract, Romo isn’t getting any younger and Bryant still hasn’t signed a long-term deal. Nothing is guaranteed from year-to-year, so the time to win is now. This team was good enough to win 12 games a year ago, and there’s no reason Dallas can’t do the same in 2015.
