{"id":154879,"date":"2023-12-12T13:00:38","date_gmt":"2023-12-12T18:00:38","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/?p=154879"},"modified":"2023-12-12T09:05:08","modified_gmt":"2023-12-12T14:05:08","slug":"prime-performers-3-dallas-cowboys-players-showing-optimism","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/2023\/12\/12\/prime-performers-3-dallas-cowboys-players-showing-optimism\/","title":{"rendered":"Prime Performers: 3 Dallas Cowboys Players Showing Optimism"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>The Dallas Cowboys are now in control, taking first place in the NFC East after derailing the Eagles, 33-13. Dallas was blowing Philadelphia out of the water, but the Eagles did attempt to come back. This fell short after Jalen Hurts and the offense couldn\u2019t find the answers to score in the end zone.<\/p>\n<p>It was a straight divisional domination towards the end and Dak Prescott was on fire. Things got rusty for Prescott after Jalen Carter scooped up a fumble return for a touchdown. Of course, the Cowboys&#8217; doomsday defense responded to give Prescott another chance to make a statement. They were riding hot all night scooping three fumbles and did not allow an offensive touchdown.<\/p>\n<p>Dallas wanted to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.si.com\/nfl\/cowboys\/news\/dallas-cowboys-doomsday-defense-put-statement-micah-parsons-philadelphia-eagles\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">make a statement<\/a> and they did just that. The NFL media and keyboard warriors are finally going back into hiding after of course having low expectations for the Cowboys.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/2021\/02\/21\/2021-nfl-draft-profile-micah-parsons\/\" target=\"_self\">Micah Parsons<\/a> reflected on the game, \u201cI think everybody\u2019s been waiting for that statement win. We\u2019ve been talking about statements, and you got this high-powered offense that came in our stadium and how good we have been at home, we wanted to put out a statement at home, especially how that game went last time.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>In a positive light, these three prime performers are exceeding expectations and could be the face of the team for a long time. There\u2019s plenty of young talent that will be the future for the star, but these three make it bittersweet. Here are the three dominant performers that are showing optimism this season.<\/p>\n<h2>Prime Performers: 3 Dallas Cowboys Players Showing Optimism<\/h2>\n<h3>Jake Ferguson<\/h3>\n<p>Ferguson is the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.thebiglead.com\/posts\/cowboys-jake-ferguson-dating-haley-cavinder-eagles-win-01hhcm3etart\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">ultimate truth<\/a> after Jason Witten left his legacy forever with the team. He\u2019s got the size and is carrying the torch. He had five catches for 78 yards, infamously doing his hurdle over a defender. Many try that hurdle but most fail. This wasn\u2019t the case for Ferguson, he continues to make plays that make fans excited to watch the game.<\/p>\n<p>He\u2019s going to be a Dallas Cowboy for life one way or another. There were exciting expectations for the future <a href=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/2023\/08\/05\/dallas-cowboys-tight-ends\/\" target=\"_self\">four horsemen<\/a> for the Tight End corps. Ferguson is outperforming Luke Schoonmaker and Sean Mckeon so this means that the workload belongs to Ferguson. He\u2019s looking more like a receiver than what a Tight End is and that is scary for future defenses.<\/p>\n<p>Expect more big plays from the 24-year-old, he&#8217;s still fresh and has a lot to look forward to in the future. The Cowboys can say finally say they don\u2019t have to find a new Tight end for a long time. The offense is highly dependent on him not only as a security blanket but moving this high-caliber team. He\u2019s the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.si.com\/nfl\/cowboys\/news\/incredible-dak-prescott-praises-dallas-cowboys-breakout-tight-end-jake-ferguson-hurdle-big-biscuit\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">boon<\/a> to Prescott\u2019s MVP campaign this season.<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"550\" data-dnt=\"true\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">Fergie hurdle \u203c\ufe0f <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/MundoNFL?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">@MundoNFL<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\ud83d\udcfa: <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/hashtag\/PHIvsDAL?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">#PHIvsDAL<\/a> on NBC<br \/>\ud83d\udcf1: Stream on <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/hashtag\/NFLPlus?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">#NFLPlus<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/YCEDNi5Ozb\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">https:\/\/t.co\/YCEDNi5Ozb<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/SAnOAcjTJD\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">pic.twitter.com\/SAnOAcjTJD<\/a><\/p>\n<p>&mdash; NFL (@NFL) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/NFL\/status\/1734060700992241825?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">December 11, 2023<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<h3>Brandin Cooks<\/h3>\n<p>Fans can finally catch their breath sense of relief for the Cowboys wide receiving corps. Cooks is back on the grill and he\u2019s the one doing the grilling. He\u2019s looking like a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.dmagazine.com\/sports\/2023\/11\/dallas-cowboy-new-york-giants\/\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">second option<\/a>, but that\u2019s not just the case. Anytime Prescott is looking for a go-to receiver, Cooks is your guy.<\/p>\n<p>He\u2019s emerging to become a critical player for this team\u2019s success in the quick-passing game. There have been moments where Prescott threw the deep route to Cooks and he has been successful snagging them in. There were concerns about his playing role and lack of ability to get the ball, but he\u2019s becoming like what Tom Brady had in Randy Moss.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/2023\/06\/12\/ceedee-lamb-2023-fantasy-football-outlook\/\" target=\"_self\">CeeDee Lamb<\/a> is of course the No. 1 receiver on the team, but No. 2 is not all bad for Cooks. He\u2019s outperforming Gallup and that\u2019s all the Cowboys fans need to expect that he will soon be traded or released after the season. This sets up for Cooks to potentially receive a contract extension.<\/p>\n<p>That\u2019s for another time, Cowboys fans, the team still needs to extend their superstar&#8217;s contracts and it\u2019s a hefty price.<\/p>\n<h3>Brandon Aubrey<\/h3>\n<p>A glorious night against Eagles capped with a substantial amount of field-goal kicks from Brandon Aubrey. He set the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.si.com\/nfl\/2023\/12\/11\/cowboys-kicker-brandon-aubrey-nfl-history-primetime-rout-eagles\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">record<\/a> to become the first player to make 30 consecutive kicks. The former USFL player also became the first kicker to convert two field-goals from 59-plus yards. He\u2019s been a clear mission to win the starting job and now that path is clear.<\/p>\n<p>The road was rocky for Dallas looking for a solid kicker. After Dan Bailey&#8217;s lack of production a couple of years back, Brett Maher attempted to rewrite history and become the kicker for the long run. This was like a short fuse for a temporary remedy, but it\u2019s lit now under Aubrey\u2019s belt. He continued to build on what the Dallas Cowboys were working towards and that\u2019s momentum.<\/p>\n<p>It\u2019s like putting icing on a cake and that\u2019s what Aubrey is doing even if they are up by a large lead. He\u2019ll be reliable come playoff time for this Cowboys offense.<\/p>\n<p>Main Photo: Tim Heitman-USA TODAY Sports<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Here Are The Most Dominant Performers That Are Showing Optimism For The Dallas Cowboys Offense After Their Superb Divisional Win.  <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4795,"featured_media":155021,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_lmt_disableupdate":"no","_lmt_disable":"","sfio_featured_image":false,"sfio_embed_code":"","_ef_editorial_meta_date_first-draft-date":"","_ef_editorial_meta_paragraph_assignment":"","_ef_editorial_meta_checkbox_needs-photo":"","_ef_editorial_meta_number_word-count":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[54,19],"tags":[354,10291,7422,8880],"class_list":["post-154879","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-editorials","category-cowboys","tag-brandin-cooks","tag-brandon-aubrey","tag-dallas-cowboys-news","tag-jake-ferguson"],"modified_by":"Will Koshover, Editor","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/154879","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4795"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=154879"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/154879\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/155021"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=154879"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=154879"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=154879"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}