Dallas Cowboys Legend Sounds Off On 'Alarming' Defensive Performance In Week 1

The Dallas Cowboys are gearing up for a Week 2 showdown against the Washington Commanders at AT&T Stadium this weekend, as the team looks to get rid of the sour taste of disappointment from the disastrous outing in Week 1 against the New York Giants.

It's the second straight week that the Cowboys face an NFC East foe, so it's important to come away with a win. In order to turn things around, the Cowboys will need to see the defense take a major step forward.

Much of the offseason was spent discussing all of Dallas' defensive improvements, and there was hype for new defensive coordinator Christian Parker, but the unit fell flat on its face, and it was much of the same from a year ago.

From miscommunication to breakdowns in coverage and the inability to get off the field on third down, it looked like Matt Eberflus was once again leading the unit.

Dallas Cowboys defensive coordinator Matt Eberflus during training camp at the River Ridge Fields. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

There is plenty of time for the team to turn things around, but Cowboys legend Troy Aikman had to admit that the defensive performance was "alarming" after Week 1.

Aikman acknowledges that the team failed to live up to expectations, but there is an easy explanation for why that may have been.

Troy Aikman Reflects On Dallas Cowboys' Defensive Letdown

NFL announcer Troy Aikman arrives at the stadium at GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Aikman appeared on Sportsradio 96.7 FM/1310 The Ticket (KTCK-AM) to reflect on the defensive effort in Week 1, and after discussing a league-wide issue, he focused in on the Cowboys' disappointing effort.

"A little bit alarming, though it happened around the league. We saw it in a number of games, even the game I had on Monday night, Denver didn't play nearly as well on either side of the ball as to what I thought that they might. So some of that is to be expected, but I don't know that it is to the extent that we saw from Dallas, when you have the mental mistakes and the assignment mistakes that allow [the Giants] to then score touchdowns," Aikman said. "They had a number of busted coverages in the secondary, and so there was some similarities from what we what we watched last year.

"And it always is more pronounced in Week 1, because there's so much attention and so much time to prepare. As soon as the season's schedule comes out, you know who you're going to be playing, and you've got all offseason to kind of get prepared for that opener. And when it doesn't go as you hope, then it just adds a lot of angst. And in Dallas, that definitely is the case after all of the conversation, me included, talking about how much more improved we expected this defense to be, and I still think it will be."

While there is obvious reason for concern in Dallas, especially after all of the resources the team used to improve on the defensive side of the ball and overhaul its roster, there were a lot of moving parts. With a new defensive coordinator, new scheme, and 8 new starters, there will be some growing pains.

Dallas Cowboys defensive coordinator Christian Parker at training camp at River Ridge Playing Fields. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Let's just hope that everything can come together sooner rather than later, and the Cowboys can avoid a season-long disaster on defense like we saw a year ago.

The offense is going to get things right. No one is concerned about that, but it's up to the defense to improve so that the team can fulfill its full potential and hopefully return to the postseason for the first time in three years.

We'll see if the Cowboys used the Week 1 learning experience to improve when they return to the field on Sunday afternoon at home against the Washington Commanders.

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