Emmitt Smith Praises Dallas Cowboys For Avoiding Pitfalls of Past Offseasons

There hasn't been much drama around the Dallas Cowboys this offseason and that's music to the ears of franchise legend Emmitt Smith.

Dallas Cowboys legend Emmitt Smith. | Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images

Dallas Cowboys legend Emmitt Smith is happy with the way the team's offseason has gone, but not necessarily just because of the players the Cowboys have brought in.

Sure, Smith is pleased with the moves the Cowboys have made, but he is even happier about the lack of drama this year, which comes after an offseason in which there was no shortage of it during the Micah Parsons saga.

"I think the bigger sign is that it's been a slow, quiet offseason -- the way it needs to be," Smith told USA TODAY's Chris Bumbaca.

"It's important for people to know, 'We don't need all that drama.' We're too good of an organization to be dealing with all that drama. Don't need it," he added. "Sometimes you have to rise above the fray, and this is one of those times where we need to rise above the fray. Because the last 31 years have not produced the things that we want to see. There's no reason to be having drama when you don't have to. You don't have to create it."

The only semblance of drama for the Cowboys has been the franchise tag situation with George Pickens, but even that has gone better than expected. Pickens signed his tag without any issues and it appears he's intent on playing on it instead of a holdout, which many believed was a real possibility.

"Now that we've gotten George Pickens out of the way, quietness is important, because it says the focus is where it needs to be -- on the field," Smith added.

A crucial season in Dallas

Dallas Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott. | Kevin Jairaj-Imagn Images

Things are going to be difficult enough for the Cowboys in 2026, seeing as how they have the fourth-toughest schedule in the NFL, so not having any controversies other than some position battles is huge.

As Smith noted, the Cowboys haven't had much success since 1995 — something fans were reminded of as the NBA's New York Knicks made it to their first NBA Finals since 1999 on Monday — and Dallas has missed the playoffs in each of the past two seasons.

Arsenal ended their drought.

The Knicks are back in the Finals.

When will it ever be the Cowboys’ turn?

— RJ Ochoa (@rjochoa) May 26, 2026

The Cowboys had an infusion of youth through the 2026 NFL Draft and this is a pretty young team overall, but Dak Prescott will turn 33 next month and that creates a sense of urgency for this Cowboys team.

Even owner Jerry Jones has admitted he's feeling the heat to win as he gets up there in age.

"I have a natural urgency because of my age. My immediate tomorrows are a big thing to me," he said. "I'm satisfied that I can make good decisions. I've made some bad decisions, obviously, being trite. I am supremely responsible for where we are right now. There is no question about that. I accept that. That doesn't deter me from wanting to get it done and get it done now this year."

The biggest key for Dallas is going to be its defense, which was easily the biggest reason the team missed the postseason the previous two years.

But there is hope for that side of the ball after Dallas went heavy on it this offseason via trade, free agency and the draft.

With the Cowboys' offense expected to be elite once again, Dallas can probably get an average effort from its defense and make the playoffs. From there, how much better than average will likely be the determining factor to how far Dallas goes.