The Dallas Cowboys' 2025 season is effectively over after the 34-26 loss to the Minnesota Vikings, and one big problem again reared its head on Sunday night.
The defense was horrific.
Granted, this is nothing new, but against a Vikings offense that, aside from their win over the Washington Commanders last week, hasn't looked good, it looked like a top-5 unit against Matt Eberflus' defense.
But also, the other issue for Dallas is that because the defense is so bad, Dak Prescott and the offense have to be nearly perfect for them to win games, and when they aren't, we see what happens.
And for NFL.com's Grant Gordon, he encapsulated Dallas' season in one sentence when doing his takeaways for the game.
"Prescott was fine, going 21 for 34 for 294 yards and an 84.4 rating, but he needed to be great to win this one, and just wasn’t," Gordon wrote.
More: Cowboys get brutal assessment after embarrassing Vikings loss
Defensive overhaul needed for Cowboys
Well, duh, right?
Given that we had a three-game spike in performance, some thought the defense had turned a corner, but the last two weeks, the unit has reverted to its early-season form.
And to have seven games where the defense has allowed 30+ points in seven games this season, that isn't a way to live in the NFL.
Will Eberflus be back in 2026? Color me extremely skeptical on that, and while we are on the subject, Brian Flores is a name I'd consider after seeing what he's done with the Vikings defense.
Dallas needs change, and while it is still up in the air that it will happen, one can only imagine the blowback if Eberflus returns next year.
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