
The Dallas Cowboys were able to improve to 1-1 this weekend with a convincing win over the Washington Commanders. Their 37-20 win was encouraging, given how poorly they performed the previous week
That's not surprising, however, since Week 1 is often misleading for NFL teams. That's especially true for one going through a massive change on the defensive side of the ball, which is the case for the Cowboys. Not only is Christian Parker a new defensive coordinator, but there are new faces throughout the defense.
Offensively, Dallas has much more controversy with all their starters from 2025 returning for this season. That's why it shouldn't be surprising to see their top-five players according to PFF being predominantly offensive players while their lowest-graded players were all on defense. That said, let's dive in and see which players fell where in their Week 2 grades.
CeeDee Lamb was unstoppable in this one, hauling in eight of nine targets for 153 yards and two touchdown receptions. He finished first with a 93.1 but wasn't the only player to record two touchdown catches. Tight end Jake Ferguson joined him as well, and finished fifth with an 80.1.
The man who threw those touchdown passes was Dak Prescott, who had a 90.2 overall grade. He also put his name in the record books, now standing alone as the franchise leader in touchdown passes.
The final offensive player to make the top five was guard T.J. Bass, who is filling in for an injured Tyler Smith. As for their best defender, rookie Jaishawn Barham earned the fourth-highest grade overall with an 84.2. He performed well during his first start and showed plenty of promise in the process.
Defensively, there were a few surprises. While Ameer Speed finished last with 24.6, it was a far more shocking to see defensive tackle Quinnen Williams come in behind him with a 29.6. Dallas struggled to stop the run all game and Williams, as their top defensive player, might have been one of the primary reasons, at least according to PFF who gave him a 28.0 against the run.
Cobie Durant was injured during the game but fell off following a strong debut. LT Overton was fourth as he too struggled overall, although he was decent against the run with a 63.5 grade. The final name on the list was Donovan Ezeiruaku, who was one of the best players the week before, but had three missed tackles which haunted him this weekend.
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