It would be embarrassing if the Cowboys didn't make the obvious decision after win over Commanders

The Dallas Cowboys dominated the Washington Commanders on Sunday in a 44-22 rout at AT&T Stadium that made one thing clear: The front office has an obvious decision to make if they're serious about winning this year.

It's time to do right by the elite offense Dak Prescott leads. Once again, it was fireworks from the offense, this time with big-time performances from CeeDee Lamb, George Pickens, Javonte Williams, and Jake Ferguson. How can they make it right? It's time to make a trade to upgrade the defense and make this team a legitimate contender.

Prescott is playing like the best quarterback in football. He's got a top-tier wide receiver duo, a reliable tight end in the red zone, and a run game that takes some weight off of his shoulders and sets up an explosive play-action game. Simply put, the Cowboys can't waste an offense like this.

With the trade deadline — set for Nov. 4 — peeking its head over the horizon, it's time for Dallas to go shopping. No defensive end, linebacker, or cornerback will fix the defense that entered Week 7 ranked dead last in EPA/play. But it's not about getting it fixed. It's about getting it better. It's about the defense not costing the Cowboys wins when the offense is humming.

On Sunday, it didn't. But context is important.

The Cowboys' defense played better in Week 7, but not good enough

It's true. The Cowboys' defense forced the most stops it had all year and even added a strip sack in the third quarter for a turnover. Before Jayden Daniels suffered a hamstring injury in the third quarter, the Commanders punted or turned it over in six of eight drives (excluding an end-of-half kneel down). Their offense scored only 15 points by the end of the third quarter, while the Cowboys had 42.

But it's tough to ignore the Commanders still rushed for over five yards per attempt, and the fact that many passing woes on Washington's side had to do with a lack of chemistry with Terry McLaurin and Deebo Samuel out.

In other words, the Cowboys shouldn't be fooled into thinking their defense is suddenly fixed due to the lopsided win. They should be shopping for a linebacker who boosts one of the worst units in the league. For a defensive end who fixes a pass rush that struggles to get anything going. Stops will be needed to win games, even with the elite offense on the other side. It's time to decide before it's too late.

With big games between now and the trade deadline, it's time to make sure they can win the upcoming matchups against the Denver Broncos and Arizona Cardinals. Getting better on defense could make it much easier before a tough stretch of games after the bye week that includes the Philadelphia Eagles, Kansas City Chiefs, Detroit Lions, Minnesota Vikings, and (a healthier) Commanders.

window.addEventListener('message', function (event) {if (event.data.totalpoll && event.data.totalpoll.action === 'resizeHeight') {document.querySelector('#totalpoll-iframe-375').height = event.data.totalpoll.value;}}, false);document.querySelector('#totalpoll-iframe-375').contentWindow.postMessage({totalpoll: {action: 'requestHeight'}}, '*');