DC Christian Parker pumps the brakes on one Cowboys narrative

The 2025 Dallas Cowboys had one of the best offenses in the National Football League. The only problem is that their defense was also one of the worst.

Team owner/general manager Jerry Jones spent most of his offseason resources on changing that, hiring Christian Parker as the new defensive coordinator and adding promising pieces like Malachi Lawrence and Caleb Downs.

The Cowboys will have one of the most-improved units in the league in 2026, at least roster-wise, so expectations are at an all-time high in Arlington.

That's why the new defensive coordinator wanted to pump the brakes for a bit and remind the fans that this will be a process and it might take some time.

The Cowboys' defense is a work in progress

“We’re still in the undergraduate phase,” Parker told the team's website. “We were in phase two, I was like, ‘We’re trying to figure out if the meal card works, where can I park for 15 minutes without getting towed,’ all those things. Now, we’re still in the freshmen and one-on-one level. We’re starting to get to sophomore year, if you will. And then during training camp, we need to quickly be able to graduate with a master’s degree in a five-year program. That’s how we see the urgency.”

The Cowboys still need to adapt to new personnel, plays, and schemes. There's a new terminology to learn, and the rookies have to get a hold of the NFL speed.

Of course, that doesn't mean they won't be ready for Week 1. They also feature proven veterans like Quinnen Williams and Kenny Clark, but great things are rarely built overnight.

Head coach Brian Schottenheimer has already shown that he can have the offense firing on all cylinders, and they should be able to hold their own against the best teams in the game.

They just need their offense to catch up a bit and keep opposing teams off the end zone here and there; they don't even need them to be the Steel Curtain -- for now.

Good things take time, and the Cowboys are trying to build something special. For now, however, the fans will just have to be patient.