3 Reasons the Cowboys Can Still Make a Super Bowl Run

The Dallas Cowboys did not look like a Super Bowl-contending team in Week 9. After ripping off six straight wins, they were handed their second loss of the season by the Denver Broncos. 

The offense didn't look great. It was shut out in the first three quarters, and Dak Prescott completed less than half of his passes and threw a pick. 

The defense was run over by Javonte Williams and Melvin Gordon III. The two running backs anchored a rushing attack that racked up 190 yards and two touchdowns. 

The loss is concerning for sure. It highlighted some areas the Cowboys have to shore up to reach their potential. But that potential is still massive. 

The loss also saw Super Bowl odds creep up. At DraftKings, they were at +1000 going into Week 9. Thanks to their dud against the Broncos, they now stand at +1200.

Now isn't the popular time to be driving the Cowboys hype train, but here are three reasons why the hype should still be alive. 

Tyron Smith Will Be Back

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Terence Steele has done a phenomenal job this season when he has been at right tackle. According to Pro Football Focus, he gave up just five pressures in seven games there this season. 

Unfortunately, an ankle injury knocked Tyron Smith out of the lineup against the Broncos, and Steele was forced to slide over to the left side. For some tackles, that's not a big deal; Steele is not one of those tackles. 

PFF charted the 24-year-old as responsible for 11 total pressures against the Broncos, including two sacks. With Dak Prescott coming off an injury himself, the constant pressure from his blindside certainly didn't help him settle back into a rhythm. 

The good news is that Smith will be back. After the game, Cowboys owner Jerry Jones sounded confident that his injury isn't going to hold him out of the lineup for an extended amount of time. 

"Really, there's not a lot you can do other than rest it and try it. It's one that will get better whether he's on it or not on it as we go along. I don't look at it as long-term," Jones said, per Nick Eatman of the team's website. 

Smith is crucial to the success of this offensive line. That was evident on Sunday, but it will be an issue that gets fixed before the playoffs. 

Dak Prescott Will Bounce Back

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There's no way around it, Prescott was not good against the Broncos. He was far from where he had to be for them to win the game and even further from Super Bowl-winning. 

The good news is that it was Week 9 of an 18-week season. This isn't time to panic. 

It's also not too hard to identify some reasons why Prescott didn't have it on Sunday. For starters, there's a chance that the franchise should have waited another week to play him. He was coming off a calf injury that kept him out of the team's win at Minnesota. 

However, the 28-year-old didn't want to blame it on the injury. 

"Obviously, I wasn't as clean as I normally am or as I have been," Prescott told the media. "It's tough to say and blame (it on rust). I spent a lot of time off and came back in the first game (in Week 1) different, so I'm not going to sit there and blame two weeks when I had a great week of practice under my belt coming into this one."

That's what you would want the leader of your team to do, though. He didn't make excuses and is just moving on to the next game. 

But it's still safe to speculate that Prescott's down game was more because he was coming off a three-week injury absence and facing a Broncos secondary that is allowing the third-lowest passer rating in the league. 

Broncos Blueprint Will Be Difficult to Repeat

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The concern after any loss in the NFL is what future opponents will do with the information that comes out of it. While one loss isn't the end of the world, the creation of a "Broncos Blueprint" could lead to other losses. 

While there's a possibility that happens, it isn't likely. 

Denver jumped to an early lead after a putrid start from Dak Prescott. He was 5-of-14 in the first half while the Broncos posted 16 points. 

From there, Denver was able to control the game script. It had 41 rushing attempts as it worked to protect and expand the early lead. The Cowboys' offense did nothing to put the pressure on them. 

It's no secret Dallas' run defense is not a strength. It ranks 18th in the league in yards allowed per carry and sees the seventh-least rushing attempts at 23 per game. The Broncos were nearly able to double the amount of attempts. 

The strength of the Cowboys is their explosive offense. They force teams to keep up and most teams will turn to a pass-heavy attack. To repeat the Broncos blueprint, teams are going to have to find a way to stop a healthy Dak Prescott, CeeDee Lamb, Amari Cooper, Ezekiel Elliott and Tony Pollard. 

The offense will bounce back and that still makes them legitimate Super Bowl contenders. 

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