National Football League

Cowboys, Dolphins are searching for playoff glory in different ways

Published Sep. 3, 2021 10:04 p.m. ET

The NFL is a league in which teams have a real chance to go from worst to first overnight.

But there are also those teams in the middle of the pack that seem to be just a few small moves from reaching true contender status.

Two of those teams currently in the NFL, according to NFL executives, are the Dallas Cowboys and Miami Dolphins. The franchises were voted seventh and 11th in their conferences, respectively, in a ranking done by league executives for "The Athletic."

While neither team is seen as a Super Bowl contender this season, Colin Cowherd views them each through a different lens.

Cowherd sees the Cowboys as a team with all the resources to progress beyond the middle of the pack, but the organization's refusal to address the obvious is holding them back.

"I'm always amazed when really smart and successful people can't see obvious stuff," Cowherd said on "The Herd." "Dallas, of course, has two issues, and they have had these now for several years. They pay good players great money — that's a death sentence in the NFL. But why does Dallas do that? It's because of their second issue. They become extremely insular."

Of the Cowboys' eight highest-paid players, only Amari Cooper was not drafted by the franchise, and none of them was named to the Pro Bowl or All-Pro team in 2020.

Those eight players are slated to make at least $10 million on average annually under their current contracts.

Meanwhile, Cowherd sees the Dolphins as a team that is aggressively trying to address its biggest flaw on the roster, which, in his eyes, is the quarterback position.

"Miami was an inch away, and executives are telling you they are going to go backward," he said. "They're not going to get every break, their schedule is inarguably much tougher this year, and New England's back. Miami, unlike Dallas, smart people who don't get obvious stuff. Miami does. That's why the Deshaun Watson rumors happened this week."

Tua Tagovailoa had five games in 2020 in which he passed for fewer than 200 yards, and in three of those, he threw for fewer than 100.

As such, it should come as no surprise that the Dolphins are looking to potentially upgrade the position.

The Cowboys and Dolphins both have playoff aspirations this season.

Whether they can address their seemingly glaring issues internally and externally could determine if they are able to turn those hopes into reality.

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