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Dallas Cowboys: Dak Prescott can’t do everything with Ezekiel Elliott out

By Joshua Bateman

ARLINGTON, TX - NOVEMBER 05: Dak Prescott #4 of the Dallas Cowboys gets a high five from Terrance Williams #83 of the Dallas Cowboys after scrabling for a first down in the second half of a football game against the Kansas City Chiefs at AT&T Stadium on November 5, 2017 in Arlington, Texas. (Photo by Ron Jenkins/Getty Images)
ARLINGTON, TX - NOVEMBER 05: Dak Prescott #4 of the Dallas Cowboys gets a high five from Terrance Williams #83 of the Dallas Cowboys after scrabling for a first down in the second half of a football game against the Kansas City Chiefs at AT&T Stadium on November 5, 2017 in Arlington, Texas. (Photo by Ron Jenkins/Getty Images) /
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LANDOVER, MD – OCTOBER 29: Defensive end Tyrone Crawford #98 of the Dallas Cowboys, Demarcus Lawrence #90, and David Irving #95 celebrate after defeating the Washington Redskins at FedEx Field on October 29, 2017 in Landover, Maryland.(Photo by Patrick Smith/Getty Images)
LANDOVER, MD – OCTOBER 29: Defensive end Tyrone Crawford #98 of the Dallas Cowboys, Demarcus Lawrence #90, and David Irving #95 celebrate after defeating the Washington Redskins at FedEx Field on October 29, 2017 in Landover, Maryland.(Photo by Patrick Smith/Getty Images) /

Other side of the ball

The first place you have to go to is the defense. With Elliott out, the Cowboys will have to accept that their offense cannot be as good. Everything they do is built on Elliott getting ahead of the chains, and keeping the other team on the sidelines. Then when they get into the red zone Prescott kills teams as much as anyone else in the league. The reality is the Celtics will not be able to consistently do that anymore, and that means the defense will have to carry more of the load.

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The good news is that as the offense is losing pieces, the defense is really coming together. DeMarcus Lawrence and David Irving are rushing the passer as good as any duo right now. Sean Lee is healthy and dominating, and the secondary is not getting blown up on a regular basis. The defense has done a great job of holding things together and making sure the offense gets a chance to win their games.

Now that has to change. The defense needs to start making some of those plays that are lost with the Elliott suspension. They need to make sure they are putting the offense in good field position, because it will be impossible to sustain drives the same way without Elliott. We cannot expect them to be scoring the touchdowns, but this defense needs to start getting the turnovers that can change the game for the better.

The Falcons will be a great first test. They are the kind of offense that can do a lot of damage to any defense. If the Cowboys come out and have a strong and capable defensive performance against the Falcons, then the confidence will grow that they can start  beating teams on that end. Against a team like the Falcons, chances are the only way they will be able to have a big enough of an impact is if they make plays and get turnovers.

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