The Dallas Cowboys take on the Houston Texans in Week 2 of the 2021 NFL Preseason. Here are the most important storylines to watch
It’s the annual preseason battle between the NFL’s two Texas clubs as the Dallas Cowboys will host the Houston Texans.
Dallas is set for their third preseason game, getting one more than the rest of the clubs since they played against Pittsburgh in Canton, Ohio for the Hall of Fame game. Now, they’re at home with the Governor’s Cup on the line. Seriously, that’s a thing. No one cares about it since it’s a preseason battle but there’s a whole series and all dedicated to the matchup between these two teams.
With that being said, let’s dive into what the team does care about as we highlight the three biggest storylines in the Cowboys third preseason game.
3. Dallas Cowboys: How will the linebackers look?
Even before the preseason began, the linebackers have been a hot topic in Big D. Jaylon Smith and Leighton Vander Esch had gone from two of the best in the game to two players on the outs. Dallas elected not to pick up the fifth-year option on Vander Esch’s contract and Smith was someone who had trade rumors swirling around him.
The noise got louder when Dallas drafted Micah Parsons and Jabril Cox and even moved former safety Keanu Neal to linebacker. And so far in 2021, all the linebackers behind the starters have looked solid.
Parsons has been flying all over the field and Cox has led the team in tackles in each of their past two preseason games. Neal, who has been up and down in camp shook that off and played very well against Arizona.
Not much has been said about the two returning starters, but in their defense, they haven’t gotten much playing time in the preseason — which is the norm. Still, one of the top storylines continues to be how this unit is playing and what that will mean come Week 1 of the regular season.