FRISCO, Texas – The 2026 offseason is here, as the Cowboys closed the first year of the Brian Schottenheimer era with a 7-9-1 record.
Before we begin looking ahead for what's next, let's first take a look back at each month of the 2025 season for Dallas and how the Cowboys fared. We'll continue with a look back at November, where the Cowboys went 3-1.
November:
- Nov. 3 – Cardinals 27, Cowboys 17
- Nov. 9 – BYE
- Nov. 17 – Cowboys 33, Raiders 16
- Nov. 23 – Cowboys 24, Eagles 21
- Nov. 27 – Cowboys 31, Chiefs 28
Biggest takeaway: The biggest story for the Cowboys, not just in November, but undoubtedly for the entire season, was the tragic loss of defensive end Marshawn Kneeland, who died on Nov. 5, just two days after he scored a touchdown against the Cardinals on a blocked punt recovery. The Cowboys suffered nine losses on the field, but none bigger than losing a teammate, especially in such tragic fashion. Miraculously, head coach Brian Schottenheimer found a way to keep the focus for his team, which with the help of a trade before the deadline to acquire Quinnen Williams, rallied together to win three straight games, beating both teams that previously played in the Super Bowl, in a span of four days.
Something to remember: The Cowboys were down 21-0 to the Eagles on Nov. 23 at AT&T Stadium and were about to take that three-touchdown lead into the locker room at halftime. But a late score by George Pickens kept the Cowboys within striking distance and eventually set the stage for a huge comeback. Dallas actually tied the franchise record for largest comeback (21 points) to win in team history. The Cowboys scored 24 unanswered points, capped off by Brandon Aubrey's 42-yard field goal as time expired, giving the Cowboys a second-straight win. They would eventually get three in a row after beating the Chiefs on Thanksgiving later in the week.
Something to forget: The Cowboys were defeated by the Cardinals and quarterback Jacoby Brissett. And although it was a 10-point loss, the game really didn't feel that close. Brissett had a 115.1 quarterback rating and made sure that Marvin Harrison Jr. had a breakout game (seven catches for 96 yards). While it was a bad game overall, it could've been final straw for the Cowboys to make the trade on acquiring Williams the next day.
Employee of the month:
Nick Eatman: You have to point towards one of the newest guys in the building. Quinnen Williams not only arrived with big expectations, but he lived up to them right away. In that first game against the Raiders, he had 1.5 sacks with five pressures and followed that up with 14 total pressures (seven each) in the next two home wins. He was as-advertised and I think those performances after the trade helped him earn another Pro Bowl bid.
Patrik Walker: There are a select few I could go with here, but why overthink it? The answer is Quinnen Williams — full stop. The blockbuster trade to acquire him from the Jets instantly set in motion a series of events that suddenly saw the Cowboys' defense go from being the laughingstock of the NFL to a potential contender, if only for a small stretch of time. With Williams plopped beside Kenny Clark, the Cowboys ran more five-man fronts and Williams wasn't simply a run-stopping behemoth, but also immediately one of the best pass rushers in Dallas, quickly adding sacks to his stat line to go along with tackles for loss against running backs, basically mauling anyone put in front of him. It all helped power a three-game win streak over an 11-day span that included downing the Eagles and the Chiefs within four days of each other. As I said, I could look around to see who else might deserve it, but it's pointless when I already know who definitely does.
Tommy Yarrish: While the defense certainly took headlines with the addition of Williams, I think Dak Prescott's November was a pretty big benefactor from it. He led the offense to 30 or more points in two of their games and threw for 1,192 yards and nine touchdowns to just three interceptions in that month. Not to mention, two of those wins came against both teams that played in the Super Bowl the year before. Five days apart. That's pretty impressive. I think this was the month that showed you if Dallas can be average, at the very least, on defense, the offense is good enough to hang with anybody in the league. That means you've got a shot in every game, and it's up to you to execute on that. That said, consistency is hard to come by, especially in the NFL.
