The Dallas Cowboys easily defeated the New York Jets in Week 5, earning a 37-22 victory.
Dallas quickly took control and entered halftime with a commanding 23-3 lead, cruising to victory despite a late fourth-quarter surge by New York.
The Cowboys now hold a 2-2-1 record, currently outside the playoff picture but poised to climb higher after the first five games of the season.
The game offered several takeaways, but the two most notable were the strong performance by the coaching staff and the growing possibility of a Dak Prescott MVP run.
Coaching Staff Delivers Best All-Around Performance of Season
Entering the 2025 season, the Cowboys’ coaching staff drew mixed reviews throughout the league.
Dallas relied on first-year offensive coordinator Brian Schottenheimer and defensive coordinator Matt Eberflus, who joined the team after a disappointing stint as Chicago’s head coach.
Through the first four weeks, reviews remained split.
Dallas struggled to slow opposing offenses, and at times, its own offense stalled amid numerous injuries.
However, the Cowboys’ coaching staff produced its most impressive game plan of the season, with the offense firing on all cylinders and the defense finally containing the opposition.
Despite missing four offensive line starters and one of the NFL’s top receivers, Dallas scored five touchdowns against a Jets defense built to challenge elite offenses.
This offensive explosion included 236 passing yards and 180 rushing yards, marking the third time the Cowboys have accumulated over 400 total yards in a game this season.
Meanwhile, the defense turned in its strongest outing of the season, holding the Jets to just six points through three quarters.
Dallas also forced a fumble — only the third defensive turnover of the season.
The Cowboys held the Jets to 5.2 yards per play, the second-lowest total by any opponent this year.
Moving forward, the Cowboys must find a way to build upon the performance on both sides of the ball, with the team having another winnable game against the Carolina Panthers in Week 6 before entering a difficult portion of the schedule.
Dak Prescott Enters MVP Conversations
Award season is still months away, with 12 weeks left in the regular season; however, Prescott is quickly establishing himself as one of the leading candidates for the 2025 regular season MVP award.
Despite many of the team’s offensive personnel missing significant time, Prescott ranks near the top of nearly every statistical category among offensive players.
Prior to Week 5 Monday Night Football, Prescott ranked second in total yards at 1,356, third in passing touchdowns with 10, sixth in completion percentage at 71.3%, and has thrown just three interceptions through five games.
These performances have also come against some of the best defensive units in the league, with Prescott managing to light up both the Green Bay Packers and Philadelphia Eagles earlier in the season.
Looking ahead to the rest of the season, Prescott has a solid chance to maintain this pace, as the Cowboys are likely to be involved in various shootout style games during the year.
While the Cowboys’ defense looked vastly improved in Week 5, it is unlikely that this unit can continue to slow down opposing quarterbacks, meaning MVP-caliber performances will likely be necessary for this team to compete at a high level.
Realistically, Prescott will have to lead Dallas to at least 11 or 12 wins to claim the MVP award this season, which could be a difficult task due to the Cowboys’ upcoming schedule.
However, Prescott has continuously played well this season and this type of performance should not be ruled out following one of the hottest starts to the season of any player in the league.