The Dallas Cowboys finished the 2016 season at 13-3 despite havinge a middle-of-the-road defense that ranked No. 14 overall and No. 26 in passing yards per game.
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Cowboys vice president Stephen Jones said the team's defense kept them from being a championship team last season.
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"People say our biggest issue and the thing that keeps us from winning a championship is the lack of (defense)," Jones said at the NFL owners meetings. "We didn't have the players to be a great defense. Hopefully we can address that. Now I am not going to say we are going to sit here and pick for need. But I will say before we started free agency we took a snapshot of the draft and knew that it was deep in the defensive line, deep in the secondary. We knew that was the ability to really improve ourselves there."
The Cowboys' secondary will need to be addressed in the draft and in free agency after the team let several veterans walk this offseason.
Cornerback Morris Claiborne signed with the New York Jets, and Brandon Carr signed with the Baltimore Ravens. Barry Church signed with the Jacksonville Jaguars. The Cowboys are also in need of a pass rusher.
Dallas has a young offensive core, and playmakers like Ezekiel Elliott and Dak Prescott can keep the Cowboys among the best teams in the NFC. But if the defense doesn't improve—especially with young talent—it could prevent Dallas from winning a coveted sixth Super Bowl.
(h/t All 22)
