The Dallas Cowboys brought back all 11 starters from an offense that ranked among the NFL’s best in 2025. Eight games into the 2026 season though, that hasn’t been nearly enough.
The Cowboys coughed up a 14-point fourth-quarter lead in a 33-30 overtime loss to the Arizona Cardinals on Sunday, and they’re still searching for their first winning streak of the year. Owner Jerry Jones called the collapse “an indictment of the whole show.”
However, five-time Pro Bowl wide receiver CeeDee Lamb has a pretty good idea of where the problem starts — and he certainly didn’t sugarcoat it.
CeeDee Lamb is Fed Up With Cowboys Beating Themselves
Lamb was asked about the offense’s struggles when he met with reporters on Thursday, and his answer was short and to the point.
“We stop ourselves,” Lamb said, via The Athletic’s Jon Machota. “That s*** is frustrating. It’s annoying. I hate it. Then ultimately we end up losing, so there’s that.”
It’s hard to argue with him.
Dallas led 24-10 after a 5-yard touchdown run from quarterback Dak Prescott with 14:20 left in the fourth quarter on Sunday. From that point on, the offense managed just 52 yards and six points on two field goals while Arizona stormed back to tie it with six seconds remaining.
Two of Prescott’s late throws to Lamb were batted down at the line. One was on third down before a 35-yard field goal, the other in overtime. The Cowboys won the overtime coin toss, elected to kick, got a stop, then went three-and-out with a 2-yard run, the tipped pass, and a 7-yard sack.
“A couple tipped passes — you guys saw that,” head coach Brian Schottenheimer said. “They did a nice job with the line of scrimmage. We had CeeDee coming open on a little choice route underneath. We’ve got to keep their hands down.”
Before Sunday, the Cowboys were 202-0-1 at home when leading by 14 or more points in the fourth quarter.
Cowboys Offense Keeps Getting in Its Own Way
Dallas’ offensive struggles isn’t a new pattern either.
In Week 6, the Cowboys lost 24-16 to the previously winless Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Prescott threw two interceptions on tipped passes, KaVontae Turpin lost a fumble on a kickoff return, and Dallas ran for just 50 yards.
Then came a 23-13 loss to the Green Bay Packers in which Prescott threw 54 passes and Lamb caught nine of his 18 targets for just 70 yards. Prescott took the blame afterward, saying the defense played well enough to win and the offense “didn’t hold our own.”
The numbers tell a similar story. The Cowboys rank seventh in scoring (27.4 points per game) but just 13th in total offense (342 yards per game). Those numbers aren’t nearly good enough to cover for a defense that ranks dead last in yards allowed (385.4 per game).
For his part, Lamb has held up his end. The 27-year-old has 60 catches for 709 yards and six touchdowns through eight games. That pace puts him on track for his sixth straight 1,000-yard season.
Thankfully for Dallas, nobody in the NFC East has run away with the division. The 4-2-1 New York Giants haven’t created much separation.
The Cowboys visit the Indianapolis Colts on Sunday. Lamb needs just two catches to pass DeAndre Hopkins for the most receptions by an NFL player before turning 28.
CeeDee Lamb Lashes Out Over Cowboys’ Offensive Struggles