The Dallas Cowboys are on a two-game losing streak, and if there have been improvements within the team in that span, it’s hard to get too excited about them. Dallas was steamrolled in Week 5 against the Buccaneers–a winless team with an undrafted rookie quarterback at the helm in his second start–and went on the road to lose a game to the Packers on Sunday night, a game in which they never really had control. But there were some signs, as star lineman Quinnen Williams sees it.
Williams has been one of the problems for the Cowboys in the early going of this season. The Cowboys gave up a first-rounder and a second-rounder to get him, and though he was excellent in 2025, he has been up-and-down in 2026 as the Cowboys install yet another new defense.
Pro Football Focus has rated Williams as one of the Top 4 defensive linemen in the NFL in three of the last four years. But this year, he is rated No. 46.
Cowboys Not Meeting the ‘Standard’
Williams has been improving though. As he sees it, the Cowboys defense is still a work in progress, and he puts much of that on his own shoulder and not playing up to his usual level. He was much better against Green Bay–and needs to keep that momentum going.
Said Williams (via Jon Machota of The Athletic: “Right now, we got a lot of stuff we need to fix, especially on the defensive side. I haven’t been playing to the standard that I want to be able to play it, to be able to be a game-changer. All that stuff right now is on my front focus on my mind, and doing the things that we know we can do, each and every day, to get better, and each and every Sunday, to win football games.”
Quinnen Williams Was Very Good vs. Packers
Again, the Packers game was Williams’ best of the season–he hit Jordan Love twice, kept the pressure on him, and recorded a sack. That’s a very good sign for the Cowboys, who still rate as one of the worst defenses in the NFL.
Said Williams: “I’m on the right trajectory, right direction to play how I know I can play. But just setting the standard, not only for me, but for this defense in general, and the ability that we have as a unit. … We have the coaching staff and the players to achieve those goals that we want to achieve. We just got to continue to put our heads down and work.”
They’ll need to show continued improvement on Monday night in Philadelphia as they play the Eagles in Week 7.
Cowboys Star Calls Out Defense’s ‘Standard’ Before Week 7