CHICAGO -- History is not on the Dallas Cowboys' side.
Through three games, they have allowed 92 points, the fourth most to open a season in franchise history. In the three previous seasons that happened (1963, 2000, 2020), they failed to make the playoffs. Twice it happened with a new head coach.
In 2000, they gave up 94 in Dave Campo's first season and finished 5-11. In 2020, Mike McCarthy's first season, they allowed 97 and finished 6-10.
If the Cowboys want to break the trend in Brian Schottenheimer's first season as coach, the defense has to find its way.
Sunday's 31-14 loss to the Chicago Bears at Soldier Field was disconcerting in a number of ways.
The Cowboys allowed five more pass plays of at least 25 yards to the Bears, giving them 13 on the season. They have given up five touchdown passes of 25 yards or more, including a 35-yarder to Rome Odunze and a 65-yarder on a flea-flicker to Luther Burden III on Sunday.
According to ESPN Research, the Cowboys have allowed the most completions and passing touchdowns of 25 yards or more through three games in the past 45 years.
But the gut punch of all gut punches was a 19-play, 76-yard touchdown drive in the third quarter that upped Chicago's lead to 17 points and ate up nine minutes and 54 seconds.
It matched the longest drive given up by the Cowboys this century (the Cincinnati Bengals had a 19-play drive in 2022) and it is the longest scoring drive they've allowed this century in terms of time of possession.
"We weren't getting there, plus we weren't covering them," owner and general manager Jerry Jones said of a pass rush and coverage. "That's a bad combination."
It's certainly not the combination the Cowboys had in mind when the season started, even with the trade of Micah Parsons to the Green Bay Packers a week before the Sept. 4 opener against the Philadelphia Eagles.
After New York Giants quarterback Russell Wilson lit them up for 450 passing yards and three touchdowns last week, the Cowboys put the blame on a lack of communication. On Sunday, they pointed to execution.
"We got the calls in," cornerback Trevon Diggs said. "We just didn't execute, gave up some big plays in the beginning of the game, and just from there it was just a snowball effect."
The Cowboys actually forced a three-and-out on the Bears' first possession. Chicago had scored on its opening possession in its first two games, but after a fumble, the Bears hit two big plays, ending with Odunze's touchdown, which came after Diggs slipped following a jam attempt at the line of scrimmage.
Caleb Williams finished with 298 yards on 19-of-28 passing. For the first time in his NFL career, the quarterback was not sacked. The Cowboys were credited with only one quarterback pressure.
"I thought we got pressure on him, we just couldn't finish it. We were around, we just couldn't get him on the ground," Schottenheimer said.
The Bears killed the game on their first possession of the second half with their 19-play drive. At one point, they ran it 11 straight times. It ended with a fourth-down touchdown pass, to a wide-open DJ Moore, with nine seconds left in the quarter.
"It's tough," said defensive tackle Kenny Clark, who injured his ankle on the drive but said after the game he was OK. "We gotta find a way to get off the field. Teams get worn down the more plays they get. So gotta just do a better job with that, and it all starts with locking in on film, playing fast, understanding what you're going to get and holding each other accountable to that."
Aside from that spell, the run defense has been solid so far, especially compared to last season when they allowed 190 and 274 rushing yards in two of the first three games. The pass rush has been woeful. Either the pass rushers have to affect the quarterback more, or defensive coordinator Matt Eberflus has to start using more pressures to impact the opposing quarterback.
"We've got to eliminate the big plays, just get stops and get off the field," Diggs said. "That's pretty much it. Do the things we've been doing in the past and get it right."
Said Clark, "It's no real secret magic formula."
Parsons is returning to AT&T Stadium on Sunday but in Packers green and gold and can't save the Cowboys anymore.
"We didn't play well enough to win," Schottenheimer said. "That's why we're sitting here with a loss. They converted third downs, we didn't. They protected the ball, we didn't. They hit explosives, we didn't. This game is one of those games you look at and, yeah, it's humbling, it sucks, but we didn't play very good. Gotta play better to win in this league."
