CHARLOTTE – How 'bout them Cowboys? Seriously, what about them?

The Star has been an enigma thus far this season, making it hard to pin down any understanding about this team and what they will field week-to-week. Dallas sits at 5-8, thanks in part to a five-game losing streak in the middle of the season and a two-game win streak ahead of Week 14. They dropped the Monday Night Football showdown with the Bengals, 27-20.

It makes Sunday an intriguing matchup, as the Panthers continue to find themselves in close one-possession games, and the Cowboys experience swings each week.

The Panthers are 5-11 all-time against the Cowboys. Carolina is 3-6 at home and 2-5 on the road, with a 2-0 record in the playoffs and a 0-1 record in overtime against Dallas.

Let's get to know the 2024 Cowboys and what they will bring to the Carolinas this weekend.

This week on the pod…

The Cowboys' defense got a huge piece of their puzzle back this week when Trevon Diggs rejoined the lineup. The Pro Bowl corner missed the previous two games with a knee and groin injury. Dallas won both of those games, but the defense gave up an average of 226.5 passing yards per game. Diggs finished with five tackles and three passes defended in his first action in December.

Diggs can shut down his half of the field as a lockdown corner. When quarterbacks do throw his way, he's broken up (8 plus MNF) passes in 11 games.

In the front seven, linebacker Eric Kendricks leads the team with 107 tackles, and linebacker DeMarvion Overshown has picked up five sacks. Overshown did leave in the fourth quarter of Sunday's game though with a right knee injury. Coach Mike McCarthy said after the game that the injury seemed serious and that reports did not look encouraging.

There's little question, though, that the Cowboy's defense revolves around linebacker Micah Parsons. The pass-rusher missed four games with a high ankle sprain in the middle of the season, and he still leads the team with 6.5 sacks. Parsons presents challenges for opponents because he can line up at multiple positions and wreak havoc at each spot. Against the Panthers last season, Parsons had six tackles and 2.5 sacks.

Didn't just fall off the Turpin truck

Typically, these opponent previews don't highlight one particular special teams ace. But most teams don't have a KaVontae Turpin. The wide receiver is also the Cowboy's kick and punt returner. He entered Monday Night Football as the leading kickoff returner in total yardage (762 yards, just ahead of Raheem Blackshear) and average per return at 36.3 yards per (minimum 10 returns). Turpin is also seventh in average per punt return at 11.8 yards.

Some teams, such as the Bengals on Monday night, elect not to kick towards Turpin. He did return one punt for 20 yards, but all six kickoffs were touchbacks.

Turpin turned in one of the most electric plays of the NFL season thus far, with a 99-yard kickoff return for a touchdown against Washington. And in Week 11 against the Texans, Turpin reached a max speed of 22.36 miles per hour, according to Next Gen Stats, the fastest speed by a ball carrier this season and the fastest since Raheem Mostert reached 23.09 MPH in Week 2, 2020.

Since entering the league in 2022, Turpin has reached at least 20 miles per hour 17 times as a ball carrier (pre Monday Night Football), the 2nd-most such touches in that span.

The Cowboys also have Juanyeh Thomas, a safety, who has returned seven kickoffs for 187 yards (26.7 per return), including one for a touchdown on an onside kick.

During Monday Night Football, the Dallas special teams unit blocked a punt in the game's final minutes but also touched the ball without recovering, giving the Bengals the ball back and turning it into the go-ahead touchdown.

Life without Dak

The Cowboy's offense has been learning to live without starting quarterback Dak Prescott yet again after the three-time Pro Bowler suffered a season-ending hamstring injury in Week 9. Since then, Cooper Rush has been the signal caller. He has a 60.5 completion percentage, with 1,008 yards and seven touchdowns to three interceptions, while taking 10 sacks in eight games.

Mike McCarthy and crew also have former No. 3 overall pick Trey Lance available as a backup quarterback, should they choose to play the fourth-year passer.

While the quarterback position has been in flux, whoever is back there is still throwing to one of the best in the league, CeeDee Lamb. Despite the Cowboys rollercoaster of a season, Lamb has 973 receiving yards, which is third in the NFL.

A corps rounded out by Jalen Tolbert, Turpin—who was even used as a wildcat in Week 14—and Brandin Cooks, who is making his impact again after missing seven games on injured reserve, provides firepower that can't be taken lightly.