Dallas, Team Mood and Players We're In or Out On

As we race toward August, Footballguys.com will look at one team per day with our extremely in-depth Team Reports and our quick-hitting Team Mood and Players We're In and Out On, where we check out the overall mood of each team's offense and let you know the players we are in on (because they are great values at the cost it takes to acquire them) and who we're out on (because they are too expensive and won't have a good return on that investment).

Here are all of the Team Mood and Players We're In and Out On articles:
Arizona | Atlanta | Baltimore | Buffalo | Carolina | Chicago | Cincinnati | Cleveland | Dallas | Denver | Detroit | Green Bay | Houston | Indianapolis | Jacksonville | Kansas City | Las Vegas | LA Chargers | LA Rams | Miami | Minnesota | New England | New Orleans | NY Giants | NY Jets | Philadelphia | Pittsburgh | San Francisco | Seattle | Tampa Bay | Tennessee | Washington

Quick Hits

Want a brief overview? Here it is:

• Mood - Good
• We're In On at Cost - RB Ezekiel Elliott
• We're Out On at Cost - WR Michael Gallup

Want a longer breakdown of how it's going in Dallas? Read on.

Dallas, Team Mood

• Good - 10
• Neutral - 5
• Bad - 0

Staffers in a Good Mood

• Jason Wood: Dallas has the league's No. 1 offense last year, despite perceptions to the contrary.
• Dave Kluge: This is a high-flying offense loaded with playmakers in a division chock full of lousy defenses.
• Jeff Haseley: Dak Prescott is another year removed from his ankle injury, CeeDee Lamb is on the verge of stardom, and the defense is playing well.
• Kevin Coleman: Dallas will be a top-five offense in 2022, and a fully healthy Dak Prescott, two years removed from his ankle injury, can lead this team to the playoffs.
• Andy Hicks: Dallas has years of a proven track record, as does Mike McCarthy. In this division, they look like the class.
• Craig Lakins: When things are clicking Dak Prescott and the Cowboys, this is a hard offense to stop. There seems to be a lot of confidence coming out of Dallas right now.
• Jordan McNamara: You can quibble around the edges on coaching staff or roster-building decisions, but Dallas led the league in offense in 2021. I think they are in the right direction.
• Ryan Weisse: They lost Amari Cooper, but Ceedee Lamb seems ready to be the No. 1. The offense as a whole is full of talent, and they should score a lot of points.
• Jonathan Morris: Despite the loss of Amari Cooper, I still love the dynamic pieces in play for this offense.
• Zareh Kantzabedian: Kellen Moore is still the Dallas Cowboys offensive coordinator and he's produced a top-five offense each year he has been there.

Staffers in a Neutral Mood

• Sam Wagman: The Cowboys lost multiple offensive weapons this offseason and the once fearsome offensive line has looked better. Can the newcomers pick up the slack?
• Phil Alexander: Being neutral isn't a bad thing for one of the league's best offenses.
• Jeff Bell: Dallas led the NFL at 30.4 points per game. This offense remains a target, though they have seen offensive line attrition.
• Christian Williams: Losing Amari Cooper may be manageable, but new faces on the offensive line could create issues Dallas hasn't faced in quite some time.

Staffers in a Bad Mood

• None.

Players We're In On at Cost

• Ezekiel Elliott - 8
• Dak Prescott - 4
• Tony Pollard - 2
• Dalton Schultz - 1
• Everyone - 2

Reasons to be In on Ezekiel Elliott

• Dave Kluge: The narratives around Elliott are that he's old and busted. Prior to his injury last year, he looked fantastic. Being pushed outside of the RB1 discussion feels like a huge mistake.
• Sam Wagman: Elliot is primed for a bounce-back season after playing through a significant PCL injury last year and whispers of the Cowboys going back to a more balanced scheme.
• Chad Parsons: All Elliott has done is finish as a top-15 running back in adjusted points-per-game all six seasons in the NFL. Fade Elliott at your own risk.
• Kevin Coleman: His current ADP is a value considering he finished as RB6 in PPR formats last season, and he should see a similar volume.
• Andy Hicks: He doesn’t get enough credit for playing on despite a debilitating knee injury. A fully fit Elliott is a fantasy beast, and this year he will be a value.
• Jordan McNamara: Elliott has finished as a top-12 seasonal finisher in each of his six seasons in the league. Elliott is durable and in a valuable role, and is being undervalued by the market.
• Ryan Weisse: Seels like a steal where you are getting him.
• Christian Williams: Elliott has become one of the best running back values in drafts this offseason.

Reasons to be In on Dak Prescott

• Jeff Haseley: He quietly had nine games of 3+ touchdowns last year and finished 6th overall among quarterbacks. If he increases his rushing output even slightly, he enters the top 5.
• Chad Parsons: Prescott is not considered elite by enough drafters annually.
• Ryan Weisse: Seels like a steal where you are getting him.
• Jonathan Morris: Mike McCarthy has said that Prescott will run more. In a pass-heavy offense, I can't put a cap on Prescott's ceiling this year.

Reasons to be In on Tony Pollard

• Craig Lakins: Pollard's touches have grown each year and with Amari Cooper gone to Cleveland, the Cowboys will have to get more creative with how Pollard is used.
• Zareh Kantzabedian: I expect to see Tony Pollard utilized more as a receiver in 2022. I envision him as an every-week RB2 in point-per-reception leagues if he's utilized in such a way.

Reasons to be In on Dalton Schultz

• Ryan Weisse: Schultz is a dark horse to be the overall TE1 this season.

Reasons to be In on Everyone

• Jason Wood: Dallas is one of the offenses you want to have a piece or two of, no matter where in the draft you get them.
• Phil Alexander: There isn't a good reason to shy away from any Cowboys at cost, save for maybe CeeDee Lamb because there isn't much upside.

Players We're Out On at Cost

• Michael Gallup - 5
• CeeDee Lamb - 2
• Tony Pollard - 2
• Dalton Schultz - 1
• Dallas Defense - 1
• No One - 4

Reasons to be Out on Michael Gallup

• Dave Kluge: Gallup's recovery doesn't seem to be going well. There's way too much risk in that situation for me to draft him.
• Sam Wagman: I am out on Gallup right now. It doesn’t look like he plays for the majority of the season.
• Jeff Haseley: Still recovering from a late-season ACL tear. His redraft worth suffers as a result. He'll also likely be eased back into the lineup.
• Kevin Coleman: There is too much uncertainty with Gallup’s injury recovery to draft him right now.
• Craig Lakins: My concern here is missed time. The Week 17 torn ACL is likely to keep him out of the lineup for the first part of the season and could linger for an unknown amount of time.

Reasons to be Out on CeeDee Lamb

• Chad Parsons: Are we sure Lamb is significantly better than Michael Gallup on his own depth chart, especially considering their respective cost?
• Phil Alexander: Lamb's ADP is rising to the high-end WR1 range, where anything but a finish near his best possible outcome will qualify as a disappointment.

Reasons to be Out on Tony Pollard

• Jordan McNamara: Injury-away running backs are largely interchangeable. Paying up Pollard has a similar vibe to those who spent years trying to pick Frank Gore's heir apparent.
• Christian Williams: Pollard has to be considered, but his pass-catching upside should make him a fine selection.

Reasons to be Out on Dalton Schultz

• Andy Hicks: Schultz is at the top of his value. There is no margin for downside. He is more bottom-end TE1 than elite.

Reasons to be Out on the Dallas Defense

• Ryan Weisse: Don't overdraft this team defense. It will be hard to repeat all of those touchdowns.

Reasons to be Out on No One

• Jason Wood: Dallas is one of the offenses you want to have a piece or two of - no matter where in the draft you get them.
• Jeff Bell: Gallup is an acceptable entry given the injury, but this is an offense Footballguys' consensus ranks seem to have down pat.
• Jonathan Morris: At current value, I can't see myself passing up anyone on this offense that will score early and often.
• Zareh Kantzabedian: I am not avoiding anybody in this offense.