Cowboys' Super Bowl-winning HC criticizes team's lack of mental toughness after crushing 44-19 defeat vs Saints

The Dallas Cowboys lost a monumental game on Sunday, with the New Orleans Saints obliterating them at home in a 44-19 score. The Cowboys were far from doing anything useful on defense, and Dak Prescott also had mistakes that made the game out of reach.

This loss weighed heavily on Dallas' hopes. The Saints aren't a powerhouse in the NFC by any means, but their defensive ineptitude was worrisome. For former head coach Jimmy Johnson, who led the team to multiple Super Bowl wins, the Cowboys are perhaps being a bit too soft.

Speaking on "The Herd with Colin Cowherd" on Monday, Johnson said:

"Dallas is a unique situation because they are so visible. They’ve got so many fans, they’ve got so many people telling them how great they are, that they don’t develop that toughness, that ability to overcome adversity type of thing. It’s almost like they’ve got the country club-type life. That’s why you’ve got to have the type of coaches who will drill it into them."

(from 8:34 mark onwards)

It's only the second week of the season, and the Cowboys defeated a very good team in Week 1, so it's not all lost. But to see how much Dallas was easily dominated certainly created doubts in the minds of the fans.

Even though he was not the sole cause for the loss, Dak Prescott was criticized for not keeping the team in the game for longer. Truth be told, there was little he could do when the defense played as badly as it played.

How much are the Cowboys paying Dak Prescott in his new deal?

Prescott signed a walloping four-year, $240 million deal in total, becoming the first-ever player to break the $60 million mark. It's also the biggest deal in the league by a huge margin, surpassing Joe Burrow and Tua Tagovailoa, who both got $55 million per year.

It also means that there will be less money for other positions, but it's better to have a franchise quarterback than to need one. Sure, he needs to improve in the playoffs, but Dallas definitely couldn't allow him to reach the open market for free. It was a good deal, although expensive.