The Cowboys have lost a lot of players. In the past two seasons, Cowboys fans have watched Doug Free, Orlando Scandrick, Ronald Leary, Barry Church, J.J Wilcox, Tony Romo, Brice Butler, Anthony Hitchens, Morris Claiborne, Brandon Carr, and others all head out the revolving door in Dallas. “Whats that?” “There has been a new development?” “Dez Bryant, you’ve been voted off the island!”

It may seem difficult to be a Cowboys fan right now when two of the players fans believed were destined to win the Cowboys a Super Bowl (Romo and Dez) are no longer even on the roster. The Cowboys however do have something to gain from all these losses, a clean slate. While we wait and see if Dallas made the right decision in letting all these players walk, here is one important benefit Cowboys fans can appreciate now.

There Should Be Less Drama In Store For The 2018 Cowboys

Ezekiel Elliot ate his suspension and is now ready to eat up opposing defenses again- The long drawn out battle between Zeke and the NFL is over, and although the Cowboys lost the war, at least it finally ended. No longer will the Cowboys have to live day-by-day wondering if their star running back will be available each week. No more team workouts at the Star while Zeke is in New York with a team of lawyers. Zeke is back, and hopefully for a full season.

Jerry Jones paid the Commissioner, maybe now they can both just shut up and smile- Jerry Jones lost his appeal with NFL commissioner Roger Goodell over the retribution of the other NFL owners during Ezekiel Elliot’s defense last year. Goodell has had his contract extended and there is nothing to be done about it any longer. While Jerry may be mad he is 2 million dollars lighter, part of me is certain he is happy to have this whole affair behind him.

Jaylon Smith proved he may have a place in this league- While no one knew for certain what form of former Notre Dame superstar Jaylon Smith the Cowboys were going to get in the 2016 draft, Dallas can certainly breathe a sigh of relief now. While there is still no guarantee Smith will get back to his prime capabilities, he grew a lot down the stretch of the 2017 season, and can give fans a reason for optimism moving forward.

We don’t have to hear about the Dez Bryant- Dak Prescott chemistry issues anymore- Look, this is tough. Dez Bryant leaves the Cowboys after almost a decade of loyalty to the franchise. No decent Cowboys fan is excited about seeing him leave, but with his departure the Cowboys have a blank canvas to work with at receiver. The front office can get “Dak-friendly players” (still, no one knows what the hell this means). With Bryant gone, the Cowboys are a team of mostly young, hungry players in their primes. A locker room of young men with the right sprinkle of veteran leadership.

Dallas found its “War Daddy” at pass rusher-  In his first year truly healthy, Demarcus (Tank) Lawrence set the NFL ablaze, and is the crown jewel in the belt of the Dallas defense. While there is no guarantee Dallas can retain him with a long term contract, at this point last season nobody knew what Lawrence was even capable of.

I’m not claiming that the Cowboys will be much better in 2018. There are a bunch of changes this team is still working through and processing. The Dez Bryant shock will take time for the players (and fans) to get used to. Although maybe…just maybe… the peace of mind and closure that these changes provide can be an asset for the team moving forward.