Dallas Cowboys fans have raised their expectations this year, but still have surprisingly small goals

What would make this a successful season for the Cowboys in your eyes?

We have just about reached November, which means the stakes are gettign higher with each NFL game to be played. Thankfully for all of us, the Dallas Cowboys are in the center of meaningful action and look to keep that up all the way through the early days of 2022.

There were many Cowboys fan who thought that success like this was possible, but even the most optimistic follower would likely tell you that the team is outperforming what they envisioned for them this season. As a result of how well the team is playing, many people are adjusting their expectations for the season accordingly.

What exactly are your expectations for the Cowboys now that they have reached a 5-1 record? The division looks like a foregone conclusion for them at this point, but we are talking about a franchise that hasn’t appeared in an NFC Championship Game since 1996.

This week, SB Nation Reacts asked Cowboys fans not only if they have adjusted their expectations for the season, but just what those new expectations are.

As you can see, an overwhelming majority (69%) of fans have in fact raised their hopes for this year despite our better judgment. Each of these fans were also asked a follow-up question about what the expectation for this season is which is where the result are interesting.

While the Cowboys did not win the NFC East last year, they dealt with a wide number of injuries that helped explain away their lack of hats and t-shirts. In spite of the team’s success this year early on, and the rest of the division faltering, the expectation most seem to have at this point is in fact to merely win the NFC East.

The second-most popular answer as far as current expectations for the Cowboys was to reach the NFC Championship Game, again the ground that has evaded them for far too long (sometimes as a result, ironically so, of Mike McCarthy).

Only 11% of polled fans have an expectation of this team to win the Super Bowl this year which is a bit fair considering that the rest of the NFC looks difficult to emerge from. Dallas is a contender, but the likes of Tampa Bay, Green Bay, Arizona, and Los Angeles are all going to be difficult to get by if the Cowboys want a shot at Lombardi number six.

How have your expectations for this Cowboys season changed? What is fair?

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