4 toughest defenses Justin Herbert and the Chargers face in 2023

3. Dallas Cowboys

The Dallas Cowboys went from being an offensive team that typically had holes on defense that held them back to being a great defensive team that was winning games that way. You don't go 4-1 with Cooper Rush at quarterback unless you have a good defense that can pick up the slack.

The entire defensive effort is led by Micah Parsons, who truly is panning out to be the best value selection in the 2021 NFL Draft. In a re-draft, Parsons would undoubtedly go second or third overall with the only players having a better case being Trevor Lawrence and Ja'Marr Chase.

Parsons has recorded 26.5 sacks in two seasons and was named a first-team All-Pro in 2022. He has played great and has made his teammates play even better, which has resulted in a collective group effort that is really hard to overcome.

Dallas ranked second in defensive DVOA, fifth in points allowed and 12th in total yards allowed. Some would assume that the DVOA metric would rank Dallas higher than third on this list but they do have some small holes that can be exploited, such as the team's run defense.

When talking about elite defenses like this we really are splitting hairs. Playing Dallas on primetime is a tough ask for anyone but luckily, the Chargers have their former offensive coordinator in Kellen Moore to find the weak spots of this defense.