Brian Schottenheimer says Dallas must tighten its pass coverage as Joey Porter Jr. ramps up and the Cowboys prepare for Tampa Bay on a short week.

FRISCO — Brian Schottenheimer didn’t dance around the biggest concern facing the Dallas Cowboys defense Tuesday.

“The coverage has to be better.”

That was Schottenheimer’s message as Dallas turned quickly from Sunday’s 34-30 win over Houston toward Thursday night’s matchup with Tampa Bay.

The Cowboys are 2-2, but the defense has still allowed too many explosive plays through the first month of the season. Houston repeatedly found openings in the secondary Sunday, particularly early in the game, and Schottenheimer made the connection clear: better coverage would also give Dallas’ pass rush more time to affect quarterbacks.

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That makes the continued integration of Joey Porter Jr. even more important.

Porter played 24 defensive snaps in his Cowboys debut against Houston after arriving via trade from Pittsburgh just days earlier. He was targeted only once in 19 coverage snaps, and Schottenheimer praised how quickly the 26-year-old corner has absorbed the defense.

Dallas intentionally limited Porter’s workload against the Texans because he didn’t yet know the entire call sheet, but that restriction should begin easing as he gets more practice time with defensive coordinator Christian Parker and secondary coach Derrick Ansley.

The Cowboys could also get another major reinforcement soon.

All-Pro guard Tyler Smith has returned to practice after Dallas opened his 21-day window to come off injured reserve. Smith has been recovering from thumb surgery, and while the short turnaround complicates his availability for Thursday, Schottenheimer indicated Dallas will continue evaluating whether he’s ready.

The larger concern, though, remains the defense.

Schottenheimer said earlier this week that he doesn’t want Dallas to live in weekly shootouts, even though the offense has shown it can carry that burden.

“I don’t want to have to score 30 points every game to win,” Schottenheimer said Monday. “But if we got to score 35 or whatever it takes to win, we’ll do that.”

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That isn’t a sustainable formula forever.

If Porter continues developing quickly and the secondary starts eliminating explosive plays, Dallas could finally give its offense some breathing room.

For Schottenheimer, the priority before Tampa Bay is straightforward.

The coverage has to catch up.