Fisher says Cowboys closing in on playcaller decision

[fanfromvirginia]

Originally Posted by CowboyChris

actually Holmgrem makes the most sense, he would be the HC, and Callahan would actually be the real OC/playcaller in a WCO scheme.

Except all the awkwardness that would involve. JG would be a complete puppet at that point.

This ultimately is a hare-brained plan because it requires Jerry to really thread the needle. If you want JG running the show with his offense, there are no candidates. If you want someone to run his own offense, there is no need to keep JG.

[burmafrd]

Originally Posted by Beast_from_East

Not good, however it didnt change the fact that we did win a playoff game the week before.

not good.

Really

come on.

IT STANK THE PLACE UP.

but then that derails your agenda, doesn't it?

[HoosierCowboy]

don't know who yet but what we know for sure is:

-if we wait we are idiots
-if we hire someone, anyone quickly we are idiots
-no matter what we do, JJ is an idiot
-JG is an idiot, regardless
-firings so far were done by an idiot whether JJ or JG
-hiring them in the first place was idiotic
-anyone who disagrees or agrees with this or any other post that agrees or disagrees with this post is an idiot

[Hostile]

Originally Posted by HoosierCowboy

don't know who yet but what we know for sure is:

-if we wait we are idiots
-if we hire someone, anyone quickly we are idiots
-no matter what we do, JJ is an idiot
-JG is an idiot, regardless
-firings so far were done by an idiot whether JJ or JG
-hiring them in the first place was idiotic
-anyone who disagrees or agrees with this or any other post that agrees or disagrees with this post is an idiot

[cml750]

Originally Posted by Hoofbite

If we're saying Garrett isn't getting the results because of the OL then Dallas hasn't had an OL since 2007 because the outcomes have been pretty much the same except for the year Romo was out.

[View Full Quote]In that case, it's awfully curious as to why the OL wasn't the primary area of need last offseason. Given the QB had just spent half the season with broken ribs, I'm not sure any DB is bad enough and must be replaced before the OL if it means exposing your QB to the possibility of suffering an injury that he couldn't play through. And while I know that the possibility exists for all QBs, until someone can show me that 3 broken bones in 3 separate seasons over a 4 year span is what a QB should be expected to incur, I'm not sure the possibility of it happening to anyone does much to disprove that Romo has taken much more than the vast majority of QBs will ever take. (Notice I said 3 broken bones? I didn't count this years ribs which makes it 4 broken bones in 4 separate seasons over the span of 5 years)

If Garrett is calling the shots, I'm interested as to why he wouldn't jump at the first opportunity to finally give himself an OL. If he's never had an OL, it's hard to fathom he wouldn't try to get the best possible OL put together unless he doesn't value the OL at all. Being a QB himself and likely taking a few slobber knockers in his time, I'm guessing that's not the case. Instead the team basically used up the lion's share of their resources on defense. When you look at what they had and where it went, it's almost all defense except for the two clearance isle OL and Vickers. Carr, Spencer, Claiborne and the three guys who followed Claiborne.

On the OL we got a backup from Carolina and a guy Cincy couldn't wait to get rid of. Being that Dallas is basically in the EXACT SAME SPOT right now as it pertains to the OL (Still Weak) and Spencer (Not under contract, possibly gone, possibly stays, who knows?) as they were in last year, it's hard not to wonder what could have been if that 8.8M tag number would have been applied on say.........Ben Grubbs and Chris Myers. Although, I doubt Chris Myers was interested in leaving but you never know until you start talking about it.

Now this isn't a knock on Spencer because he actually surprised me and I'll give him credit for having an exceptional year. It's a knock on allocation of resources and prioritization of the OL. If the OL is truly holding the team back in that Romo is under constant pressure, looks to be antsy at times expecting to get demolished, suffers broken bones nearly every season and the team has absolutely nothing in terms of a running game, why the lack of concern on Garrett's behalf?

Pretty much left with Garrett is due some responsibility for not adequately addressing a gaping hole on the team that has been there for 5 seasons running and under his direct command, 2 as a HC, or Garrett is due some responsibility for his offense not living up to expectations. I can accept the fact that he may not have had the authority to dictate OL moves while he was an OC but once he became a HC the decision's his isn't it? If his hands were tied previously, I would think he'd be extra antsy to try out a new OL once he had the chance. While he may not shoulder the blame for pre-2011, he shoulders it for 2011 and 2012 in terms of not getting a good unit together. Personally, I think the problems run deeper than that in that Garrett's calling exacerbates a poor line. There should be no debate that his OC abilities are questionable now that we have arrived at a point at which his calling abilities are up in the air.

Furthermore, if Rob is responsible for the performance of a defense when he's basically got no one left to call off the bench or out of the stands then Jason is responsible for an offense that, for all practical intents and purposes (i.e. doesn't have anyone) was, and has been, in the same position.



Truth is, Dallas' OL gets Romo killed but that distinguishes Dallas very little from a handful of other teams. What distinguishes them is the fact that they have a wealth of talent at the offensive skill positions, lead by a very good QB. Being that most teams don't have the QB that Dallas does, let alone the plethora of skill players, yes I think the results have been underwhelming. The reality is, when you have a vastly superior QB than the teams you are lumped with in terms of scoring, there's a problem that extends beyond the OL.

Last year Dallas was sandwiched between the Jets (13) and Bills (14) & Raiders (16) and Bears (17). And while these other teams may have gotten some points from defense or special teams while Dallas got 1 such score, pardon me for being unimpressed if after counting only the offensive TDs that it worked out so the Romo-lead Cowboys only netted about 3-4 more TDs on the season than the Sanchez-lead Jets. Color me even more unimpressed if that 21-28 point "advantage" is gained on the back of a greater turnover differential for Dallas and 1000 extra yards of total offense for Dallas.

Jay Cutler isn't even close to Romo. He looked to be a guy who could progress into the same turf after his first 2 seasons in Denver but since going to Chicago he's pretty much fallen into Drew Bledsoe mode. Compare Bledsoe 2005 and it's almost the exact same as Cutler 2010. 23 TDs each, 17 INTs for Drew (16 Jay), 49 sacks for Drew (52 for Jay) and drew having about 350 more yards (Jay 3274). But even in that 2010 seasons where Jay Cutler, an undoubtedly worse QB who undoubtedly had a worse line than what Dallas currently has or has had for a while, Chicago was about a FG less productive per week than Dallas of 2011.

Before someone asks, I'm comparing between years simply as a grounds for comparison to what Dallas typically does only with much more talent. I chose the 2010 Bears because I knew they had a worse OL and Cutler isn't all that good, not to mention this was pre-Brandon Marshall and Chicago's best WR that year (Knox) would be #3 if he were in Dallas. Additionally, the Chicago running game that year was Dallas-esque. Although they scored a few more TDs than Dallas' has as of late, Dallas' comparator season has a yardage advantage and a 0.5 yard average advantage.

All total, you're telling me a more effective running game behind a stronger OL and with a better QB along with better WRs and TEs is only going to get me 3 extra points per week than Jay Cutler's 2010 sackfest season? Not adding up. I have every advantage across the board except at RB (personel, not productivity mind you) and I out-gain you by almost 1400 yards over the course of the season and all I'm getting is an extra FG?

That's a problem that isn't the OL. Lesser teams with worse QBs, lesser skill players and equally crappy or worse OLs keeping pace with Dallas. And it's happened 4 times in 6 seasons. 2007 it did not, 2010 it did not. How this team managed to get more points out the backup QBs than what they seem to get with Romo is a mystery. They did have 7 non-offensive scores but even accounting for those, the difference in seasons is minimal.

Just to name a few...

2008: Titans (Kerry Collins / Vince Young), Miami (Pennington & The WILDCAT!!!1!)

2009: Miami (Henne & The WILDCAT!!1!!)

2011: Chicago as noted above

2012: Carolina

Bottom line is, Dallas has been getting short-changed on their yardage for a while. Far too long in fact. They leave points on the field at a rate that is ridiculous. They turn the ball over, look sloppy and often times require post-play meetings to determine who screwed up. They commit penalties far too frequently and there are far too many free running defensive linemen crushing the Dallas QB on far too regular of a basis. OL problems, they exist in Dallas just as they do around the league. Some coaches still don't struggle on par with Dallas relative to the amount of talent they have.

This offense needs a new set of eyes looking at it. Garrett either can't see or can't fix his offense routinely gaining mass amounts of yardage without the expected points and he seems to have had very little influence on the sloppy, turnover and penalty prone state that this team has been stuck in for for the last couple years. I will give him his due in that the team did seem to have a little more fight in it this year. Then again, as I said during the season, I need not see the "no quit no matter what" approach every week just for the sake of doing so after the team has once again dug itself a giant hole in the ground and proceeded to swan dive straight in. Personally, I wouldn't mind seeing the team take the 4th quarter off after they came into the game so well prepared and in-sync that they steamrolled the opponent on their way to a commanding lead through the 3rd quarter. Those are cool to see too.

Dallas lead the NFL in 4th quarter scoring. Tied with New England actually at 10.1 points per game in the 4th quarter. That's less than 1 point short of their 2nd and 3rd quarter squaring combined and about 4.5X their 1st quarter scoring. Why this team could only average a safety in the 1st quarter of games is a mystery. 2.2 points in the 1st quarter is practically begging to be trailing after the quarter is over.

Making things more intriguing is the average percentage of time of possession by quarter. Dallas almost splits the 1st half with the opponent. Over the course of the 1st half, this averaged to about 7.7 points. In the 3rd quarter they take pretty commanding advantage and have a league best 58.25% time of possession. That's 16.5% more time with the ball than the opponent but it doesn't net them a higher point average than the second quarter. (5.5 vs 5.2)

In the 4th quarter however, Dallas drops dramatically to their worst time of possession percentage for the game at 45.35%. This ranks 26th in the league.

This should come as no surprise as we saw time and time again as Dallas basically flutter around until late in the game before coming alive. I once saw a kid passed out completely drunk get awoken by the police with a little ammonia under his nose. That guy was dead to the world one second and on his feet the next. This is just about what Dallas was like throughout this season.

The question is, why? Why couldn't Dallas do what they did even in the 2nd or 3rd quarter during the 1st quarter? Why did it play out this way so many times? Who knows. It's not a very pretty stat as it's built on the repeated position of being down many points and only having a short time to get em back.

Time for a fresh caller. Giving up his play calling duties doesn't make Garrett a failure if he can prove to be a good coach. I think it illegitimates his hiring as head coach to a small degree because if he isn't good enough now, he wasn't then and yet being the OC is the reason he was able to be the interim. But as I have said in the past I think he earned a shot at the coaching position by dramatically changing what was seen on the field during that try-out season. Since that time however, penalties have gone up, turnovers have jumped back to where they were during that miserable 6-10 season and this season particularly the team looked disorganized, confused and sloppy to start nearly every single game. If he earned a shot to be HC and I believe he did, he's certainly not really giving anyone any reasons to suspect he should continue to be HC in terms of what is seen on game day. Having a little less involvement with so many different aspects on game day might allow him to focus on the areas of HC that he has shown to have fault and clean things up a little bit. Sometimes people are just too close to a situation to be able to identify that a problem is even present. Just grinding too hard in the day-to-day mix to really slow down and look at the whole picture.


If he can prove to be a good head coach, giving up his calling duties might be viewed as one of the better moves he made when he looks back at things down the line.

Hoofbite, this may be one of the best post I have EVER read on this forum or any forum. I agree with you 100% (as I almost always do). Super job my man!!!!

[Risen Star]

Originally Posted by fanfromvirginia

Except all the awkwardness that would involve. JG would be a complete puppet at that point.

This ultimately is a hare-brained plan because it requires Jerry to really thread the needle. If you want JG running the show with his offense, there are no candidates. If you want someone to run his own offense, there is no need to keep JG.

Dropping sanity in a mad, mad, mad world.

[Bowdown27]

Can't wait to see who we get. Will probably be Callahan and let most of us all down

[cowboysooner]

Originally Posted by fanfromvirginia

Except all the awkwardness that would involve. JG would be a complete puppet at that point.

This ultimately is a hare-brained plan because it requires Jerry to really thread the needle. If you want JG running the show with his offense, there are no candidates. If you want someone to run his own offense, there is no need to keep JG.

Originally Posted by Hoofbite

If we're saying Garrett isn't getting the results because of the OL then Dallas hasn't had an OL since 2007 because the outcomes have been pretty much the same except for the year Romo was out.

[View Full Quote]In that case, it's awfully curious as to why the OL wasn't the primary area of need last offseason. Given the QB had just spent half the season with broken ribs, I'm not sure any DB is bad enough and must be replaced before the OL if it means exposing your QB to the possibility of suffering an injury that he couldn't play through. And while I know that the possibility exists for all QBs, until someone can show me that 3 broken bones in 3 separate seasons over a 4 year span is what a QB should be expected to incur, I'm not sure the possibility of it happening to anyone does much to disprove that Romo has taken much more than the vast majority of QBs will ever take. (Notice I said 3 broken bones? I didn't count this years ribs which makes it 4 broken bones in 4 separate seasons over the span of 5 years)

If Garrett is calling the shots, I'm interested as to why he wouldn't jump at the first opportunity to finally give himself an OL. If he's never had an OL, it's hard to fathom he wouldn't try to get the best possible OL put together unless he doesn't value the OL at all. Being a QB himself and likely taking a few slobber knockers in his time, I'm guessing that's not the case. Instead the team basically used up the lion's share of their resources on defense. When you look at what they had and where it went, it's almost all defense except for the two clearance isle OL and Vickers. Carr, Spencer, Claiborne and the three guys who followed Claiborne.

On the OL we got a backup from Carolina and a guy Cincy couldn't wait to get rid of. Being that Dallas is basically in the EXACT SAME SPOT right now as it pertains to the OL (Still Weak) and Spencer (Not under contract, possibly gone, possibly stays, who knows?) as they were in last year, it's hard not to wonder what could have been if that 8.8M tag number would have been applied on say.........Ben Grubbs and Chris Myers. Although, I doubt Chris Myers was interested in leaving but you never know until you start talking about it.

Now this isn't a knock on Spencer because he actually surprised me and I'll give him credit for having an exceptional year. It's a knock on allocation of resources and prioritization of the OL. If the OL is truly holding the team back in that Romo is under constant pressure, looks to be antsy at times expecting to get demolished, suffers broken bones nearly every season and the team has absolutely nothing in terms of a running game, why the lack of concern on Garrett's behalf?

Pretty much left with Garrett is due some responsibility for not adequately addressing a gaping hole on the team that has been there for 5 seasons running and under his direct command, 2 as a HC, or Garrett is due some responsibility for his offense not living up to expectations. I can accept the fact that he may not have had the authority to dictate OL moves while he was an OC but once he became a HC the decision's his isn't it? If his hands were tied previously, I would think he'd be extra antsy to try out a new OL once he had the chance. While he may not shoulder the blame for pre-2011, he shoulders it for 2011 and 2012 in terms of not getting a good unit together. Personally, I think the problems run deeper than that in that Garrett's calling exacerbates a poor line. There should be no debate that his OC abilities are questionable now that we have arrived at a point at which his calling abilities are up in the air.

Furthermore, if Rob is responsible for the performance of a defense when he's basically got no one left to call off the bench or out of the stands then Jason is responsible for an offense that, for all practical intents and purposes (i.e. doesn't have anyone) was, and has been, in the same position.



Truth is, Dallas' OL gets Romo killed but that distinguishes Dallas very little from a handful of other teams. What distinguishes them is the fact that they have a wealth of talent at the offensive skill positions, lead by a very good QB. Being that most teams don't have the QB that Dallas does, let alone the plethora of skill players, yes I think the results have been underwhelming. The reality is, when you have a vastly superior QB than the teams you are lumped with in terms of scoring, there's a problem that extends beyond the OL.

Last year Dallas was sandwiched between the Jets (13) and Bills (14) & Raiders (16) and Bears (17). And while these other teams may have gotten some points from defense or special teams while Dallas got 1 such score, pardon me for being unimpressed if after counting only the offensive TDs that it worked out so the Romo-lead Cowboys only netted about 3-4 more TDs on the season than the Sanchez-lead Jets. Color me even more unimpressed if that 21-28 point "advantage" is gained on the back of a greater turnover differential for Dallas and 1000 extra yards of total offense for Dallas.

Jay Cutler isn't even close to Romo. He looked to be a guy who could progress into the same turf after his first 2 seasons in Denver but since going to Chicago he's pretty much fallen into Drew Bledsoe mode. Compare Bledsoe 2005 and it's almost the exact same as Cutler 2010. 23 TDs each, 17 INTs for Drew (16 Jay), 49 sacks for Drew (52 for Jay) and drew having about 350 more yards (Jay 3274). But even in that 2010 seasons where Jay Cutler, an undoubtedly worse QB who undoubtedly had a worse line than what Dallas currently has or has had for a while, Chicago was about a FG less productive per week than Dallas of 2011.

Before someone asks, I'm comparing between years simply as a grounds for comparison to what Dallas typically does only with much more talent. I chose the 2010 Bears because I knew they had a worse OL and Cutler isn't all that good, not to mention this was pre-Brandon Marshall and Chicago's best WR that year (Knox) would be #3 if he were in Dallas. Additionally, the Chicago running game that year was Dallas-esque. Although they scored a few more TDs than Dallas' has as of late, Dallas' comparator season has a yardage advantage and a 0.5 yard average advantage.

All total, you're telling me a more effective running game behind a stronger OL and with a better QB along with better WRs and TEs is only going to get me 3 extra points per week than Jay Cutler's 2010 sackfest season? Not adding up. I have every advantage across the board except at RB (personel, not productivity mind you) and I out-gain you by almost 1400 yards over the course of the season and all I'm getting is an extra FG?

That's a problem that isn't the OL. Lesser teams with worse QBs, lesser skill players and equally crappy or worse OLs keeping pace with Dallas. And it's happened 4 times in 6 seasons. 2007 it did not, 2010 it did not. How this team managed to get more points out the backup QBs than what they seem to get with Romo is a mystery. They did have 7 non-offensive scores but even accounting for those, the difference in seasons is minimal.

Just to name a few...

2008: Titans (Kerry Collins / Vince Young), Miami (Pennington & The WILDCAT!!!1!)

2009: Miami (Henne & The WILDCAT!!1!!)

2011: Chicago as noted above

2012: Carolina

Bottom line is, Dallas has been getting short-changed on their yardage for a while. Far too long in fact. They leave points on the field at a rate that is ridiculous. They turn the ball over, look sloppy and often times require post-play meetings to determine who screwed up. They commit penalties far too frequently and there are far too many free running defensive linemen crushing the Dallas QB on far too regular of a basis. OL problems, they exist in Dallas just as they do around the league. Some coaches still don't struggle on par with Dallas relative to the amount of talent they have.

This offense needs a new set of eyes looking at it. Garrett either can't see or can't fix his offense routinely gaining mass amounts of yardage without the expected points and he seems to have had very little influence on the sloppy, turnover and penalty prone state that this team has been stuck in for for the last couple years. I will give him his due in that the team did seem to have a little more fight in it this year. Then again, as I said during the season, I need not see the "no quit no matter what" approach every week just for the sake of doing so after the team has once again dug itself a giant hole in the ground and proceeded to swan dive straight in. Personally, I wouldn't mind seeing the team take the 4th quarter off after they came into the game so well prepared and in-sync that they steamrolled the opponent on their way to a commanding lead through the 3rd quarter. Those are cool to see too.

Dallas lead the NFL in 4th quarter scoring. Tied with New England actually at 10.1 points per game in the 4th quarter. That's less than 1 point short of their 2nd and 3rd quarter squaring combined and about 4.5X their 1st quarter scoring. Why this team could only average a safety in the 1st quarter of games is a mystery. 2.2 points in the 1st quarter is practically begging to be trailing after the quarter is over.

Making things more intriguing is the average percentage of time of possession by quarter. Dallas almost splits the 1st half with the opponent. Over the course of the 1st half, this averaged to about 7.7 points. In the 3rd quarter they take pretty commanding advantage and have a league best 58.25% time of possession. That's 16.5% more time with the ball than the opponent but it doesn't net them a higher point average than the second quarter. (5.5 vs 5.2)

In the 4th quarter however, Dallas drops dramatically to their worst time of possession percentage for the game at 45.35%. This ranks 26th in the league.

This should come as no surprise as we saw time and time again as Dallas basically flutter around until late in the game before coming alive. I once saw a kid passed out completely drunk get awoken by the police with a little ammonia under his nose. That guy was dead to the world one second and on his feet the next. This is just about what Dallas was like throughout this season.

The question is, why? Why couldn't Dallas do what they did even in the 2nd or 3rd quarter during the 1st quarter? Why did it play out this way so many times? Who knows. It's not a very pretty stat as it's built on the repeated position of being down many points and only having a short time to get em back.

Time for a fresh caller. Giving up his play calling duties doesn't make Garrett a failure if he can prove to be a good coach. I think it illegitimates his hiring as head coach to a small degree because if he isn't good enough now, he wasn't then and yet being the OC is the reason he was able to be the interim. But as I have said in the past I think he earned a shot at the coaching position by dramatically changing what was seen on the field during that try-out season. Since that time however, penalties have gone up, turnovers have jumped back to where they were during that miserable 6-10 season and this season particularly the team looked disorganized, confused and sloppy to start nearly every single game. If he earned a shot to be HC and I believe he did, he's certainly not really giving anyone any reasons to suspect he should continue to be HC in terms of what is seen on game day. Having a little less involvement with so many different aspects on game day might allow him to focus on the areas of HC that he has shown to have fault and clean things up a little bit. Sometimes people are just too close to a situation to be able to identify that a problem is even present. Just grinding too hard in the day-to-day mix to really slow down and look at the whole picture.


If he can prove to be a good head coach, giving up his calling duties might be viewed as one of the better moves he made when he looks back at things down the line.

Nice post but you can't get Grubbs and Meyers on a go forward basis if you can't keep Spencer. If we don't have money for one we would not have money for another.

[cboyd]

It's pretty obvious Garrett needs someone else to call plays for this offense. If the offensive line sucks so bad, he needs to adjust his playcalling. We have too many playmakers on offense to just blame the offensive line for everything.

[CATCH17]

Originally Posted by GloryDaysRBack

You don't think this new defensive staff will produce better results?

I think we'll get the same results Rob Ryan couldve got out of his scheme had our team stayed healthy.

I think we'll rank higher but we'll give up around the same amount of points.

[xwalker]

Originally Posted by Beast_from_East

Callahan is a WCO, totally different animal than what Garrett runs. If Callahan is just going to call plays in Garrett's offense then this is just a big waste of time.

I like the idea of Callahan because he knows both systems. He was the OC for Garrett's offense and he has is own offense (WCO based).

This should allow him to implement changes in phases. I'm not a big fan of a new OC coming in and requiring Dez to learn a completely new playbook from day-1.

[fanfromvirginia]

Originally Posted by Risen Star

Dropping sanity in a mad, mad, mad world.

Just give JG a fighting chance with a better OL. If we get the same volatile, maddening results, fire JG and move on.

I know I'm preaching to the choir with you but this plan has 'Jerry-derived media circus' written all over it.

[Romo 2 Austin]

From my sources I heard Romo 2 Austin is being highly considered expected to bring his patented Madden offense.










Remember when everyone suddenly had "sources"?

[cml750]

Originally Posted by fanfromvirginia

Just give JG a fighting chance with a better OL. If we get the same volatile, maddening results, fire JG and move on.

I know I'm preaching to the choir with you but this plan has 'Jerry-derived media circus' written all over it.

Please read Hoofbite's post. His post is spot on and sums everything up very nicely. O-line while a problem is not THE problem.

Originally Posted by Hoofbite

If we're saying Garrett isn't getting the results because of the OL then Dallas hasn't had an OL since 2007 because the outcomes have been pretty much the same except for the year Romo was out.

[View Full Quote]In that case, it's awfully curious as to why the OL wasn't the primary area of need last offseason. Given the QB had just spent half the season with broken ribs, I'm not sure any DB is bad enough and must be replaced before the OL if it means exposing your QB to the possibility of suffering an injury that he couldn't play through. And while I know that the possibility exists for all QBs, until someone can show me that 3 broken bones in 3 separate seasons over a 4 year span is what a QB should be expected to incur, I'm not sure the possibility of it happening to anyone does much to disprove that Romo has taken much more than the vast majority of QBs will ever take. (Notice I said 3 broken bones? I didn't count this years ribs which makes it 4 broken bones in 4 separate seasons over the span of 5 years)

If Garrett is calling the shots, I'm interested as to why he wouldn't jump at the first opportunity to finally give himself an OL. If he's never had an OL, it's hard to fathom he wouldn't try to get the best possible OL put together unless he doesn't value the OL at all. Being a QB himself and likely taking a few slobber knockers in his time, I'm guessing that's not the case. Instead the team basically used up the lion's share of their resources on defense. When you look at what they had and where it went, it's almost all defense except for the two clearance isle OL and Vickers. Carr, Spencer, Claiborne and the three guys who followed Claiborne.

On the OL we got a backup from Carolina and a guy Cincy couldn't wait to get rid of. Being that Dallas is basically in the EXACT SAME SPOT right now as it pertains to the OL (Still Weak) and Spencer (Not under contract, possibly gone, possibly stays, who knows?) as they were in last year, it's hard not to wonder what could have been if that 8.8M tag number would have been applied on say.........Ben Grubbs and Chris Myers. Although, I doubt Chris Myers was interested in leaving but you never know until you start talking about it.

Now this isn't a knock on Spencer because he actually surprised me and I'll give him credit for having an exceptional year. It's a knock on allocation of resources and prioritization of the OL. If the OL is truly holding the team back in that Romo is under constant pressure, looks to be antsy at times expecting to get demolished, suffers broken bones nearly every season and the team has absolutely nothing in terms of a running game, why the lack of concern on Garrett's behalf?

Pretty much left with Garrett is due some responsibility for not adequately addressing a gaping hole on the team that has been there for 5 seasons running and under his direct command, 2 as a HC, or Garrett is due some responsibility for his offense not living up to expectations. I can accept the fact that he may not have had the authority to dictate OL moves while he was an OC but once he became a HC the decision's his isn't it? If his hands were tied previously, I would think he'd be extra antsy to try out a new OL once he had the chance. While he may not shoulder the blame for pre-2011, he shoulders it for 2011 and 2012 in terms of not getting a good unit together. Personally, I think the problems run deeper than that in that Garrett's calling exacerbates a poor line. There should be no debate that his OC abilities are questionable now that we have arrived at a point at which his calling abilities are up in the air.

Furthermore, if Rob is responsible for the performance of a defense when he's basically got no one left to call off the bench or out of the stands then Jason is responsible for an offense that, for all practical intents and purposes (i.e. doesn't have anyone) was, and has been, in the same position.



Truth is, Dallas' OL gets Romo killed but that distinguishes Dallas very little from a handful of other teams. What distinguishes them is the fact that they have a wealth of talent at the offensive skill positions, lead by a very good QB. Being that most teams don't have the QB that Dallas does, let alone the plethora of skill players, yes I think the results have been underwhelming. The reality is, when you have a vastly superior QB than the teams you are lumped with in terms of scoring, there's a problem that extends beyond the OL.

Last year Dallas was sandwiched between the Jets (13) and Bills (14) & Raiders (16) and Bears (17). And while these other teams may have gotten some points from defense or special teams while Dallas got 1 such score, pardon me for being unimpressed if after counting only the offensive TDs that it worked out so the Romo-lead Cowboys only netted about 3-4 more TDs on the season than the Sanchez-lead Jets. Color me even more unimpressed if that 21-28 point "advantage" is gained on the back of a greater turnover differential for Dallas and 1000 extra yards of total offense for Dallas.

Jay Cutler isn't even close to Romo. He looked to be a guy who could progress into the same turf after his first 2 seasons in Denver but since going to Chicago he's pretty much fallen into Drew Bledsoe mode. Compare Bledsoe 2005 and it's almost the exact same as Cutler 2010. 23 TDs each, 17 INTs for Drew (16 Jay), 49 sacks for Drew (52 for Jay) and drew having about 350 more yards (Jay 3274). But even in that 2010 seasons where Jay Cutler, an undoubtedly worse QB who undoubtedly had a worse line than what Dallas currently has or has had for a while, Chicago was about a FG less productive per week than Dallas of 2011.

Before someone asks, I'm comparing between years simply as a grounds for comparison to what Dallas typically does only with much more talent. I chose the 2010 Bears because I knew they had a worse OL and Cutler isn't all that good, not to mention this was pre-Brandon Marshall and Chicago's best WR that year (Knox) would be #3 if he were in Dallas. Additionally, the Chicago running game that year was Dallas-esque. Although they scored a few more TDs than Dallas' has as of late, Dallas' comparator season has a yardage advantage and a 0.5 yard average advantage.

All total, you're telling me a more effective running game behind a stronger OL and with a better QB along with better WRs and TEs is only going to get me 3 extra points per week than Jay Cutler's 2010 sackfest season? Not adding up. I have every advantage across the board except at RB (personel, not productivity mind you) and I out-gain you by almost 1400 yards over the course of the season and all I'm getting is an extra FG?

That's a problem that isn't the OL. Lesser teams with worse QBs, lesser skill players and equally crappy or worse OLs keeping pace with Dallas. And it's happened 4 times in 6 seasons. 2007 it did not, 2010 it did not. How this team managed to get more points out the backup QBs than what they seem to get with Romo is a mystery. They did have 7 non-offensive scores but even accounting for those, the difference in seasons is minimal.

Just to name a few...

2008: Titans (Kerry Collins / Vince Young), Miami (Pennington & The WILDCAT!!!1!)

2009: Miami (Henne & The WILDCAT!!1!!)

2011: Chicago as noted above

2012: Carolina

Bottom line is, Dallas has been getting short-changed on their yardage for a while. Far too long in fact. They leave points on the field at a rate that is ridiculous. They turn the ball over, look sloppy and often times require post-play meetings to determine who screwed up. They commit penalties far too frequently and there are far too many free running defensive linemen crushing the Dallas QB on far too regular of a basis. OL problems, they exist in Dallas just as they do around the league. Some coaches still don't struggle on par with Dallas relative to the amount of talent they have.

This offense needs a new set of eyes looking at it. Garrett either can't see or can't fix his offense routinely gaining mass amounts of yardage without the expected points and he seems to have had very little influence on the sloppy, turnover and penalty prone state that this team has been stuck in for for the last couple years. I will give him his due in that the team did seem to have a little more fight in it this year. Then again, as I said during the season, I need not see the "no quit no matter what" approach every week just for the sake of doing so after the team has once again dug itself a giant hole in the ground and proceeded to swan dive straight in. Personally, I wouldn't mind seeing the team take the 4th quarter off after they came into the game so well prepared and in-sync that they steamrolled the opponent on their way to a commanding lead through the 3rd quarter. Those are cool to see too.

Dallas lead the NFL in 4th quarter scoring. Tied with New England actually at 10.1 points per game in the 4th quarter. That's less than 1 point short of their 2nd and 3rd quarter squaring combined and about 4.5X their 1st quarter scoring. Why this team could only average a safety in the 1st quarter of games is a mystery. 2.2 points in the 1st quarter is practically begging to be trailing after the quarter is over.

Making things more intriguing is the average percentage of time of possession by quarter. Dallas almost splits the 1st half with the opponent. Over the course of the 1st half, this averaged to about 7.7 points. In the 3rd quarter they take pretty commanding advantage and have a league best 58.25% time of possession. That's 16.5% more time with the ball than the opponent but it doesn't net them a higher point average than the second quarter. (5.5 vs 5.2)

In the 4th quarter however, Dallas drops dramatically to their worst time of possession percentage for the game at 45.35%. This ranks 26th in the league.

This should come as no surprise as we saw time and time again as Dallas basically flutter around until late in the game before coming alive. I once saw a kid passed out completely drunk get awoken by the police with a little ammonia under his nose. That guy was dead to the world one second and on his feet the next. This is just about what Dallas was like throughout this season.

The question is, why? Why couldn't Dallas do what they did even in the 2nd or 3rd quarter during the 1st quarter? Why did it play out this way so many times? Who knows. It's not a very pretty stat as it's built on the repeated position of being down many points and only having a short time to get em back.

Time for a fresh caller. Giving up his play calling duties doesn't make Garrett a failure if he can prove to be a good coach. I think it illegitimates his hiring as head coach to a small degree because if he isn't good enough now, he wasn't then and yet being the OC is the reason he was able to be the interim. But as I have said in the past I think he earned a shot at the coaching position by dramatically changing what was seen on the field during that try-out season. Since that time however, penalties have gone up, turnovers have jumped back to where they were during that miserable 6-10 season and this season particularly the team looked disorganized, confused and sloppy to start nearly every single game. If he earned a shot to be HC and I believe he did, he's certainly not really giving anyone any reasons to suspect he should continue to be HC in terms of what is seen on game day. Having a little less involvement with so many different aspects on game day might allow him to focus on the areas of HC that he has shown to have fault and clean things up a little bit. Sometimes people are just too close to a situation to be able to identify that a problem is even present. Just grinding too hard in the day-to-day mix to really slow down and look at the whole picture.


If he can prove to be a good head coach, giving up his calling duties might be viewed as one of the better moves he made when he looks back at things down the line.

[rcaldw]

Originally Posted by cml750

Hoofbite, this may be one of the best post I have EVER read on this forum or any forum. I agree with you 100% (as I almost always do). Super job my man!!!!

You need to get out more Definition of "best post ever" = It confirms my suspicions.