The 3 reasons we lost that game to the Cards

[Bobhaze]

Would also throw in the blown timeout on special teams.. Costly timeout we needed later in the game and didn't have.

I listed that under defense failure but either way it was a wasted timeout we needed at the end.

 

[CowboysFaninHouston]

The 3 reasons we lost that game yesterday- we played poorly in all 3 phases of the game:

1. Offense didn’t play well enough.
2. Defense didn’t play well enough.
3. STs did not play well enough.

Btw, none of the reasons include the refs.
Let us examine why in these three phases of the game we failed:
OFFENSE:

• Had 3 dropped passes.
• Dak’s fumble in the 4th qtr.
• Terrible run blocking by the OL. (Avg less than 3 yds per rush)
• Poor pre-snap communication forcing hurried snaps to beat the play clock.
• Was 3-11 on third down conversions

DEFENSE

• Gave up 399 yards.
• Allowed 7 third down conversions including two in the critical last 4 min.
• Had one sack and no TO’s.
• Allowed 35 min in TOP.
• Allowed a backup WR to have a career day including 2 TDs.
• Forced to use a critical timeout in 3rd qtr that killed us in the end.
• Had 4 min and some change and the end to force a stop and didn’t get it done.

ST’s

• Greg “Lou” Zuerleine missed a make-able 43 yard FG in first qtr.
• Gave up a critical fake punt conversion in the first half on Cards 91 yd drive.

NONE OF THESE REASONS INCLUDE THE REFS. Yes we had some bad calls including that missed fumble….welcome to the NFL! If we hadn’t wasted a timeout earlier we could’ve challenged that.

Let’s all be adults here and admit…we got outplayed in all three phases of the game. That is why we lost.

our inability to run and committ to the run....people, with an agenda will intrepret that as Dak needs a running game....I am not saying Dak played a good game, in fact I have said otherwise. but when you can't run. when you are in 2nd and long, 3rd and long situations all game, you are playing right into the defenses hand. they know you have to pass and they can play defense much easier. we were in 2nd and long, 3rd and long most of the game.

adjustments, we never made adjustments....Moore didn't adjust to the aggressive defensive scheme. they never adjusted to Chandler Jones who had one of his best games. he was wreaking havoc and we let him, insisting on just going 1-on-1 against him. we didn't adjust to the aggressive front 4, throwing bubble screens or right behind them. nothing to slow down their pass rush. where was the draw play?

defense in that last drive was bad. I don't want to hear they were tired, blah blah. you want to be top echelon. then make plays. we allowed a 8.5 minute drive....couldn't get off the field. allowed them to convert multiple times. that's not on offense.....a good defense shouldn't let that happen. and in the final drive. we knew they were going to run the ball. yet we didn't really load the box and were afraid of them passing. seriously!!!!....in that situation if they pass, then great. dare them, but don't let them run on you....that was embarassing. specially with such a deep DL....

Zeurline sucks....end of story.....he has cost us several games this year. he cost us the tampa game. he cost us this game. he has missed way too many point after's.....not worth the money. we have to move on.

 

[Aven8]

I chalk this up as a complete team loss. No one stood out except some pressure from out D-line. But, the agenda driven need their go to culprit.

Is it just me or is Parsons our best player already? I mean on the whole team. He’s the only player, outside of Anger, I have confidence in.

 

[CATCH17]

How many FGs did the Cards miss?

How many holding penalties did the Cards OL have?

How many fake punts did the Cards special teams give up?

How many timeouts did the Cards burn because their coaches were unprepared.

I could go on...but those were a few of the things Dak had to overcome....so I assume with Murray Quarterbacking our team yesterday those things would not have happened...or they would happen and Murray would have overcome them?

Sorry.. Inept offense was the problem.

 

[CowboysFaninHouston]

Elite QBs overcome all of this


The fact that we dont have a good QB is the reason why we lost yesterday.


Down 8 with the ball and he fumbles which leads directly to 3 points. That was game right there

well Isiah Simmons made a great play. give him that....he should have never been allowed to come back and make a play like that...but Zeurline missed an easy field goal. again.... first quarter and all that, yet it came back to haunt us.

during crucial times of the game, good teams make plays. we tend to not. the fumble was bad. no denying that. then zeke dropped an easy pass on 2nd down....Pollard the same next series. Schultz the same next series..

as a team we tend to just miss opportunity after opportunity.

we have no toughness....no desire. we think things will work out. we have no sense of urgency. not sure where that starts. but we are back to being a garrett team. expecting things to go wrong so we lose the game....pulling defeat from jaws of victory.

 

[G2]

Is it just me or is Parsons our best player already? I mean on the whole team. He’s the only player, outside of Anger, I have confidence in.

He's insane dude.

 

[CowboysFaninHouston]

Sorry.. Inept offense was the problem.

so was the defense. I am not excusing anybody.


they allowed a 8.5 minute drive in first half...being tired wouldn't be an excuse then.....good defenses don't do that.

they allowed them to rush the ball down our throat at the end of the game, knowing exactly that they were going to rush the ball. good defenses don't allow that...

this was a total failure across the board. Dak, WRs, TEs, RBs, OL, OC, Defense. Head Coach (time management). we did everything possible to make sure things go wrong. we missed every opportunity. they cashed in on their opportunities.

 

[ElGatoGrande]

The 3 reasons we lost that game yesterday- we played poorly in all 3 phases of the game:

1. Offense didn’t play well enough.
2. Defense didn’t play well enough.
3. STs did not play well enough.

Btw, none of the reasons include the refs.
Let us examine why in these three phases of the game we failed:
OFFENSE:

• Had 3 dropped passes.
• Dak’s fumble in the 4th qtr.
• Terrible run blocking by the OL. (Avg less than 3 yds per rush)
• Poor pre-snap communication forcing hurried snaps to beat the play clock.
• Was 3-11 on third down conversions

DEFENSE

• Gave up 399 yards.
• Allowed 7 third down conversions including two in the critical last 4 min.
• Had one sack and no TO’s.
• Allowed 35 min in TOP.
• Allowed a backup WR to have a career day including 2 TDs.
• Forced to use a critical timeout in 3rd qtr that killed us in the end.
• Had 4 min and some change and the end to force a stop and didn’t get it done.

ST’s

• Greg “Lou” Zuerleine missed a make-able 43 yard FG in first qtr.
• Gave up a critical fake punt conversion in the first half on Cards 91 yd drive.

NONE OF THESE REASONS INCLUDE THE REFS. Yes we had some bad calls including that missed fumble….welcome to the NFL! If we hadn’t wasted a timeout earlier we could’ve challenged that.

Let’s all be adults here and admit…we got outplayed in all three phases of the game. That is why we lost.

This all comes as a shock given the recent CZ poll and voluminous love letters penned to Mike McCarthy. Some might argue though that Mike is the next victim of the Coach Killer and deserves some sympathy.

 

[Bobhaze]

Sorry.. Inept offense was the problem.

Our offense was terrible yesterday. But the defense gave up 7 third down conversions and nearly 400 yds. Our D let their backup WR with one career TD get two TDs yesterday. Our D had 4+ min to stop the Cards and couldn’t. Yes the offense and Dak played poorly yesterday. But so did the Defense.

 

[Ranched]

The 3 reasons we lost that game yesterday- we played poorly in all 3 phases of the game:

1. Offense didn’t play well enough.
2. Defense didn’t play well enough.
3. STs did not play well enough.

Btw, none of the reasons include the refs.
Let us examine why in these three phases of the game we failed:
OFFENSE:

• Had 3 dropped passes.
• Dak’s fumble in the 4th qtr.
• Terrible run blocking by the OL. (Avg less than 3 yds per rush)
• Poor pre-snap communication forcing hurried snaps to beat the play clock.
• Was 3-11 on third down conversions

DEFENSE

• Gave up 399 yards.
• Allowed 7 third down conversions including two in the critical last 4 min.
• Had one sack and no TO’s.
• Allowed 35 min in TOP.
• Allowed a backup WR to have a career day including 2 TDs.
• Forced to use a critical timeout in 3rd qtr that killed us in the end.
• Had 4 min and some change and the end to force a stop and didn’t get it done.

ST’s

• Greg “Lou” Zuerleine missed a make-able 43 yard FG in first qtr.
• Gave up a critical fake punt conversion in the first half on Cards 91 yd drive.

NONE OF THESE REASONS INCLUDE THE REFS. Yes we had some bad calls including that missed fumble….welcome to the NFL! If we hadn’t wasted a timeout earlier we could’ve challenged that.

Let’s all be adults here and admit…we got outplayed in all three phases of the game. That is why we lost.

Must you ALWAYS.... make sense!
Happy New Year dear.

 

[CATCH17]

Our offense was terrible yesterday. But the defense gave up 7 third down conversions and nearly 400 yds. Our D let their backup WR with one career TD get two TDs yesterday. Our D had 4+ min to stop the Cards and couldn’t. Yes the offense and Dak played poorly yesterday. But so did the Defense.

Don’t depend on defense. Not in this league. Good QBs get theirs and we haven’t spent the resources on defense to be blaming them.

It’s an offensive league.

Inept offense is why we lost as we move to 1-4 against teams with legit QBs.

 

[Blackrain]

How many FGs did the Cards miss?

How many holding penalties did the Cards OL have?

How many fake punts did the Cards special teams give up?

How many timeouts did the Cards burn because their coaches were unprepared.

I could go on...but those were a few of the things Dak had to overcome....so I assume with Murray Quarterbacking our team yesterday those things would not have happened...or they would happen and Murray would have overcome them?[/QUOTE.


Murray making the commitment to use his legs to overcome problems seems to cover a multitude of sins for them wish Dak would use his running ability more

 

[Bobhaze]

Don’t depend on defense. Not in this league. Good QBs get theirs and we haven’t spent the resources on defense to be blaming them.

It’s an offensive league.

Inept offense is why we lost as we move to 1-4 against teams with legit QBs.

Wow. So the defense doesn’t matter to the success of our team? Gotta disagree with you on that one brother.

 

[wecasa]

starts with the trenches, which were awful yesterday on both sides. The O line couldnt keep 4 rushers at the LOS and allowed multiple pressures and tipped balls. When they did send more than 4 it was a jail break. The D Line couldn't generate any semblance of consistent pass rush. When they did, Murray scooted around it and ran. Give credit to kingsbury. From the first play, jet sweet at parsons, I knew they werent backing down and were gonna keep thier foot on the gas and not play scared at all.

Say what you will about greg, be hard pressed to find a suitable replacement now. Hindsight being 20/20, had they kept liram halleluja and he miss field goals, fans would be just as mad, "WhY wE lEt GrEg Go?"

Have a feeling its gonna be a long offseason.

 

[LittleLexodus]

Dak's a good guy and solid QB but I'm having my doubts in his ability against top teams. The book is out on beating him (not blitzing and dropping DL into coverage). AZ batted down so many balls at the line.

We could win these tough game with a better passer.

He can clearly use his legs and offensive skills to win against inferior opponents but I need to see improvement in the playoffs and in crunch time. This same type of collapse happened in 2019 when they were in a position to win the division.

Granted, I do think his friendship and cowboy's contract with Zeke hinders their run game and scheme as well.

 

[Blackrain]

Is it just me or is Parsons our best player already? I mean on the whole team. He’s the only player, outside of Anger, I have confidence in.

I feel like Dalton Schultz to a lesser degree is a fairly reliable player in the passing game anyway his blocking leaves a bit to be desired

 

[USArmyVet]

You mean “our guy(s)” as in defense too? The defense was terrible yesterday. So was the offense. That was a team loss yesterday.

'Team' loss when Dak plays like crap but "Dak' win when Dak plays well.....got it.

 

[CATCH17]

Wow. So the defense doesn’t matter to the success of our team? Gotta disagree with you on that one brother.

I know. It’s a old school mentality that people have but it’s not what plays out on Sundays.

Juggernaut defenses don’t exist. The game is about the QB more than anything and their guy was better than ours.

Good QBs will get theirs 9 times out of 10 regardless of your defense.

 

[Creeper]

You nailed it.

You can also add Dak averaging 5.9 yards per pass attempt, which is becoming a habit in games not against Washington and his longest pass to a WR was 26 yards, which came late in the game. The longest pass of the day was thrown by Ced Wilson to Tony Pollard for 31 yards.

The fumble was not a fumble.

The offense is not making any big plays and that is not characteristic of the offense that we saw the first 7 games. I don't want to hear any excuses about teams playing 2 deep on Dallas. If 2 deep was so effective then why isn't every team playing it all the time? Either Dak or Moore is afraid to throw downfield for some reason.

At the same time the defense allowed the Cards to score on something like 6 consecutive drives, or 5 out of 6. Ouch. The most disappointing aspect of the defense was the drives they allowed just before the half and at the end of the game. Before the half, there was 1:25 left on the clock when Dallas kicked off to Arizona. Arizona ran 10 plays to the Cowboys 35 and kicked a FG to end the half. Knowing the Cardinals get the ball to start the 2nd half, the Cowboys needed a stop and could not get one. 10 plays in 1:25. We've seen Dallas get more time than that and blow it all in 3 plays. The Cards showed how to manage a game. Outcoached.

Then, after Dallas scored to make it 25-22, the Cowboys kicked of with 4:42 left in the game. They let the Cardinals run 10 plays for 52 yards and 4 first downs to end the game. The players can talk about the fumble all they want, but they allowed the Cardinals to gain 4 first downs with the game on the line. Championship teams find what it takes to make those stops and get the ball back for their offense.

Arizona won the game in all 3 phases. I believe the Cowboys last TD drive was against a defense that played soft. I believe if the score was closer the Cowboys offense would have failed to move the ball. We are 16 games into the season and the Cowboys offense has looked feeble too often, and again yesterday.

The Cowboys look like at best a wild card team. If they played in a tougher division they would probably miss the playoffs altogether.

At the beginning of the season I thought the Cowboys would go 9-8 at best. They surprised me with wins over the Chargers and Vikings. But after watching the Cowboys play yesterday, they looked like a 9-8 team playing in an easy division to me.

Yesterday was a reality check. I think we now know just what this team is.

And the worst part is, the CAP is going to cripple this team in 2022. So is Dak's contract. In the meantime, the Giants and Eagles have multiple 1st round draft picks in 2022, and the WFT is already projected to be $58 million under the CAP.

 

[visionary]

Great post as always brother Bob if I could just add a few things that I have seen hold true in the past.
Our defense has much as we glow over it at times tend to get totally gashed when playing from behind forced to defend the run and not able to use its pass rushers to create turnovers.

On the other side of the ball when we get holding penalties and DAC doesn't use his legs to negate them the offense just stalls. Only guy looking good to me was Dalton Schultz.
I have no faith in this kicker or Big Mikes game management when we are playing from behind.
All that said I think the officiating was the least of our problems. Long story short we are having serious trouble competing with playoff level talent and it shows no sign of improving expect a speedy exit from the tournament because I believe it's coming

some of us have been saying for weeks that our defense is just above average and this is hidden by the turnovers and that turnovers are very fickle. A defense that relies on turnovers instead of good fundamentals will get exposed by the top teams and great QBs