Decoding Callahan: Negative Runs Lead To No Runs

[jobberone]

http://www.foxsportssouthwest.com/n...ative-Runs-Lead-To?blockID=958317&feedID=9348

Decoding Callahan: Negative Runs Lead To No Runs

BOB STURM |
Published: Tuesday, November 05, 2013, 9:58am

"9 times?" Pause. "9 times."

Yes, 9 times is how many times the Cowboys attempted to run the ball in 63 snaps on Sunday against the Vikings.

Not only is that a league-low (tied with Baltimore at Buffalo on September 29), but it is a franchise-low in team history. No other time had a Cowboys team ever run that few rushing plays in a game. Ever.

That is really remarkable. It makes you think the Cowboys must have been playing against the Steel Curtain, right? But, then, the Vikings had given up 182 yards on the ground in 42 carries by Green Bay just one week prior. And only one time in 2013 did a Vikings opponent NOT attempt 21 or more carries and only twice (NYG and PIT) did they not gain 100 yards rushing against Minnesota. The Vikings have a strong defensive front, but to suggest that they are extraordinary is a real stretch.

And yet, with the return of DeMarco Murray, the Cowboys elected to try a few runs - even gash the Vikings for a 27 yard dash, and then inexplicably, decide to not run again for most of the afternoon.

 

[jobberone]

Here's a tease from the article for those interested.

 

[ScipioCowboy]

I feel so teased...

 

[links18]

The article is titled "Decoding Callahan," but then goes on to explain these problems have persisted for the entire Garrett era.

 

[jobberone]

The article is titled "Decoding Callahan," but then goes on to explain these problems have persisted for the entire Garrett era.

That's because the title "Decoding Callahan" is a series of articles each week. There's also one "Decoding Kiffin" I believe.

 

[Red Dragon]

Not running the ball makes some sense if your running game is bad, but after Murray ripped off that 27-yard run, why would the Cowboys not keep giving him the ball to see if he could have another Rams-game type of performance?

 

[kramskoi]

The article is titled "Decoding Callahan," but then goes on to explain these problems have persisted for the entire Garrett era.

I just wonder about the willingness to give up in other areas of the gameplan on Sundays. Sturm has been belaboring run game cowardice for quite some time...over many seasons. What isn't cultivated in practice and gameplanning will hardly be applicable on Sundays. It just seems that someone thinks that if they just get the pass protections to a high level, Romo and the Cowboys can become the next version of the Green Bay Packers. It doesn't matter if the Cowboys are behind or ahead, they just don't care to run the ball, a propensity shared by Garrett, Callahan and even Romo it seems.

 

[Boyzmamacita]

I thought Callahan believed in running the ball with Oakland. Am I mistaken about that? If not, I wonder what happened to change his philosophy.