As for coaches, whatever. Fans purely assess plays in hindsight. Did it work, it was a good play. Did it not work, it was a bad play. That's pretty much worthless analysis in my view.
Nope, not me. I don't look at the stats, or the final score. They're often misleading. So even when the Cowboys have a "good day" and win, I still critique the obvious deficiencies.
And one of the obvious deficiencies is the lack of urgency in the 1st quarter, often lasting all half. And it's not just the offense's lack of urgency early, the defense's as well.
Moore's early game plans often don't produce early scores, because the plays are just too predictable. Everyone knows those stretch run plays are coming, and you can even predict which direction they're going to run by formation. It's just too vanilla.
And on defense, the Cowboys tend to almost play bend-but-don't-break early, with vanilla, easy-to-read formations. Very little creativity early in games with disguised pressure or even "threatening" pressure.
Moore and Quinn seemingly don't have any customized game plans or plays dependent upon the opponent. And if they think they can start slow in the playoffs and then "turn it on" later in the game, opening up the playbook as the game proceeds, well, that's a real risk, especially on the road, allowing the crowd to make its presence known.
So, no, this is not about the Cowboys' record, or their good stats overall...because on paper, they look formidable.
But in reality, with Moore and Quinn leading them, and McCarthy not making much of an imprint on most of these games, it's hard to feel confident that they could ever "outcoach" their opponent. So then it's ALL on the players to simply outperform the opponents, on every play. I don't like their odds if it just comes down to everyone having to play "above their heads". The fundamentals tend to count more in the playoffs, all the little stuff...and in many games, the Cowboys don't do the little things well, especially not early in games.
I complain when they win, even when they blow out opponents because of an avalanche of turnovers or some flashy plays by star players...because it's ultimately, it's about consistency.
Of course, the board doesn't like to read negative posts after wins, because those posts almost sound like "trolls". The claim is that many fans are just debbie-downers, only wanting to see the Cowboys lose. Nope, it's just that some fans aren't surprised by today's results....because they see the deficiencies in the Cowboys' tendencies and players even after wins, and know that they can and will be easily exploited, especially in the playoffs.
I just don't trust this coaching staff, and so then it's hard to count on Dak, Zeke/Pollard, Micah, D Law, and Diggs simply "outplaying" Tom and the Tampa Dee on Monday night.
