Hidden stats that will likely decide our improvement in 2026

[john van brocklin]

Is there any mystery who one of the best members is in the CZ?

I submit the above post as proof. Great job Bob!!!!!!

Bob is a real asset to the zone
One of my favorite posters

 

[john van brocklin]

It's on Jerry and his lack of accountability. That has permeated the whole culture of the franchise. That's why we are a slow starting team, and a bad playoff team. Nobody really cares, because the guy who should care more than anyone is happy with his 30+ year drought, and thinks he's doing a good job.

Stephen says :
What drought?
He even used air quotes

 

[ArtClink]

Good Post Art, I have always believed that football players should have one man that is the leader of a football team, that man should be the head coach. The head coach needs to be the final word, the one person all players have to answer to. The last head coach who had the authority to run this football team as a true head coach, who kept players liable for their actions and had the power to hold all players accountable was Bill Parcells. When Ol Jerry and son override this important balance in the way this football team functions you get a culture that can't operate as a team, and this is the reason this organization can't win a playoff game anymore. Until this front office gives Schottenheimer total control as a head coach and last voice disciplinarian, this same failed routine will continue. Communication between the players and the head coach is strained within this organization and their lies the main culture problem. I doubt these changes are made, but they are long overdue.

Wow, what a great explanation of the fundamental flaw that the FO tries to build on every season. You made so many great points about how this defines our culture (a hc with no power to hire and fire players & staff) and as you said, this might just be the biggest issue with the Jones model of management.

Every NFL franchise but Dallas operates as a top-down hierarchy where the owner delegates authority to the GM, who hires a head coach and empowers him with the power to hire his own staff and with the authority to fire or release players who are not a good fit. By empowering the head coach with full authority, these other organizations create a healthy atmosphere of fear of the head coach (remember Jimmy and his total authority?), so naturally the players and staff all report to the head coach.

But here in Dallas, we are not allowed to have a top-down hierarchy. Instead we have a “hub & wheel” model where all power (Jerry/Stephen) is centralized in the center (ie, the hub) and players, coaches, and staff comprise the wheel. In this model, everyone reports to Jerry/Stephen instead of a top-down delegation of authority. So for example, as long as a player is cool with Jerry (ie, Jerry likes the player), then it doesn’t really matter much to the player what the head coach thinks because he lacks the power to fire.

A great example was Greg Hardy knocking the clipboard out of the hands of the defensive coordinators during a game. There were zero consequences for Hardy. Zero. He knew he answered directly to Jerry, not the head coach.

Organizational excellence is modeled after the top-down hierarchy, and only a fool would try to be successful with the “hub & wheel” model, especially after the playoff results the past three decades. But no, Jerry continues to double down this failed model.

I’m excited with our draft but these players will have to contend with reporting and answering to the owner & son, not a real head coach with full authority. This severely handicaps our players and coaches and continues to be the number one reason why it’s been 30 years since we won consecutive playoff games.

Until Jerry stops the insanity of the “hub and wheel” hierarchy, we’re doomed to more of the same and only an ownership change will remedy this sickness.

 

[Whirlwin]

A pleasure, to read your posts
Whether I agree with them or not, lol
Let’s say 90% too funny

 

[Kevinicus]

Dallas did not trail at the half against GB last year, they had the lead.

 

[Whirlwin]

Dallas did not trail at the half against GB last year, they had the lead.

Prescott is one of the very few quarterbacks to win in Lambeau Field

 

[ArtClink]

The Jones model of management: “Hub & Wheel” where everyone reports to Jerry (the hub) and delegation of authority is prohibited.

 

[ArtClink]

Terrell Owens was inducted with the Class of 2018.

Yeah, you’re right. I missed that one lol!

 

[Bobhaze]

The Jones model of management: “Hub & Wheel” where everyone reports to Jerry (the hub) and delegation of authority is prohibited.

Hard to argue with this.

I studied organizational health in grad school back in the 90s. There is an abundance of research on the danger of allowing nepotism and a lack of accountability in a big, modern organization.

It’s not arguable that unaccountable nepotism is an organizational cancer and usually ruins the culture. Because when the people most responsible for the results an organization gets are not held accountable, there cannot be meaningful accountability anywhere in that organization. It just doesn’t work.

Jerry and Stephen’s hubris continues on year after year, unchecked. Right along with the unsurprising results they continue to bring as well.

 

[Sandyf]

It’s no secret that the 2026 season will hinge in large part on the expected improvement of our historically bad defense the last two seasons. For the second year in a row and for the 16th time in the last 26 seasons, the Cowboys did not make the playoffs.

We obviously have a lot of areas for improvement. Besides the glaringly obvious key stat improvements needed this year (like yards per play, points per game, turnovers per game, etc) we have some lesser known but equally critical improvements needed to make the playoffs in 2026.

So what are those hidden stats?

• Be the team who scores first - WHY? In the NFL, teams who score first win 64% of the time. In 2024 and ‘25, the Cowboys had a collective record of 14-19-1. We scored first in only 16 of those 34 games. That MUST improve.
• Be the team ahead at halftime - WHY? Teams leading at the half win 75% of the time. In 2024, we trailed at the half 10 times, losing 9 of those games. In 2025, we also trailed at the half 10 times, losing 8, winning 1 (in OT) and tying the other.
• Have the lead going into the 4th qtr - WHY? Teams leading at the end of 3 qtrs win 90% of the time! In 2024 the Cowboys trailed at the end of the 3rd qtr 11 times, losing 10 of those games, and got outscored 82-28 in 3rd qtrs. In 2025 we also trailed 10 games after 3 qtrs, going 1-8-1 in those games.
• Based on the above stats, we MUST improve scoring on offense in the 1st and 3rd qtrs. Our scoring by qtr numbers - our worst scoring qtr was the first quarter (avg only 4.5 pts) and the best was the 2nd qtr (avg 10.5 pts) We sucked to start games and also sucked immediately after halftime. This is where we must improve.
• We must improve defensively by not allowing the opponent to score on their first possessions at the beginning of the game and after halftime. Our defense allowed the opponent to score on their opening drive of the game and the first drive of the 2nd half nearly 60% of the time. Cut that down to about 20-25% and we are vastly improved.

From a big picture standpoint, the first thing that jumps out to me is how we start games on both sides of the ball. Falling behind early puts instant pressure on the offense but conversely, getting a lead early gives us a very realistic chance to win games.

If the defense can just stop giving up opening drive TDs and a scoring drive TDs right after halftime, we will have an immediate chance to turn this around.

Really agree on all those points. Would add that defense has to make adjustments on the fly on the opening drive and critical adjustments at have time. We never adjusted at all last two years. Teams would keep running the same plays or slight differences to those plays because they were successful over and over again.

And on offensive, catch the ball and catch it with your hands. For to many drives ended with drops or short arms. We have Lamb, Pickens, Ferguson, Williams and Flournoy, there is no reason to force feed it to any one player.

 

[john van brocklin]

Wow, what a great explanation of the fundamental flaw that the FO tries to build on every season. You made so many great points about how this defines our culture (a hc with no power to hire and fire players & staff) and as you said, this might just be the biggest issue with the Jones model of management.

Every NFL franchise but Dallas operates as a top-down hierarchy where the owner delegates authority to the GM, who hires a head coach and empowers him with the power to hire his own staff and with the authority to fire or release players who are not a good fit. By empowering the head coach with full authority, these other organizations create a healthy atmosphere of fear of the head coach (remember Jimmy and his total authority?), so naturally the players and staff all report to the head coach.

But here in Dallas, we are not allowed to have a top-down hierarchy. Instead we have a “hub & wheel” model where all power (Jerry/Stephen) is centralized in the center (ie, the hub) and players, coaches, and staff comprise the wheel. In this model, everyone reports to Jerry/Stephen instead of a top-down delegation of authority. So for example, as long as a player is cool with Jerry (ie, Jerry likes the player), then it doesn’t really matter much to the player what the head coach thinks because he lacks the power to fire.

A great example was Greg Hardy knocking the clipboard out of the hands of the defensive coordinators during a game. There were zero consequences for Hardy. Zero. He knew he answered directly to Jerry, not the head coach.

Organizational excellence is modeled after the top-down hierarchy, and only a fool would try to be successful with the “hub & wheel” model, especially after the playoff results the past three decades. But no, Jerry continues to double down this failed model.

I’m excited with our draft but these players will have to contend with reporting and answering to the owner & son, not a real head coach with full authority. This severely handicaps our players and coaches and continues to be the number one reason why it’s been 30 years since we won consecutive playoff games.

Until Jerry stops the insanity of the “hub and wheel” hierarchy, we’re doomed to more of the same and only an ownership change will remedy this sickness.

Well said Art,
We are doomed until Jerry moves on
I am 18 years younger than Jerry, so I hope to see better days.
Until then I am pretty apathetic because I know this team structure is fatally flawed

 

[DallasEast]

The Jones model of management: “Hub & Wheel” where everyone reports to Jerry (the hub) and delegation of authority is prohibited.

Symbolically, this ship's wheel was taken from the S.S. Minnow instead of the Bravo Eugenia.

 

[StarLord]

Bob you should have applied to be their data engineer!

 

[ChuckA1]

Great post, Bob.

 

[Rockport]

It’s no secret that the 2026 season will hinge in large part on the expected improvement of our historically bad defense the last two seasons. For the second year in a row and for the 16th time in the last 26 seasons, the Cowboys did not make the playoffs.

We obviously have a lot of areas for improvement. Besides the glaringly obvious key stat improvements needed this year (like yards per play, points per game, turnovers per game, etc) we have some lesser known but equally critical improvements needed to make the playoffs in 2026.

So what are those hidden stats?

• Be the team who scores first - WHY? In the NFL, teams who score first win 64% of the time. In 2024 and ‘25, the Cowboys had a collective record of 14-19-1. We scored first in only 16 of those 34 games. That MUST improve.
• Be the team ahead at halftime - WHY? Teams leading at the half win 75% of the time. In 2024, we trailed at the half 10 times, losing 9 of those games. In 2025, we also trailed at the half 10 times, losing 8, winning 1 (in OT) and tying the other.
• Have the lead going into the 4th qtr - WHY? Teams leading at the end of 3 qtrs win 90% of the time! In 2024 the Cowboys trailed at the end of the 3rd qtr 11 times, losing 10 of those games, and got outscored 82-28 in 3rd qtrs. In 2025 we also trailed 10 games after 3 qtrs, going 1-8-1 in those games.
• Based on the above stats, we MUST improve scoring on offense in the 1st and 3rd qtrs. Our scoring by qtr numbers - our worst scoring qtr was the first quarter (avg only 4.5 pts) and the best was the 2nd qtr (avg 10.5 pts) We sucked to start games and also sucked immediately after halftime. This is where we must improve.
• We must improve defensively by not allowing the opponent to score on their first possessions at the beginning of the game and after halftime. Our defense allowed the opponent to score on their opening drive of the game and the first drive of the 2nd half nearly 60% of the time. Cut that down to about 20-25% and we are vastly improved.

From a big picture standpoint, the first thing that jumps out to me is how we start games on both sides of the ball. Falling behind early puts instant pressure on the offense but conversely, getting a lead early gives us a very realistic chance to win games.

If the defense can just stop giving up opening drive TDs and a scoring drive TDs right after halftime, we will have an immediate chance to turn this around.

Bob, you have a great grasp of the obvious. Love your threads but come on man, come up with something original. Everything you’ve stated is “duh”.

 

[conner01]

It’s no secret that the 2026 season will hinge in large part on the expected improvement of our historically bad defense the last two seasons. For the second year in a row and for the 16th time in the last 26 seasons, the Cowboys did not make the playoffs.

We obviously have a lot of areas for improvement. Besides the glaringly obvious key stat improvements needed this year (like yards per play, points per game, turnovers per game, etc) we have some lesser known but equally critical improvements needed to make the playoffs in 2026.

So what are those hidden stats?

• Be the team who scores first - WHY? In the NFL, teams who score first win 64% of the time. In 2024 and ‘25, the Cowboys had a collective record of 14-19-1. We scored first in only 16 of those 34 games. That MUST improve.
• Be the team ahead at halftime - WHY? Teams leading at the half win 75% of the time. In 2024, we trailed at the half 10 times, losing 9 of those games. In 2025, we also trailed at the half 10 times, losing 8, winning 1 (in OT) and tying the other.
• Have the lead going into the 4th qtr - WHY? Teams leading at the end of 3 qtrs win 90% of the time! In 2024 the Cowboys trailed at the end of the 3rd qtr 11 times, losing 10 of those games, and got outscored 82-28 in 3rd qtrs. In 2025 we also trailed 10 games after 3 qtrs, going 1-8-1 in those games.
• Based on the above stats, we MUST improve scoring on offense in the 1st and 3rd qtrs. Our scoring by qtr numbers - our worst scoring qtr was the first quarter (avg only 4.5 pts) and the best was the 2nd qtr (avg 10.5 pts) We sucked to start games and also sucked immediately after halftime. This is where we must improve.
• We must improve defensively by not allowing the opponent to score on their first possessions at the beginning of the game and after halftime. Our defense allowed the opponent to score on their opening drive of the game and the first drive of the 2nd half nearly 60% of the time. Cut that down to about 20-25% and we are vastly improved.

From a big picture standpoint, the first thing that jumps out to me is how we start games on both sides of the ball. Falling behind early puts instant pressure on the offense but conversely, getting a lead early gives us a very realistic chance to win games.

If the defense can just stop giving up opening drive TDs and a scoring drive TDs right after halftime, we will have an immediate chance to turn this around.

Great work

 

[conner01]

You need to put this one right on the head coach, if the team is flat at kickoff and at halftime it's an intensity/focus issue. Why the hell are we waiting to get punched first. We could definitely use a more focused and aggressive mindset.

We scored first 9 games last year and went 6-3 in those games. But you have to rely on defense stopping them around half the time and we didn’t stop anyone

 

[Starforever]

It’s no secret that the 2026 season will hinge in large part on the expected improvement of our historically bad defense the last two seasons. For the second year in a row and for the 16th time in the last 26 seasons, the Cowboys did not make the playoffs.

We obviously have a lot of areas for improvement. Besides the glaringly obvious key stat improvements needed this year (like yards per play, points per game, turnovers per game, etc) we have some lesser known but equally critical improvements needed to make the playoffs in 2026.

So what are those hidden stats?

• Be the team who scores first - WHY? In the NFL, teams who score first win 64% of the time. In 2024 and ‘25, the Cowboys had a collective record of 14-19-1. We scored first in only 16 of those 34 games. That MUST improve.
• Be the team ahead at halftime - WHY? Teams leading at the half win 75% of the time. In 2024, we trailed at the half 10 times, losing 9 of those games. In 2025, we also trailed at the half 10 times, losing 8, winning 1 (in OT) and tying the other.
• Have the lead going into the 4th qtr - WHY? Teams leading at the end of 3 qtrs win 90% of the time! In 2024 the Cowboys trailed at the end of the 3rd qtr 11 times, losing 10 of those games, and got outscored 82-28 in 3rd qtrs. In 2025 we also trailed 10 games after 3 qtrs, going 1-8-1 in those games.
• Based on the above stats, we MUST improve scoring on offense in the 1st and 3rd qtrs. Our scoring by qtr numbers - our worst scoring qtr was the first quarter (avg only 4.5 pts) and the best was the 2nd qtr (avg 10.5 pts) We sucked to start games and also sucked immediately after halftime. This is where we must improve.
• We must improve defensively by not allowing the opponent to score on their first possessions at the beginning of the game and after halftime. Our defense allowed the opponent to score on their opening drive of the game and the first drive of the 2nd half nearly 60% of the time. Cut that down to about 20-25% and we are vastly improved.

From a big picture standpoint, the first thing that jumps out to me is how we start games on both sides of the ball. Falling behind early puts instant pressure on the offense but conversely, getting a lead early gives us a very realistic chance to win games.

If the defense can just stop giving up opening drive TDs and a scoring drive TDs right after halftime, we will have an immediate chance to turn this around.

I thought of all that I just couldn’t get my phone to work in enough time to type. Yeah, sounds believable.

 

[ArtClink]

Well said Art,
We are doomed until Jerry moves on
I am 18 years younger than Jerry, so I hope to see better days.
Until then I am pretty apathetic because I know this team structure is fatally flawed

I’m no spring chicken either, and it’s sad no one could have predicted someone would run the team like a drunk hillbilly.

 

[deerhunter11]

Wow, what a great explanation of the fundamental flaw that the FO tries to build on every season. You made so many great points about how this defines our culture (a hc with no power to hire and fire players & staff) and as you said, this might just be the biggest issue with the Jones model of management.

Every NFL franchise but Dallas operates as a top-down hierarchy where the owner delegates authority to the GM, who hires a head coach and empowers him with the power to hire his own staff and with the authority to fire or release players who are not a good fit. By empowering the head coach with full authority, these other organizations create a healthy atmosphere of fear of the head coach (remember Jimmy and his total authority?), so naturally the players and staff all report to the head coach.

But here in Dallas, we are not allowed to have a top-down hierarchy. Instead we have a “hub & wheel” model where all power (Jerry/Stephen) is centralized in the center (ie, the hub) and players, coaches, and staff comprise the wheel. In this model, everyone reports to Jerry/Stephen instead of a top-down delegation of authority. So for example, as long as a player is cool with Jerry (ie, Jerry likes the player), then it doesn’t really matter much to the player what the head coach thinks because he lacks the power to fire.

A great example was Greg Hardy knocking the clipboard out of the hands of the defensive coordinators during a game. There were zero consequences for Hardy. Zero. He knew he answered directly to Jerry, not the head coach.

Organizational excellence is modeled after the top-down hierarchy, and only a fool would try to be successful with the “hub & wheel” model, especially after the playoff results the past three decades. But no, Jerry continues to double down this failed model.

I’m excited with our draft but these players will have to contend with reporting and answering to the owner & son, not a real head coach with full authority. This severely handicaps our players and coaches and continues to be the number one reason why it’s been 30 years since we won consecutive playoff games.

Until Jerry stops the insanity of the “hub and wheel” hierarchy, we’re doomed to more of the same and only an ownership change will remedy this sickness.

Great Post Art, I have thought many times that something was wrong inside the running of this team, the very chemistry looked suspect. I just couldn't quite figure what the problem actually was. Now I understand that it is pretty simple, it is the massive ego in the front office that has no clue what he is doing. But he won't change because he refuses to be told he has been doing it all wrong. The problem is one little three letter word. EGO. In closing I will say that was a great explanation from you as well sir. True Dallas fan since 1973 GO COWBOYS.