I think we have more than 6 wins this season if Cooper Rush starts week 1

[Mikexike]

Running out of any formation is a problem if the line don't block. Now that the line is blocking the running game miraculously is orders of magnitude better. Many of us here have been saying since training camp that the backs we have on the roster will be just fine as long as the line blocks. Seems like that group has been proven correct. Remove rookies and hampered old vet and insert hungry road graders and suddenly Rico is getting the second level untouched with regularity. It aint rocket surgery.

Agreed, removing martin was the biggest improvement in the run blocking game.

I do go back to why dak rarely hands the ball off under center? Is it because he's limited under center??? footwork???

 

[CowboysFaninHouston]

Only problem I see is, Dak needs to be a bus driver for this team but chooses to be the hero every play. Hence the turnovers.

Rush is a bus driver and is driving it as is, less turnovers and the offense/defense looks better.

How does the offense look better scoring about 15 points a game? That includes 3 games against bottom.feeding defenses.

Whe your defense sucks and you have to win in a shootout you tend to throw picks because you have to take chances

With Rush there is no.shootout option. Can not happen. Will not happen.

Rush drives a kiddie bus. On a 24 volt battery.

 

[CowboysFaninHouston]

Running out of any formation is a problem if the line don't block. Now that the line is blocking the running game miraculously is orders of magnitude better. Many of us here have been saying since training camp that the backs we have on the roster will be just fine as long as the line blocks. Seems like that group has been proven correct. Remove rookies and hampered old vet and insert hungry road graders and suddenly Rico is getting the second level untouched with regularity. It aint rocket surgery.

Actually it looks better because we are playing against the worst run defenses in the league.

 

[FuzzyLumpkins]

When you wish upon a star. . . .

 

[CowboysFaninHouston]

The Cowboys have run the football better and have played better defense in the three games Rush has won thus far. This cannot be debated. Also the defenses Dallas has faced lately have been, for lack of a better term, sucky.

Having said that, if nothing changed the first eight games of the season, I don't think the Cowboys would have had a better record at all. In fact they'd likely be worse since, no matter what your opinion of Dak is, in no dimension is Rush a better quarterback.

What. And be debated is we played giants and panthers. Who doesn't look good playing against the..

Defense loomed pathetic against Philly and Houston. Wasn't so hot against Commanders.

 

[CowboysFaninHouston]

Similar production and results with a win / loss record while one is paid peanuts and the other is the highest paid player in the league. That’s the issue

Similar production? How. Rushnled offense is averaging 15 points a game. He is paid peanuts because he produces peanuts.

 

[Mikexike]

How does the offense look better scoring about 15 points a game? That includes 3 games against bottom.feeding defenses.

Whe your defense sucks and you have to win in a shootout you tend to throw picks because you have to take chances

With Rush there is no.shootout option. Can not happen. Will not happen.

Rush drives a kiddie bus. On a 24 volt battery.

Don't need to score a lot of points when you don't turn the ball over at ill advised moments in the game.

 

[thunderpimp91]

sorry, I think you just tried to move the goal post. yes the team wins, but how the team wins matters. if the offense is struggling at 15 points a game, then you need a lot of help from defense and offense to win games. you take those out of the equation. what did the unit do and what's the expectations from them. you need to factor in the context of who you are playing on the schedule, how they are playing and where they stand. all of that are important.

and 12 games over 4 years is not a large sample size. if anything this year he has had the largest sample size and clearly he is not any good. he is 3-3, with 2 wins against bottom feeders and an unlikely win because of two kick returns, which has a probability of 0.002% to happen in a game twice.....and a 0.05% to happen in any game.

and regarding turnovers, its not like Rush hasn't had turnovers. he has been fumbling and throwing interceptions.
and you keep moving the goal post, now, hey, defensive points should count!!!! QBs job is to run the offense.
"how did he do?"
" oh, the team scored 34"...
"ok, sounds great, looks like the offense was great"
"well, 14 point were from special teams"....

and I don't think this cowboys team was built for anything. they were just thrown together to meet the 53 man roster requirements and be above the salary cap floor.
Jerry had no plan but hope and thought that we end up competitive. he never imagined we are going to be this bad.

there is only one QB in the league that can win games on his consistently and that's Mahomes, very close second is Burrows.
with that said, all QBs need resources, need a supporting running game, need a defense because you can't win consistently if you are constantly in a shoot out. but your QB has to be capable and you be able to build with the right resources.

Evident this year is Rush is at least 5 points worse than Dak running an offense and one can argue he has had more better resources (cook coming back and coaches making Dowdle primary back). an OL that had multiple new starters now finally starting to jell and the rookie getting some experience at LT.

Peyton Manning, Brady, Mahomes are generational QBs. you can't go arguing that we need one of those, but you also can't skimp to players like Rush, because there is no way in hell that this cowboys team can succeed with a player like Rush. I mean just watching him after 6 games, his arm already looks tired and his velocity and accuracy drop significantly from 1st quarter to 4th. he can barely complete 50% of his passes. you need some level of competence. Rush is incompetent. no arguing.

Not trying to move the goal posts but I'm certainly not immune from saying dumb things or contradicting myself at times so if I did let me clarify....

I'm not trying to argue for one second that Cooper Rush is a legitimate starting NFL QB. I do tend to prop up Rush in the areas I think he does well including his ability to run the offense pre snap which I think is better than Dak, but overall he is clearly a backup QB. The thing is that naturally the bar is going to be set way lower for a backup QB than the guy with the highest annual salary in the history of the game.

I would argue that Dak didn't play well in 2024 which had led to similar results from a backup QB.

I'd also argue that part of the roster construction issues with many teams in the league is they build through their QB and not around their QB. The difference is QB talent in this league is at an all time low, especially once you get back the top 3 guys in Mahomes who himself hasnt been very good, Burrow, and Allen. The difference between Dak Prescott, Jared Goff, Baker Mayfield, Matt Stafford, and Sam Darnold has a lot more to do with surrounding talent than it does their own abilities.

 

[Blackrain]

You’ve lost your mind. The team that Rush is playing with right now is FAR better than any team Dak had this season. Even though they were against bum teams, we’ve somehow developed a running game, something we never sniffed when Dak was in the line up, and it’s probably the biggest difference maker for a QB on any team. If Dowdle had been rushing for 100+ with Dak at the wheel, maybe he loses 1 game.

Everyone thinks they’re a coach. Rush didn’t play well yesterday. His throws are exactly what you’d expect from a 2nd tier backup. The real coaches see these guys in practice every week. The guys you see on the field are the players that earned their positions. Stick to being a fan. Your analysis is terrible.

Explain to me how the team is better now it's the same group of players if anything we have lost more players to injury .

We didn't participate in free agency we didn't add big names at the trade deadline.
We lost Hall of Fame offensive lineman Zach Martin. Who
Exactly did we add to the team to make the running game better.

The guys we have play harder for Rush than they do for DAk.

Rush has less talent less mobile a terrible arm but somehow motivates the rest of the team to play above their heads.

Running the ball is a mindset that requires effort by everyone involved.
The players on the team haven't changed the coaching certainly hasn't changed what has changed is the effort the players are giving.

 

[EPL0c0]

I think DAL has 8-9 wins in them if they put Hoffman in at RG sooner

But there was no way jerry would allow Martin to be benched

 

[nobody]

I think it's fair to say Dak was not having a good year.. but I think it's silly to ignore that he began the season with a struggling offensive line starting two rookies, a #1 receiver who missed camp, no running game to speak of and a defense that felt it was optional to even show up for games at times. The Cowboys put too much on him at once and asked him to make miracles. That aint who he is.. He is a very good QB who CAN play great sometimes. But he is not one who can elevate chicken crap around him. We all wish he was but he aint. Given that we fell behind by 20+ points in 4 of his 8 starts this season it's no surprise that he had to take more chances and force the issue. Throw in receivers getting the least separation in the league and you get what you get.

I know who Dak is.. He's a really good player but he is not a generational QB. The point is that he is plenty good enough to get a team where it wants to go if you give him help. I know this because I have seen at least a dozen QBs not as good as Dak get to the Super Bowl. There has been at least a half dozen who have WON Super Bowls who were not as good as Dak. It's not Dak's fault Jerry keeps building teams around him with horrible flaws. Nor is it his fault that the league has lost its mind paying quarterbacks. I blame Dak for Dak's play. I don't blame him for receivers not getting open, defense not tackling, line not blocking and the play caller forgetting to call running plays. It's not that hard for me to analyze all these things in context. If I see a well thrown ball hit a receiver in the face and pop up into the air for a pick I am not mad at DAK for that. If I see a guy running wide open and Dak sails the ball out of bounds I do. If it's 3rd and 12 and all the receivers run 8 yard curls I blame McCarthy, not Dak. Though I might fault him for not audibling out of that nonsense. Apparently this discernment is more difficult for others. For some folks it has to be black and white..A guy is either great or he sucks. I have no such requirement. You don't appear to either.. kudos to you for that. It's a lot more enjoyable to talk football with people who are that way.

You're right, I think Dak is a very good regular season QB. He falters in the big lights of the playoffs more often than not for whatever reason(s). By this point, Dak should be audibling more and talking to the coach's about the play-calling. However, most of the teams problems are because of the front office and the players they get along with the play-calling and coaching. I can't imagine how hard it is to coach with Jerry micromanaging and holding some of the coach's power instead of giving the coaches the control they need. The defense was a new defense with Quinn leaving after last season. Any time a new defense or offense is implemented, it takes time for the players to grasp it enough to gel together as a team.

Yes, they started with a struggling O-line and that's fair to say, but he's been in the league since 2016 and he hasn't learned to throw the ball away to avoid a sack? Come on, that's a rookie mistake and he keeps making it. Why? Why haven't his various coaches broken him of that? The defense sucked bad the first games and that's a fact. However, the offense going three and out several times in the first half doesn't help. I'm not saying they have to score every time...but stay on the field as long as possible to help the defense that clearly is struggling. I know, hard to do with a struggling O-line and practically no run game. But that's on the front office. A small part is on Dak for his decision making this season. It was bad and he had no valid reason for it given his experience. The coaches, knowing Dak was struggling, should have adjusted the plays however. It's been a failure from the top down.

 

[Blackrain]

I think we have more than six wins if we just started the best players we have rather than the ones Jerry wanted to see as starters.

We have to wait till players get injured to actually see the better players get a chance on the offensive line to play.

I mean is it really rocket science the two kids out of college aren't going to come in and set the world on fire in the NFL on the offensive line.
The trenches are a man's job and these Young bucks are still wet behind the ears.
Is it a surprise to anyone that Zeke was not the answer at running back.
Maybe if we had somebody competent setting the starting lineup rather than Jerry playing with his toy we would have been more competitive this year.

And let's say maybe we had a guy like Baker Mayfield that had more talent and arm strength than Cooper Rush but wasn't totally breaking the Bank like Dak Prescott and we could afford to add some high quality free agents in some spots of need wouldn't that be a help.

Whole lot of things that could have been done to get us more than six wins just look at our division rivals the eagles they didn't sit on their hands after they went in the tank last year they put their head down and added talent and have righted their ship but not us we just watched our sink deeper with Jerry standing in The Crows nest saying all is well

 

[Blackrain]

The issue is that Rush exposes how crap Dak really is. We literally operate the exact same way with Rush. Dak brings nothing special and he’s paid like he’s a football god

Rush makes very good use of the little bit of talent and arm strength that he has.
But he gains the benefit of us actually playing the better players on the team around him on the oline and at running back.

Dak although grossly overpaid and losing his god-given skills through injury and age at an alarming rate was saddled with the roster that Jerry wanted to play and that had an effect on his success or lack thereof.

Beyond that for some strange reason the team seems to rally around Rush and all play harder for him another strange intangible that makes him appear better than he really is

 

[RonnieT24]

Actually it looks better because we are playing against the worst run defenses in the league.

Well that certainly helps.

 

[RonnieT24]

Don't need to score a lot of points when you don't turn the ball over at ill advised moments in the game.

Or when the defense isn't allowing the opponent to score TDs on their first 5 possessions.

 

[RonnieT24]

You're right, I think Dak is a very good regular season QB. He falters in the big lights of the playoffs more often than not for whatever reason(s). By this point, Dak should be audibling more and talking to the coach's about the play-calling. However, most of the teams problems are because of the front office and the players they get along with the play-calling and coaching. I can't imagine how hard it is to coach with Jerry micromanaging and holding some of the coach's power instead of giving the coaches the control they need. The defense was a new defense with Quinn leaving after last season. Any time a new defense or offense is implemented, it takes time for the players to grasp it enough to gel together as a team.

Yes, they started with a struggling O-line and that's fair to say, but he's been in the league since 2016 and he hasn't learned to throw the ball away to avoid a sack? Come on, that's a rookie mistake and he keeps making it. Why? Why haven't his various coaches broken him of that? The defense sucked bad the first games and that's a fact. However, the offense going three and out several times in the first half doesn't help. I'm not saying they have to score every time...but stay on the field as long as possible to help the defense that clearly is struggling. I know, hard to do with a struggling O-line and practically no run game. But that's on the front office. A small part is on Dak for his decision making this season. It was bad and he had no valid reason for it given his experience. The coaches, knowing Dak was struggling, should have adjusted the plays however. It's been a failure from the top down.

I don't get the sack take. Dak is annually one of the least sacked QBs in the league. I think the desire to make a play is in his DNA so throwing the ball away is way down on the list of options. I think that gets elevated when the defense is out there poopin its pants the way we saw this year. I attribute the relatively high INT rate to two things.. 1) Many many minutes spent trailing by huge margins and 2) WRs not really getting open. We all saw the numbers on separation we were getting which went hand in hand with Dak being forced to make more tight window throws than any other QB in the league. So we're not blocking for him, not getting open for him and not helping him with a running game.. and then act surprised when the results are not great. I don't get that.

I think the bad decisions were borne of desperation. Maybe even a little trying to live up to the contract, which is almost always a mistake. Dak needs to just come out and be Dak and not try to be anybody else. He's a good player who gets positive results more often than not when allowed to be himself and not somebody else. Frankly that's all we can ask for.

 

[CowboysFaninHouston]

Don't need to score a lot of points when you don't turn the ball over at ill advised moments in the game.

So in your expert opinion average of 15 points a game is enough?

Ooookkkk then.

Let's score 6 points and celebrate no turnovers.

Btw do fumbles count? Just wondering. Give Rush has tendency to cough up regularly

 

[DIAF]

I don't think the record will be that much different, honestly. Maybe 1 less win, I don't think Rush wins that Steelers game.

 

[ICP]

Try starting this from week 2, they won week one even with Dak starting

 

[Hadenough]

Hahahahahah. First of all your premise is wrong. But let’s pretend you are right. And let’s even exaggerate and pretend we made the playoffs. Big flippin whoop. Are you silly enough to actually think this team would have a shot in the playoffs ?

As much of a chance if Prescott were QB!