Interesting Stat from Bob Sturm on the radio

[Zordon]

yeah...I am sure it's accurate, but my mind just won't accept it. It just seemed like we passed alot on 3rd and short all year.

The stat is not just for 3rd down. It's 2nd, 3rd or 4th down. Just any time we needed 2 yds or less for a 1st down.

 

[Direwolf63]

Probably a function of falling behind 21-3. Then 28-13 in the 4th quarter.

Had it been a nip and tuck type game, or had we been ahead, the stat likely would have been different. It's unfortunate.

 

[knightrider94]

Why are we pinning this solely on Linehan? It's amazing how the HC escapes any criticism.

I don't blame Linehan at all. I blame Garrett. He is the head coach. He is right there on the sidelines and should have been in Linehan's ear on those 3rd and short plays.

 

[Stash]

yeah...I am sure it's accurate, but my mind just won't accept it. It just seemed like we passed alot on 3rd and short all year.

I'm not sure that it applies strictly to 3rd down because, like you I didn't see anything close to "77%" run on 3rd down. In fact, it's almost a guaranteed passing play.

 

[Stash]

Why are we pinning this solely on Linehan? It's amazing how the HC escapes any criticism.

Who calls the plays?

 

[Stash]

Scored 31 points. This game was not on the offense

It's a team game. All sides played a part in the loss. Pointing to points alone is ignorant.

 

[Stash]

Probably a function of falling behind 21-3. Then 28-13 in the 4th quarter.

Had it been a nip and tuck type game, or had we been ahead, the stat likely would have been different. It's unfortunate.

Unfortunate and inaccurate. You're trying to let the, off the hook by pointing to scores when that didn't force them to get away from the running game.

That specific 3rd and 2 being discussed over and over and over again was at the start of the game. And another was before the half with plenty of time left.

You're trying to excuse the inexcusable. I hope the organization isn't trying to do the same.

 

[Stash]

The stat is not just for 3rd down. It's 2nd, 3rd or 4th down. Just any time we needed 2 yds or less for a 1st down.

That's what I expected. 3rd and 2 is an empty-set pass play in these parts.

 

[JoeyBoy718]

I mentioned in other posts that Garrett and the franchise as a whole have always been reactionary. Garrett used to get criticized all the time for not running enough, then he finally "changed" but you still see his stubbornness creep back in key situations. We used to get criticized for neglecting the O-line before we reacted. Garrett used to get criticized for his poor clock management before it seemed like he finally corrected it this season until we saw it creep back at the end of the Packers game. We're never ahead of the curve. Sometimes we appear to be geniuses when we finally do address something, but then some other issue pops up that we neglected for too long. What we saw in this playoff game was "old mistakes" resurface that appeared to have been corrected by observing the regular season, such as leaving points on the field, lack of discipline, abandoning the run, and poor clock management.

 

[Dodger12]

Probably a function of falling behind 21-3. Then 28-13 in the 4th quarter.

Had it been a nip and tuck type game, or had we been ahead, the stat likely would have been different. It's unfortunate.

Except that we did this the first series. And we did it again with the game on the line that I can remember. It's what contributed to being down early.

 

[Thomas82]

That's what happens when you have 2 coaches that love the passing game folks!!

Right......and both of them are ex-quarterbacks.

 

[Dodger12]

Who calls the plays?

What, is Garrett listening the Beats by Dre on the sidelines? He's the HC for goodness sakes. He dictates how we handle the end of the half, short yardage situations and time management.

 

[NorthwestDallas40]

During the regular season when the Cowboys needed 2 yds or less for a 1st down they ran the ball 77% of the time.

In the Packers game under the same situation we ran the ball 12% of the time (1 out of 8).

Sturm is ripping Linehan for going away from our identity against a team that showed no capability of stopping our run.

But how many of those 8 did we not convert? Isnt that the more appropriate question? I recall the first drive 3rd and 2, we did not. But I do not remember many more. As another poster said, this loss is not on the offense...

 

[Stash]

What, is Garrett listening the Beats by Dre on the sidelines? He's the HC for goodness sakes. He dictates how we handle the end of the half, short yardage situations and time management.

If he says doing that then it's he and not Linehan who is the offensive coordinator. I agree that Garrett does have say and did play a hand in the situation, but if he has to micromanage the playcalling that much, just get another guy.

Even worse, I'd guarantee you that Garrett would be against sending his buddy out the door if someone brought it up.

I'd love to see a Norv Turner return. His offense would be grinding people into dust. But I'm not getting my hopes up. Instead we'll continue to deal with two pass-happy former quarterbacks shutting down their own run game, despite the fact that it's the best in the league.

 

[ghosttown cowboy]

I wish Dak would have said screw it and changed the play to a run...What was JG gonna do?...bench him for Romo?...

 

[Direwolf63]

Unfortunate and inaccurate. You're trying to let the, off the hook by pointing to scores when that didn't force them to get away from the running game.

That specific 3rd and 2 being discussed over and over and over again was at the start of the game. And another was before the half with plenty of time left.

You're trying to excuse the inexcusable. I hope the organization isn't trying to do the same.

I'm not trying to excuse anything.

All I'm saying is that generally when teams fall behind, there is a tendancy to throw the ball more than they probably would have liked in an effort to catch up. Had we been ahead 21-3, Zeke would have had 30 carries in an effort to shorten the game. It would have been the natural thing to do.

The bad play calls that resulted in the team falling behind got mixed in with the great play calls that resulted in 28-28 and 31-31 scores. From there it was a whole new ball game. The bad calls and the good calls cancelled each other out.

The game was lost late. The spike of the ball. Rodgers not fumbling when crushed from behind. The inexcusable pass allowed on 3rd and 20 with 15 seconds left. Nobody is talking about Byron Jones, but what was he doing on that play? How did he get so lost? Why? Can he play FS in this league? He's a terrific athlete. But does he have the football instincts required?

Jason Garrett isn't going anywhere. Period. End of story. Neither is Linehan. They will both be here in 2017. Like it or not.

So all this talk of dumping Garrett and a play call here or there is fruitless. I would be much more interested in how the team gets better on the field. The coaches won't change, but the players will. The team will only improve based on how the roster is changed, especially of defense.

 

[dragon_mikal]

During the regular season when the Cowboys needed 2 yds or less for a 1st down they ran the ball 77% of the time.

In the Packers game under the same situation we ran the ball 12% of the time (1 out of 8).

Sturm is ripping Linehan for going away from our identity against a team that showed no capability of stopping our run.

Sigh.

It's not on Linehan.

 

[LandryFan]

That's what happens when you have 2 coaches that love the passing game folks!!

Not defending that particular play call, but on the whole for the season we had the lowest percentage of pass plays in the entire NFL.

 

[LandryFan]

Why are we pinning this solely on Linehan? It's amazing how the HC escapes any criticism.

You haven't been paying attention...NOBODY is escaping anything. Everybody should be fired, cut, etc.

 

[Zimmy Lives]

During the regular season when the Cowboys needed 2 yds or less for a 1st down they ran the ball 77% of the time.

In the Packers game under the same situation we ran the ball 12% of the time (1 out of 8).

Sturm is ripping Linehan for going away from our identity against a team that showed no capability of stopping our run.

All the more reason Dallas should draft another stud guard in the 1st and a bruising FB in the 2nd. The run game would be unstoppable.

Note: Just kidding about the guard; a bruising FB would be nice, though.