Sturm: Decoding Callahan: Week 9 - Minnesota

[WoodysGirl]

"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.

And they elected to do this, despite common sense seeming to dictate that the best way to defeat Adrian Peterson is to actually keep him on the sideline. Instead, the Cowboys surrendered the largest time of possession that the Vikings had all season long (31:27) just one week after they had a season low (19:06).

Read the rest: http://sturminator.blogspot.com/2013/11/decoding-callahan-week-9.html

 

[visionary]

Strum is wrong
There is no point in running

Signed

The usual suspects

 

[Wolfpack]

What a mess. 64.5% shotgun snaps for the year.

 

[Picksix]

Strum is wrong
There is no point in running

Signed

The usual suspects

I'd love to see us run more, but not if we continue to run like that.

 

[texbumthelife]

Did he mention time of possession? Wait a second, is running the ball about more than just gashing the other team for first downs? Blasphemy!

 

[Doomsay]

We have discussed this quite a bit in this space over the years that the people that fear the Cowboys running game the most are the Cowboys themselves,

Sturm getting Rooseveltian, spot on though.

 

[EPL0c0]

it's a process

 

[Idgit]

I'd love to see us run more, but not if we continue to run like that.

He's misunderstand his own usual suspects' argument again, anyway.

 

[Doomsay]

The Cowboys get very little off play-action (and stop using it altogether) because the linebackers and safeties are not convinced. In fact, we need to look at some plays and decide if the defense knows that when you play the Cowboys, if you can demoralize them early with a few run blitzes, they will stop altogether and get into a pass-exclusive offense the rest of the day and you can simply focus on that.

That's what it looks like from afar.

Looking at Bill Callahan's track record in Oakland, he is not the guy to fix that determination level as he historically is ripped for abandoning the run all the time back in those days with the Raiders.

I did not know that.

 

[Picksix]

That's what it looks like from afar.



I did not know that.

I do. He was very much the West Coach Offense type, with a lot of passing, and not much running. Did some with Charlie Garner, but not a ton. He ran it a lot with the Jets, because they had Sanchez as the QB, a good running game with a great OL, and a great D.

 

[Stash]

What a resource of insight and knowledge we have here, thank you Mr. Sturm!

And it clearly seems to support the fears and frustrations that so many of us have expressed.

The most disappointing thing is that it leads to believe that we're stuck here because nobody in the organization has the ability or know-how to change it...

 

[Doomsay]

I do. He was very much the West Coach Offense type, with a lot of passing, and not much running. Did some with Charlie Garner, but not a ton. He ran it a lot with the Jets, because they had Sanchez as the QB, a good running game with a great OL, and a great D.

His offense had a top ten average ranking in rushing attempts during his four years as Oakland's OC.

Rushing attempts
1998 17th
1999 7th
2000 3rd
2001 12th

 

[Zimmy Lives]

What a resource of insight and knowledge we have here, thank you Mr. Sturm!

And it clearly seems to support the fears and frustrations that so many of us have expressed.

The most disappointing thing is that it leads to believe that we're stuck here because nobody in the organization has the ability or know-how to change it...

Don't normally wholeheartedly agree with you but I do believe your statement in bold is absolutely correct. Sometimes I feel as if there are several Charlie Browns running the organization. That is a lot of wishy-washyness!

 

[Doomsday101]

While I agree I want to see Dallas run the ball better I do get tired of hearing the offense needs to keep Peterson or Brees or Peyton on the sideline by running. The object is to put points on the board not to keep an opposing player on the sideline. Hell 11 play drive or a 1 play drive put points on the board. You really want to take a guy like Peterson out of the game then put a lot of points on the board and force Minn into a passing game.

 

[JohnnyHopkins]

What a resource of insight and knowledge we have here, thank you Mr. Sturm!

And it clearly seems to support the fears and frustrations that so many of us have expressed.

The most disappointing thing is that it leads to believe that we're stuck here because nobody in the organization has the ability or know-how to change it...

Nor the desire. This is all lip service imo. They want to throw and it only takes a few consecutive negative plays in the run game for them to ditch for the pass. It plays right into the defenses hands because they can ignore the run as well.

 

[Venger]

Sometimes I feel as if there are several Charlie Browns running the organization.

Too many Charlie Browns, not enough Lucy's...

 

[Doomsay]

Too many Charlie Browns, not enough Lucy's...

Although Lucy does remind me of a member of the organization at the end of a few games over the past 3 seasons.

 

[Alexander]

Callahan and Garrett are simply a bad combination of football minds if you think running the football is a way to win games.

This is not a new concept from either.

http://cowboysblog.***BANNED-URL***...-comments-i-wouldnt-make-that-statement.html/

 

[visionary]

What a resource of insight and knowledge we have here, thank you Mr. Sturm!

And it clearly seems to support the fears and frustrations that so many of us have expressed.

The most disappointing thing is that it leads to believe that we're stuck here because nobody in the organization has the ability or know-how to change it...

i can understand your frustration but on the bright side... an inside source told me that, as we speak, coach jerry is taking a straw poll of all the offensive coaches about whether we need to run more or less and will make a decision based on the results of that poll

the bad news? jerry will cast the deciding vote in case of a tie because he is 'the tie-breaker'

i have also been told that this is how all decisions are made in the cowboys organization about drafting players, off season acquisitions, called plays during games (this is apparently why romo often gets to the LOS with 4-5 seconds on the play clock), defensive alignments...... all defensive and offensive coaches and front office personnel sit in an office with clickers in hand (this is also actually why callahan sits up in the booth to make it easier to vote and receive results of the 'audience response system')

no wonder our FO and coaches are the model all NFL teams aspire to be like


while i cant disclose my "inside source" i will tell you that it was either the janitor or the liquor store clerk

 

[visionary]

Callahan and Garrett are simply a bad combination of football minds if you think running the football is a way to win games.

This is not a new concept from either.

http://cowboysblog.***BANNED-URL***...-comments-i-wouldnt-make-that-statement.html/

well.... you pointed out the inherent fallacy in your argument

some of the brightest football minds (and i use that term very loosely) on this forum have told me that running has no correlation with winning