News: Sturm: Morning After: Preseason Week 3 at Miami

[WoodysGirl]

Once again this week after the preseason affair, we will not be providing a game recap or any sort of exhaustive breakdown of the events in Miami after the 25-20 loss - however, the 490 yards conceded to the Dolphins are a bit disconcerting.

As we pointed out last year, the Cowboys had given up 6 games of 490+ yards in 2013, which is about a decade's worth of those affairs, but in the Cowboys case all jammed in between San Diego in Week 4 and Chicago in Week 13. Remarkable if you think about it.

However, since the Dolphins had a rather pedestrian 173 yards at the half (when the starters and top roster players on both sides were playing), we won't freak out too much about what this all means for the much talked about defense. But, rest assured, the Dolphins 2s and 3s seemed to have no trouble moving the ball on the Cowboys 2s and 3s depth defensive options. Of course, on the other hand, the Cowboys offensive-1s had 32 snaps in the 1st half and found a mere 110 yards out there. We don't have to dive into advanced metrics to know that 3.43 yards per snap and 4.8 yards per passing attempt from Tony Romo are about as low and non consequential as we are going to see.

If that was supposed to put us at ease about this offense, well, it didn't really work.

In fact, if anyone has skated without too much close examination this off-season, it seems to be the offense. Somehow, they have been elevated by many in the elite category, making us wonder if those people who want to tell us how devastating the offense can be actually watched the 2013 season. Sure, they put up some nice yardage on their terms, but when the offense needed to win a NBA-style game where the team with the ball last should win, they were consistently disappointing.

Read the rest: http://sturminator.blogspot.com/2014/08/morning-after-preseason-week-3.html

 

[morasp]

That was a good write up. We were just talking about Hitchens and his recognition compared to Lee.

 

[xwalker]

It's silly to blame all of that on Bishop. He can't just anchor down over on the defensive right when the run is going to the defensive left.

Coleman is by far the biggest problem on that play. The Center didn't take out Hitchens. Hitchens got on the wrong side of the blockers before they ever touched him.

 

[CCBoy]

What is the life saving grace to that snapshot by a good writer, Sturm, is the simple fact that even the projected starters in the 1's aren't the same as will hit carpet at some point early in the season.

 

[TheDude]

It's silly to blame all of that on Bishop. He can't just anchor down over on the defensive right when the run is going to the defensive left.

Coleman is by far the biggest problem on that play. The Center didn't take out Hitchens. Hitchens got on the wrong side of the blockers before they ever touched him.

I don't think he means "take him out" as in blocking he took a bad read and was rendedered ineffective from the logjam.

Hitchens got in the way of Mitchell on a crossing route also. I think Sturm is talking diagnosing and angles here

 

[30yrheel]

What is the life saving grace to that snapshot by a good writer, Sturm, is the simple fact that even the projected starters in the 1's aren't the same as will hit carpet at some point early in the season.

I keep reading this here but will believe it when I see it.

 

[CCBoy]

I keep reading this here but will believe it when I see it.

No argument with proving things out, my friend...

 

[xwalker]

I don't think he means "take him out" as in blocking he took a bad read and was rendedered ineffective from the logjam.

Hitchens got in the way of Mitchell on a crossing route also. I think Sturm is talking diagnosing and angles here

Could be. I just think that play is much different than it looks in terms of Bishop.

 

[CCBoy]

Could be. I just think that play is much different than it looks in terms of Bishop.

Keep measuring our friend...

 

[TheFinisher]

I have heard many claim that they are a "Top 5" and "elite" offense. Well, those offenses score points by the bushels, the Dallas offense had only 3 games of 35 points (NYG, Den, GB) and 3 games of 400 yards (Den, GB, Phil). Denver had 14 games of 400 yards, by comparison. Philadelphia had 12. San Diego had 8. New England, New Orleans, and Green Bay did it 7 times each. 3 games? All at home? Tough to call that elite.
If you are wondering, by the way, 400 yards has often been the benchmark target by many coaches for a "successful" offensive day. In recent years, we have had 3 levels of offense, with 400 being a great day, 360 being good, and anything below that threshold is listed as poor. In case you are wondering, in 2013, the average yards for the average offense in a game was 348. That is up from 20 seasons ago, when in 1993, the league averaged 310 yards a game. Yards are easier to come by than ever before, so if we are going to call an offense elite, we are going to need more offensive explosions. But, for the Cowboys to only have 3 400-yard performances in 2013 - all at home - makes us wonder why the fandom is crowning them before they have actually accomplished anything.

 

[Fla Cowpoke]

I have heard many claim that they are a "Top 5" and "elite" offense. Well, those offenses score points by the bushels, the Dallas offense had only 3 games of 35 points (NYG, Den, GB) and 3 games of 400 yards (Den, GB, Phil). Denver had 14 games of 400 yards, by comparison. Philadelphia had 12. San Diego had 8. New England, New Orleans, and Green Bay did it 7 times each. 3 games? All at home? Tough to call that elite.
If you are wondering, by the way, 400 yards has often been the benchmark target by many coaches for a "successful" offensive day. In recent years, we have had 3 levels of offense, with 400 being a great day, 360 being good, and anything below that threshold is listed as poor. In case you are wondering, in 2013, the average yards for the average offense in a game was 348. That is up from 20 seasons ago, when in 1993, the league averaged 310 yards a game. Yards are easier to come by than ever before, so if we are going to call an offense elite, we are going to need more offensive explosions. But, for the Cowboys to only have 3 400-yard performances in 2013 - all at home - makes us wonder why the fandom is crowning them before they have actually accomplished anything.

We were 5th in scoring and only .4 per game from being second. Scoring is more important than yards.

 

[arglebargle]

What is the life saving grace to that snapshot by a good writer, Sturm, is the simple fact that even the projected starters in the 1's aren't the same as will hit carpet at some point early in the season.

Yeah, the Cowboys don't have most of their intended starters on defense out there, so the '2s and 3s' of the game are actually further down the list than they've been playing. Of course, there's always the issue of depending on injured guys to be your starters in the regular season. That's sorta what happened last year.

 

[Alexander]

Of course, there's always the issue of depending on injured guys to be your starters in the regular season. That's sorta what happened last year.

Yes, and it appears we did not take that cruel lesson to heart.

 

[arglebargle]

Yes, and it appears we did not take that cruel lesson to heart.

It's not like it isn't happening to a ton of other teams too. Our hyperfocus on the Cowboys makes it seem like its only our problem. Given that our three top prospects in the first round of the draft were all on defense, I think they actually were targetting it as best they could.

 

[CCBoy]

The thing about the defense, no matter if one is Carnac the Magnificant, and in possession of hermetically sealed envelopes...he still has to await the verdict of how the defense does this year, before they are in fact decadent or not...