CFZ Sturm was dead wrong about Dak Prescott

[Cowboysheelsreds053]

Ken,

You literally bet me that Dak would have a better season than Mahomes.

Why are you on here trying to act like you know anything about football?

LOL, you guys are killing me.

 

[Vtwin]

Why wasn't it his kryptonite until last year though?

What changed?

Ah yes, it was the gimp we had in the backfield that no one respected or feared. It was the predictable playcalls and predictable route combos. Most of the time, only a few options were even being run into these pass heavy defenses.

Most of the time, our wr's ran sloppy routes.

Most of the time, they dropped the balls that were thrown to them.

Most of the time we were in bad spots from penalties or good plays were called back from them.

Most of the time the defenses handled our run games with 4 man fronts.

See, the Bengals confused and confuzzled Patty with this same defense in the playoffs. He was running around and spinning and dancing into 10 second + sacks because of it. Now they do have a good defense...but not a better defense than SF, who as Sturm stated in his now bible article, was perfectly suited for this type of defense.

So, sure, Dak could be better in some of these situations. The underlying issue is an ineffective scheme, lack of running game, and penalties.

These criticisms go back far longer than the second half of last season.

Obviously, weaknesses can be worked around with strengths in other areas. They are still very much weaknesses however, and they will be exploited against the better teams you need to beat to achieve the ultimate prize.

You're litany of excuses to absolve Dak, as valid as some of them may be, don't change the fact that if you don't have a QB who is adept at the things I mentioned in the previous post, your chances of beating the big dogs is very slim regardless of how strong you are in other areas.

I look at your Mahomes example like this... "If the defense can befuddle Mahomes like that, then Dak has no chance at all." I think that is a more realistic interpretation than suggesting Dak should be excused because Mahomes struggled against a playoff defense who schemed spherically to confuse him. Shouldn't Dak even be more ahead of the curve than Mahomes given he has been in the league longer?

 

[Section446]

Dak has never been and will never be a franchise QB, it's been obvious since 2017. I don't think it's a skill thing as much as it's a brains thing, he just isn't smart enough to break down a play as it's happening.

 

[Swagger]

Ken,

You literally bet me that Dak would have a better season than Mahomes.

Why are you on here trying to act like you know anything about football?

Talk about being OWNED!

 

[Shane612]

Im not taking sides...and maybe I am posting without reading you guys' entire conversation...

But...if I am understanding correctly...I agree with Ken's questions here: Why did Dak have success before until now?

Injured leg? Loaded offense?

I guess I am questioning the legitimacy of NFL coordinators if it took 6 years to figure Dak out. It took 6 years to figure out Dak sucks against zone?

...or Jerry became desperate and paid elite money for an average QB.

 

[Haimerej]

Why wasn't it his kryptonite until last year though?

What changed?

Ah yes, it was the gimp we had in the backfield that no one respected or feared. It was the predictable playcalls and predictable route combos. Most of the time, only a few options were even being run into these pass heavy defenses.

Most of the time, our wr's ran sloppy routes.

Most of the time, they dropped the balls that were thrown to them.

Most of the time we were in bad spots from penalties or good plays were called back from them.

Most of the time the defenses handled our run games with 4 man fronts.

See, the Bengals confused and confuzzled Patty with this same defense in the playoffs. He was running around and spinning and dancing into 10 second + sacks because of it. Now they do have a good defense...but not a better defense than SF, who as Sturm stated in his now bible article, was perfectly suited for this type of defense.

So, sure, Dak could be better in some of these situations. The underlying issue is an ineffective scheme, lack of running game, and penalties.

You realize, "most of the time," means more than half the time, right? Not sure how the offense could put up the numbers they did if over half their plays included sloppy routes, dropped passes, penalties, etc.

 

[Rockport]

There is nothing to be sucked about for myself, as this does nothing other than making Dak, who already had a fragile psyche, worried. Marketing having to play cleanup for Jerry, because it’s obvious what statements like do. This does nothing to convince me this was some marketing scheme, as fans saw they can win with Rush.

Dak’s not worried. He knows Rush’s capabilities more than anyone. Yes, you were sucked but don’t feel bad, there were a lot of you.

 

[Acceptablename]

You can argue that, but they didn’t even let Romo practice with the team, while looking light years better in practice. The argument was that Dak is not a practice player. Couple in the Vikings and Giants game, it was a horrible decision that had long term repercussions. If they wanted the hot hand, then you still got to let Romo compete the next year for his job back. It’s obvious they thought they could get by on the cheap.

My personal experience was Roma was a crippled back and other physical injuries that made him unreliable. Still had his knowledge and skills but when would he go down like Tyron today.

 

[Philmonroe]

I read this also ( mentioned it in a few threads ), good article. He does a good job pointing out some serious flaws Dak has to overcome to take the next step. Your summation makes it sound a bit more negative than it really is. But yea, he goes after Dak hard.....as if he's at a crossroads. The time is NOW.......no more markers

There is no crossroads for Dak and the overwhelming majority of athletes this far into their careers when they’ve been starting and not on the bench. They are who they are and the stats will normally back this up for the majority of players not just Dak

 

[khiladi]

I speculate Dallas might be in the market to trade him based on:

1) It took 2 years to negotiate his last deal. Odd with a owner willing to pay players...especially at important positions. Seems as though there was some reluctance to pay him.

2) The weird/odd media questions to players building up Dak's arm this training camp...just really really odd to me. It wasnt one media session...it was multiple that they keyed in on this.

3) The first game seemed to be a set up for Dak to prove himself and he failed. The abandoning the run early in a game that was never more than a 2 possession game indicated that Moore was directed to make Dak prove himself. Total speculation, though.

4) The multiple tv heads making the weird/odd but what seems like on purpose comments about Rush not being afraid to throw the ball. This wasnt just Romo saying it...ive heard numerous others say this. Its odd and seems to be directed at a Dak flaw.

Ultimately...I think Dallas could trade Dak and a few teams would be interested. Which is why I was asking for clarification on the cap hit stuff. Seems like Dallas can trade him without cap ramifications....so why are people saying it doesnt make financial sense to move on from Dak until 2024?

I don’t think there would be any directive to make Dak try and prove it. I think they just made a stupid mistake and dug themselves in too deep with the contract, especially after he broke his leg and they could have simply tagged him one more year.

He’s been exposed pretty badly, especially after the roster was primed for a SB run. Even Jerry after the SF loss was saying that it’s hard in this era of FA to get a collection of players to make a run, because if attrition.

Dallas could try and force a trade by benching Prescott and making Prescott demand to be traded. They could draft a QB as well, while waiting it to a point that Dak would make the demand.

Outside of that, cutting him would be where the hit lies. But trading him just makes the other team take on his contract. Dallas could offer some picks for them to pick up the contract. If the contract causes the team he is traded to be above the salary cap, then a restructur me would be required, which means Dak would have to approve as well. He may not like the terms of the restructure do he would squash it.

This is my limited understanding, but I don’t really care about contracts of players. I feel they should negotiate whatever they can, just like what we do in regards to our jobs. I can’t stand Dak as a QB, but I admire how him and his agent got that deal. I’d do the same thing if I could.

 

[khiladi]

Im not taking sides...and maybe I am posting without reading you guys' entire conversation...

But...if I am understanding correctly...I agree with Ken's questions here: Why did Dak have success before until now?

Injured leg? Loaded offense?

I guess I am questioning the legitimacy of NFL coordinators if it took 6 years to figure Dak out. It took 6 years to figure out Dak sucks against zone?

Again, he was always horrible against zone coverages. He sucked in 2017 and sucked in 2018 without Amari, and still sucked with Amari against zone. Dak has, throughout his career, had multiple stretches of horrendous QB play that exemplifies these traits, where the Dallas offense is among the worst in the league in many categories.

He started off well last year, because both Zeke and Pollard were averaging over 5 YPC each and Moore was having defenses in situations where he was dictating to them what he wanted to do, forcing teams in the box. But those type of run numbers are clearly unsustainable.

Last year he “got back on track” against Atlanta, the year before Detroit, both awful teams. Atlanta played a hell of a lot of man coverage.

 

[75boyz]

Ken, Ken, Ken....

Being very successful against the blitz and man coverage is great, but it means nothing if teams stop blitzing and start making you beat their zone coverages, and you suck at that.

And no.... it is not everyone else's fault. It's been apparent since the beginning.

Yep,
Something so simple that can't be grasped by not only him but so many others...

Entertaining to say the least, lol

 

[75boyz]

He's a likable player that beat the odds. It's interesting how his rookie year laid the egg for where he is now.......QB with a $40M per contract trying to meet the 2016 expectations of fans.

Yep, If ya peak as a rookie your remaining future will always be compared to that rookie performance.
The best SleepNumber was and still is that 2016 version.

 

[khiladi]

Seriously?

You beat these coverages by studying and understanding them so you recognize what is going on as best you can while it is going on. You use this understanding to get a head start on deciding what the best option is likely to be, then you look for that option and put the ball where it needs to be. This requires a solid understanding of what you are seeing and the ability to quickly process, quickly decide and quickly execute with confidence in your decision.

A less talented defense will make it easier to do this as the QB may not be pressured so quickly, the secondary not so solid in their execution and other just as obvious reasons.

Of course it goes without saying that it is unreasonable to expect any QB to just have his way with any defense trying to confuse him with their coverage packages. Different DC's bring different nuances and they certainly are smart enough to consider the tendencies they have established and use them against you when appropriate.

The bottom line is, a QB who studies the opposition he is going to face to the point he can quickly process, recognize and anticipate, and who has the confidence and ability required to make the throws to the spots they need to be put, will be more successful than the QB who is slower to process, lacking in understanding and anticipation, and lacking in confidence.

Again though, it's not easy to have your way with a quality pro defense and even the best QB's will certainly not win every play. Clearly though, some QB's are much better than others at it. Dak has shown, so far that it is his kryptonite.

It’s nog just that, a lot of it is simply the gifts a QB is born with. It’s like Steph Curry hand-eye coordination, which Kerr said is the best he’s ever seen. Some people just process different, have different depth perception judgment and so on. You can train them to a degree, but the foundation has to already be there.

You can normally get a good glimpse of this trs I already being there. Take a guy like Herbert in year 2 as a full time starter and how he moves through his progressions. He goes through all of them and back, and is still able to fling a pass in an awkward style, without being rattled.

For these gifted ones, when they reach their peak, it all comes together like a click. It’s not like Dak with all his awkwardness and regression and same type of horrible mechanics, hopping on his feet, throwing off his back foot duds in year 7.

 

[75boyz]

Seriously?

You beat these coverages by studying and understanding them so you recognize what is going on as best you can while it is going on. You use this understanding to get a head start on deciding what the best option is likely to be, then you look for that option and put the ball where it needs to be. This requires a solid understanding of what you are seeing and the ability to quickly process, quickly decide and quickly execute with confidence in your decision.

A less talented defense will make it easier to do this as the QB may not be pressured so quickly, the secondary not so solid in their execution and other just as obvious reasons.

Of course it goes without saying that it is unreasonable to expect any QB to just have his way with any defense trying to confuse him with their coverage packages. Different DC's bring different nuances and they certainly are smart enough to consider the tendencies they have established and use them against you when appropriate.

The bottom line is, a QB who studies the opposition he is going to face to the point he can quickly process, recognize and anticipate, and who has the confidence and ability required to make the throws to the spots they need to be put, will be more successful than the QB who is slower to process, lacking in understanding and anticipation, and lacking in confidence.

Again though, it's not easy to have your way with a quality pro defense and even the best QB's will certainly not win every play. Clearly though, some QB's are much better than others at it. Dak has shown, so far that it is his kryptonite.

As many here are reading challenged and scared of more than a sentence post, I commend you on schooling the masses here.

Great post.

 

[WillieBeamen]

@Zordon @stilltheguru


OP said the exact thing i was saying on the other site the other day. Dude cant defeat zone coverage and is slow at getting through his reads

that throw to ceedee in week 1 into the zone where the LB tipped it isnt a throw he wants to make or is capable of making consistently

 

[FanofJerry]

...or Jerry became desperate and paid elite money for an average QB.

Again, he was always horrible against zone coverages. He sucked in 2017 and sucked in 2018 without Amari, and still sucked with Amari against zone. Dak has, throughout his career, had multiple stretches of horrendous QB play that exemplifies these traits, where the Dallas offense is among the worst in the league in many categories.

He started off well last year, because both Zeke and Pollard were averaging over 5 YPC each and Moore was having defenses in situations where he was dictating to them what he wanted to do, forcing teams in the box. But those type of run numbers are clearly unsustainable.

Last year he “got back on track” against Atlanta, the year before Detroit, both awful teams. Atlanta played a hell of a lot of man coverage.

Then I would try and trade him. I assume there is a team with a bad QB and decent defense that would take a flier on Dak. Maybe Im wrong

 

[31RoyW31]

What? You are not throwing out Wentz, Stafford, or Cousins anymore?

Wonder why?

They are all better than Dak too! Hurts is better than Dak as well. Dak is a bad QB and Dallas needs to move on ASAP.

 

[WillieBeamen]

@khiladi Sturm has lost all credibility with me when it comes to Dak and Romo

Dude lost his damn mind



he had the nerve to criticize this throw all in an effort to say Romo fans give Dak unfair criticism


At this point, this is way past stan wars when it comes to dak. Romo has been out the league for 5 years now. Dak just isnt a good QB.

You ask most fans on here, they wouldnt want Kirk Cousins as the QB, but thats exactly who Dak is.

The sooner we move on from him, the better this franchise will be long-term

 

[75boyz]

I'm not a big fan of Kellen Moore, but he's in a tough spot having to revolve an offense around such a limited QB.

Dak can no longer rely on a dominant OL or run game or loaded WR corps, partly because he's taking up 20% of the team's salary space himself.

And now, defenses know exactly how to beat him.

Again, very tough spot for Moore to be in.

I respect Sturm for admitting he may have been wrong about Dak. That takes some maturity (way more than many on this board have).

Yep, really good post man.
I'm exactly where you're at.
While I'm no KM fanboi either he can't make chicken salad out of chicken****.

I had several back and forth takes with a poster whose opinion I respect but disagreed with while now I see that maybe I didn't explain myself as clearly as you did here.

Again, good post. Sums me up as well.