Thoughts about the Bucs - Judgement day is upon us!

Cowboyny

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Throw out the records, nobody is going to care who is hurt, who isn't playing, find a way to advance! The Cowboys haven't won a road playoff game since 1992, if they want success this year, they must end that drought! Judgement time for both MM and Dak Prescott!

Offense

-Two years ago, Kellen Moore decided not to test the best run defense in football and pretty much relied on Dak's arm. This worked with great success as the team lost a close game to a heavy favorite SB winner. This year, they actually were running the football well, but Moore gave up on it way too early, even when the Bucs weren't ahead by much. They must stay balanced to be effective.

-Going back two years ago, Dak had great success against Todd Bowles blitz packages, in the game this year, he used the Denver strategy by playing deep shell coverage and forcing Dak to pass the football in tight windows. He refrained from blitzing at all. Our receivers really struggled winning their matchups, especially on the outside. TB corners like to play a lot of off coverage, Dak must take the underneath throws and get the ball out quickly. Must be mindful over the middle as TB employ's two excellent ballhawks in David and Whitfield Jr.

-Their best pass rusher is on the ir, but still have Joe Tryon and Vita Vea to deal with inside. If the OL can contain Vea from blowing up the pocket, Dak should have a relatively clean pocket to work with.

-Offensive success with be all about the early downs, get into third and manageables and they should be able to drive the football, get into third and longs and they will have similar results as their 1st matchup this season when they have 8 men in coverage. Balance is the key, force them to get out of that shell coverage and blitz Dak.

Defense

-1st game was all about the Cowboys inability to stop the Bucs rushing attack, not Brady and the passing game. This sounds crazy, where the Bucs couldn't run against anyone throughout the season. They killed us on the outside runs to RE side, lineman pulling where Diggs was forced to take on lineman on the outside. This cannot happen again. With Hankins returning, you would think he can hold up some blockers, which will allow our linebackers to run to the football better.

-Yes, Mike Evans is the team's best deep threat, but it's Chris Godwin who is the biggest threat in the passing game. He does all his work underneath this season and they like to throw many screen his way. He is the receiver Brady looks for on third downs. Quinn has a difficult decision, does he look to take Godwin out with Diggs or does he protect the deep shots against Evans? Rest assure, the Bucs are going to attack the corner opposite Diggs, where Hooker needs to protect whomever is out there.

-There OL is very suspect, especially up the middle, however, their pro bowl Center, Jensen might be returning. Brady doesn't take many sacks and he is the quickest thrower in the league. That doesn't mean you cannot pressure him into making bad throws and mistakes. The way to pressure Brady is up the middle in his face, always has struggled with this. Quinn needs to move Parsons around and find the best matchups.

-The Giants won 2 SB's with a distinct formula against Brady. Generate pressure with the front four, play press coverage on the outside. I don't care who the Cowboys have starting at corner, Giants had a bunch of no names who had success with this strategy against better offensive personnel we will see.
 

Cowboy_svt

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Great writeup as always.
Defensively still worried on LB in regards to running. I remember when LVE got injured before he became understandably a bit hesitant, not sure if hell be the same or be the solid starter hes been this season come monday. Barr i know will gashed on outside runs, Clark seems to have issues diagnosing the play, and no clue on Cox.

Hopefully Quinn learned some things about the corners over these past few games and has the best fit for whoever is starting. Willing to bet they come out with a heavier passing attack than week 1.Just getting that pass rush an extra second will pay dividends.
 

Coogiguy03

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CowboysZone LOYAL Fan
Their WRs will do better this game, their will be several deep passes, short passes that go for big yards. We can't tackle, guys get tripped up trying to make tackles by their own teammates, pass rush will ALMOST get there
 

baltcowboy

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You hit it on the head brother. You can add Quinn, Kellen,Tyron, Zeke, Parsons, and Tank to individuals with the most pressure in this game. For Quinn and Kellen we talking about favorites to get head coaching jobs if the Cowboys win. Tyron and Zeke have to perform well or their careers as a Cowboy will probably be over. Parsons and Tank have to pressure Brady. It’s the only chance the defense has to stop the GOAT. The Cowboys can win this game but I have never seen so much pressure put on a road team to beat a quarterback like Brady. If the Cowboys win this game it will be on to the next pressure cooker game vs Philadelphia or San Francisco. Jerry is a marketing genius. The Cowboys are again the talk of the NFL and the Cowboys are probably the 12th most talented team in the league.
 

cnuball21

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Win the trenches and we win. If the OL shows up, and Kellen doesn’t suck, we run the ball well and will be efficient in the passing game.

I’m feeling decent about the D with LVE and Hanks back. Stop the run and I like our chances hitting Brady.
 

fivetwos

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Brady rattles under pressure from the inside, which we have trouble doing when we aren’t in an obvious passing down alignment.

This is an awful matchup for us IMO in several spots, and we are going to need to outscore them….and probably on Daks arm, which is not our best approach in general.

Somehow though, I feel like they are up to the task, and will win this one.

Finally beat Brady, finally win a road playoff game (in blue to boot!)…big sigh of relief…

Then they spend next week all full of themselves, act like it’s all house money, then proceed to get absolutely hammered the following week.

Still can’t get past the division round. Garrett level.

Prove me wrong Cowboys but you know if you beat Tampa you’re going to take a ‘mission accomplished’ attitude. You always do.
 

Proximo

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I’m in “wait and see” mode.
High hopes, low expectations.
We’ve seen this team at their best, and at their best they can beat any team in the conference.

Unfortunately their worst came last Sunday, and boy was it bad. Now everyone has a bad taste in their mouth heading into Monday night.

Which brings me to my last thought- I HATE THAT WE ARE PLAYING ON A MONDAY NIGHT. God I hate prime time games as it is. I was so looking forward to a Saturday/Sunday Cowboys playoff game. So disappointing. Can’t overstate how much I hate this.
 

Cowboyny

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Great writeup as always.
Defensively still worried on LB in regards to running. I remember when LVE got injured before he became understandably a bit hesitant, not sure if hell be the same or be the solid starter hes been this season come monday. Barr i know will gashed on outside runs, Clark seems to have issues diagnosing the play, and no clue on Cox.

Hopefully Quinn learned some things about the corners over these past few games and has the best fit for whoever is starting. Willing to bet they come out with a heavier passing attack than week 1.Just getting that pass rush an extra second will pay dividends.
Cowboys ability to stop the run, might be the biggest defensive key.
 

Cowboyny

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You hit it on the head brother. You can add Quinn, Kellen,Tyron, Zeke, Parsons, and Tank to individuals with the most pressure in this game. For Quinn and Kellen we talking about favorites to get head coaching jobs if the Cowboys win. Tyron and Zeke have to perform well or their careers as a Cowboy will probably be over. Parsons and Tank have to pressure Brady. It’s the only chance the defense has to stop the GOAT. The Cowboys can win this game but I have never seen so much pressure put on a road team to beat a quarterback like Brady. If the Cowboys win this game it will be on to the next pressure cooker game vs Philadelphia or San Francisco. Jerry is a marketing genius. The Cowboys are again the talk of the NFL and the Cowboys are probably the 12th most talented team in the league.
Yes, tremendous pressure on the Cowboys to win, but I disagree if they would advance. The pressure reverts back to those home, favorite teams as they are expected to beat the Cowboys. Going back to this game, you are right could decide many players/coaches future.
 

Aven8

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We haven’t seen Pollard so much lately and it’s time to feed him. Give him carries. This is when you use these weapons. He should be fresh
 

Cowboyny

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Win the trenches and we win. If the OL shows up, and Kellen doesn’t suck, we run the ball well and will be efficient in the passing game.

I’m feeling decent about the D with LVE and Hanks back. Stop the run and I like our chances hitting Brady.
Really believe that is the key, stopping their rushing attack. Think our pass rush will give Tampa troubles in the passing game, even if we don't sack Brady.
 

Cowboyny

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Brady rattles under pressure from the inside, which we have trouble doing when we aren’t in an obvious passing down alignment.

This is an awful matchup for us IMO in several spots, and we are going to need to outscore them….and probably on Daks arm, which is not our best approach in general.

Somehow though, I feel like they are up to the task, and will win this one.

Finally beat Brady, finally win a road playoff game (in blue to boot!)…big sigh of relief…

Then they spend next week all full of themselves, act like it’s all house money, then proceed to get absolutely hammered the following week.

Still can’t get past the division round. Garrett level.

Prove me wrong Cowboys but you know if you beat Tampa you’re going to take a ‘mission accomplished’ attitude. You always do.
Beating Brady on the road in the playoffs would give them confidence that they can beat anyone. I really believe this is the game where you move Parsons around and find that inside matchup that he can get in Brady's face.
 

Cowboyny

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I’m in “wait and see” mode.
High hopes, low expectations.
We’ve seen this team at their best, and at their best they can beat any team in the conference.

Unfortunately their worst came last Sunday, and boy was it bad. Now everyone has a bad taste in their mouth heading into Monday night.

Which brings me to my last thought- I HATE THAT WE ARE PLAYING ON A MONDAY NIGHT. God I hate prime time games as it is. I was so looking forward to a Saturday/Sunday Cowboys playoff game. So disappointing. Can’t overstate how much I hate this.
Absolutely, we just don't know which team are we going to see. It's a coin flip game in my opinion.
 

Cowboyny

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We haven’t seen Pollard so much lately and it’s time to feed him. Give him carries. This is when you use these weapons. He should be fresh
He is a key player for this offense. 1 big run and we will see heavy boxes.
 

blueblood70

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Throw out the records, nobody is going to care who is hurt, who isn't playing, find a way to advance! The Cowboys haven't won a road playoff game since 1992, if they want success this year, they must end that drought! Judgement time for both MM and Dak Prescott!

Offense

-Two years ago, Kellen Moore decided not to test the best run defense in football and pretty much relied on Dak's arm. This worked with great success as the team lost a close game to a heavy favorite SB winner. This year, they actually were running the football well, but Moore gave up on it way too early, even when the Bucs weren't ahead by much. They must stay balanced to be effective.

-Going back two years ago, Dak had great success against Todd Bowles blitz packages, in the game this year, he used the Denver strategy by playing deep shell coverage and forcing Dak to pass the football in tight windows. He refrained from blitzing at all. Our receivers really struggled winning their matchups, especially on the outside. TB corners like to play a lot of off coverage, Dak must take the underneath throws and get the ball out quickly. Must be mindful over the middle as TB employ's two excellent ballhawks in David and Whitfield Jr.

-Their best pass rusher is on the ir, but still have Joe Tryon and Vita Vea to deal with inside. If the OL can contain Vea from blowing up the pocket, Dak should have a relatively clean pocket to work with.

-Offensive success with be all about the early downs, get into third and manageables and they should be able to drive the football, get into third and longs and they will have similar results as their 1st matchup this season when they have 8 men in coverage. Balance is the key, force them to get out of that shell coverage and blitz Dak.

Defense

-1st game was all about the Cowboys inability to stop the Bucs rushing attack, not Brady and the passing game. This sounds crazy, where the Bucs couldn't run against anyone throughout the season. They killed us on the outside runs to RE side, lineman pulling where Diggs was forced to take on lineman on the outside. This cannot happen again. With Hankins returning, you would think he can hold up some blockers, which will allow our linebackers to run to the football better.

-Yes, Mike Evans is the team's best deep threat, but it's Chris Godwin who is the biggest threat in the passing game. He does all his work underneath this season and they like to throw many screen his way. He is the receiver Brady looks for on third downs. Quinn has a difficult decision, does he look to take Godwin out with Diggs or does he protect the deep shots against Evans? Rest assure, the Bucs are going to attack the corner opposite Diggs, where Hooker needs to protect whomever is out there.

-There OL is very suspect, especially up the middle, however, their pro bowl Center, Jensen might be returning. Brady doesn't take many sacks and he is the quickest thrower in the league. That doesn't mean you cannot pressure him into making bad throws and mistakes. The way to pressure Brady is up the middle in his face, always has struggled with this. Quinn needs to move Parsons around and find the best matchups.

-The Giants won 2 SB's with a distinct formula against Brady. Generate pressure with the front four, play press coverage on the outside. I don't care who the Cowboys have starting at corner, Giants had a bunch of no names who had success with this strategy against better offensive personnel we will see.
Meh,

sounds to me all the media and fans see us as the 8-9 underdogs and TB as the 12-5 team..

throw all that out and lest just go and pay clean game and win. no reason to press, dont do anything fancy, don't turn it over unforced, dont have 14 freaking penalties, and yes establish the run , take what the defense gives you meaning be patient take those underneath throws until they get tired of you eating clock and moving the chains and then go after them with some timely PA deep passes.etc
we are getting many important players back.
 

CowboyRoy

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Throw out the records, nobody is going to care who is hurt, who isn't playing, find a way to advance! The Cowboys haven't won a road playoff game since 1992, if they want success this year, they must end that drought! Judgement time for both MM and Dak Prescott!

Offense

-Two years ago, Kellen Moore decided not to test the best run defense in football and pretty much relied on Dak's arm. This worked with great success as the team lost a close game to a heavy favorite SB winner. This year, they actually were running the football well, but Moore gave up on it way too early, even when the Bucs weren't ahead by much. They must stay balanced to be effective.

-Going back two years ago, Dak had great success against Todd Bowles blitz packages, in the game this year, he used the Denver strategy by playing deep shell coverage and forcing Dak to pass the football in tight windows. He refrained from blitzing at all. Our receivers really struggled winning their matchups, especially on the outside. TB corners like to play a lot of off coverage, Dak must take the underneath throws and get the ball out quickly. Must be mindful over the middle as TB employ's two excellent ballhawks in David and Whitfield Jr.

-Their best pass rusher is on the ir, but still have Joe Tryon and Vita Vea to deal with inside. If the OL can contain Vea from blowing up the pocket, Dak should have a relatively clean pocket to work with.

-Offensive success with be all about the early downs, get into third and manageables and they should be able to drive the football, get into third and longs and they will have similar results as their 1st matchup this season when they have 8 men in coverage. Balance is the key, force them to get out of that shell coverage and blitz Dak.

Defense

-1st game was all about the Cowboys inability to stop the Bucs rushing attack, not Brady and the passing game. This sounds crazy, where the Bucs couldn't run against anyone throughout the season. They killed us on the outside runs to RE side, lineman pulling where Diggs was forced to take on lineman on the outside. This cannot happen again. With Hankins returning, you would think he can hold up some blockers, which will allow our linebackers to run to the football better.

-Yes, Mike Evans is the team's best deep threat, but it's Chris Godwin who is the biggest threat in the passing game. He does all his work underneath this season and they like to throw many screen his way. He is the receiver Brady looks for on third downs. Quinn has a difficult decision, does he look to take Godwin out with Diggs or does he protect the deep shots against Evans? Rest assure, the Bucs are going to attack the corner opposite Diggs, where Hooker needs to protect whomever is out there.

-There OL is very suspect, especially up the middle, however, their pro bowl Center, Jensen might be returning. Brady doesn't take many sacks and he is the quickest thrower in the league. That doesn't mean you cannot pressure him into making bad throws and mistakes. The way to pressure Brady is up the middle in his face, always has struggled with this. Quinn needs to move Parsons around and find the best matchups.

-The Giants won 2 SB's with a distinct formula against Brady. Generate pressure with the front four, play press coverage on the outside. I don't care who the Cowboys have starting at corner, Giants had a bunch of no names who had success with this strategy against better offensive personnel we will see.
Already blaming the game on Dak and they havent even played yet. LOL

Typical troll tactic. Does it even matter how Dak plays in the game or anyone else for that matter? Or is it just Dak's fault if they lose no matter what?
 

baltcowboy

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Yes, tremendous pressure on the Cowboys to win, but I disagree if they would advance. The pressure reverts back to those home, favorite teams as they are expected to beat the Cowboys. Going back to this game, you are right could decide many players/coaches future.
You don’t think ESPN will make excuses for the Eagles and say the Cowboys should be favored because of their injuries or the 49ers have a rookie quarterback. The Cowboys get no excuses from the national media. It’s win the Super Bowl or bust.
 

fivetwos

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Beating Brady on the road in the playoffs would give them confidence that they can beat anyone. I really believe this is the game where you move Parsons around and find that inside matchup that he can get in Brady's face.
That depends largely on MM and his ability to convince the team that they still have much work to do while Jerry gloats to every mic he can find.

Maybe I’m just conditioned to know that they have not built on success in a very long time.

Realistically, when you get deep in the playoffs, our “simple” schemes that everyone seems to know don’t cut it and we get mauled. But Jerry wants his control. The great minds are elsewhere with freedom.

I expect to beat Brady. Barely and ugly. Then I expect Philly or SF to make us look like fools, and Jerry and kid think we are so close, when we were really three difficult wins away from winning a title. That’s pretty far.

The only real improvement in the off-season will be the first round pick, and the same exact thing will happen next year.

Until I see something different…..like gaining momentum from a big win instead of considering it a monkey off their back and mail it in from there, this is what I expect out of Jerry’s Cowboys in the playoffs.

Don’t confuse that with hope, which I always have. I guess I’m a little sick of hoping beyond hope, when I know the addition of a proven player or two would make a difference….or at the very least, be willing to try it after much failure otherwise.
 
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