Well, now that we've had some time to let the loss sink in, I'm curious what the temperature of the forum is this morning. I'll start with some quick hits:
Once again, our rushing attack looked downright dominant. We gashed them on the ground all night and seemed like we were imposing our will on them. For some reason, we abandoned our identity at times throughout the game, especially at critical junctures. I was scratching my head at the lack of runs all night, and downright screaming at the TV in overtime. You have one of the best running games in NFL history. 19 carries for your stud RB? 25 carries all night in a close game? Inexcusable.
As well as he ran, that fumble was Murray's worst of the year. He was surrounded and being brought down by a sea of red inside the 10, after already ripping off an impressive play. Somewhere along the way, the notion of "fighting for every yard" became one of the most respected running back traits, but there is clearly a time and a place for it. He just doesn't seem to get it. I understand the ball getting fluke-ily knocked out by an elbow or something once in a while, but to be stood up like that in the red zone and have it stripped? Can't happen. His otherwise great game notwithstanding, losing points there likely cost us the game.
Hey, did you guys know Haslett likes to blitz us? Apparently the brain trust on offense didn't. Garrett, Linehan, Callahan, Romo... no one had an answer. It was like they didn't even have a gameplan in place for it. Romo, even before the injury, looked completely out of sorts as a result. His play action fakes were halfhearted and he was rushing the ball out.
I love Dez but he just completely disappeared last night. He has to make one of those catches in the end zone. Hopefully this quiets the Dez vs. Irvin thing for a while.
Nice to see Weedon come in and play well. I think he's better than some people realize. Yeah, he sucked in Cleveland, but with the weapons and line he has here, he could at least keep us competitive, and he brings the deep ball into play better than Romo.
The defense didn't play great, but I wasn't as angry about our defense as some people here last night. 17 points in regulation and a huge stop in OT should absolutely be enough to get it done. They had an off night; it happens. But their off night was still good enough to win. This one is on the offense generally, and the offensive coaching staff specifically.
Overall: I'm not too concerned with our team. The media and the Cowboys haters will come out in full force and say we're overrated, etc., but it's the NFL. We lost a game. I figured we'd lose a game or two we should have won. 12-4 is still a very strong possibility, and we can right the ship this weekend against AZ. This is no time to freak out.
That said, I am very concerned with the coaching staff. I thought we had established a clear identity: we will run it down your throats until you stop us. In a tough, close division game like this, we should be running the ball 30-40 times. Instead? 25 runs, 34 passes. Washington actually ran it more (31 rushes), and with less success (4.0 YPC). I hope somebody gets in Linehan's ear and reminds him how we got to 6-1 in the first place. Oh, and we face Washington again, so maybe figure out how to neutralize that blitz.
Curious to hear what others thought/saw last night.
Go Cowboys.
