What is this team lacking?

[RS12]

Team is not good enough on the DLine. Even though they have what looks a rising star in LB Parsons who makes a lot of plays, if the D Line cant stuff the run or rush the passer it won't matter.

 

[ondaedg]

We lack size and physicality on defense. We have seen games where we give up 200yds of rushing and those games will happen again. Our DTs are small and bullyable. And our LBs are finesse type of players.

On offense our OLine lacks punch up the middle. Our C and LG wait for DL rather than punch them in the mouth. And they struggle holding their ground let alone getting any push.

 

[RodeoJake]

team discipline/fundamentals. That is all.

Health would help too

 

[dckid]

A QB that can elevate the team even when injuries impact the team and doesn't need everything to be perfect around him to flourish instead of being a system QB.

He is a system QB, no harm in saying that.

 

[dckid]

A further side effect of the ineptitude with the offense are three and outs resulting in the defense being gassed in the second half having stayed on the field too long. Given the resources committed to the offense, they really need to do more.

Great point, this team needs the defense to play less like 2016 even though the defense is better. Win the time of possession , the turnover battle. Coaching and football 101. These two things allow you to win 90% of the time. It's a game of inches and it always has been.

 

[cowboyblue22]

they lack heart and the mental fortitude to put out even more when the going gets tough and they are not physical enough

 

[freemanjc19]

In my small opinion this team is lacking the follwoing.

1. Speed burner type Player WR/RB "Think Deebo Samuel", I think Pollard can be that player but this staff is stuck on Zeke.
2. Leader - This team does not have a single leader on this team. I think Parson will be that, but this years "NO ONE"
3. Personnel - This team does not know how to use its personnel. To many subs, activiations and deactivations. B. Anae should be playing. Hooker starting FS. Jarwin should be playing more when he was healthy, LVE to the Bench, A. brown back tot he Slot, and roll with your 25 or 24 for the number 2 CB.
4. Kicker - Zuelein is a 60-40 Kicker right now. He needs to be repalced.
5. Collins back to LG
6. Steel to RT
7. A solde DT Veteran that know what the hell he is doing.
8. More hot Reads to the Flat with Pollard.

 

[CATCH17]

In your opinion , is the quarterback. Is it the defense backfield . Is it that we don’t have a great offensive line . Is it the head coach. Is it the defensive line. Is it the linebackers.

Nothing.

How the game unfolds early is what holds us back.

Dak is a great front runner. When things go well he plays elite football. When everything isn’t smooth and we don’t have a lead our offense stinks.

We need to get back to running more and Tony Pollard needs a bigger role on this team going forward.

Let Zeke be 2007 Marion Barber. Bring him in after the offense gets going. Anytime before that is a wasted play.

 

[USArmyVet]

Great point, this team needs the defense to play less like 2016 even though the defense is better. Win the time of possession , the turnover battle. Coaching and football 101. These two things allow you to win 90% of the time. It's a game of inches and it always has been.

Tough to win TOP when the offense has 8 offensive series in the first 3 quarters which resulted in roughly 19 plays for 48 yards and 5 punts.

 

[NoLuv4Jerry]

In your opinion , is the quarterback. Is it the defense backfield . Is it that we don’t have a great offensive line . Is it the head coach. Is it the defensive line. Is it the linebackers.

A healthy Zeke Elliot. I have said it 1000 times. In todays NFL...with the size and speed of the athletes...you cannot pound someone on 1st and 2nd down...then throw it to him or ask him to pick up the blitz on 3rd. Dallas (read Jason Garrett)...should have realized what they had in Zeke...and not try to get there "moneys worth" in 4 years. They should have always looked at him as an 8 year player and did what was necessary to make sure we get the best 8 years we can get from Zeke...not burn him out in 4. Zeke and his agent saw what they did to DeMarco Murray and they were NOT going to let Dallas (read Jason Garrett) do that to him. So good for them. Instead of Jason Garrett designing and offense and a game plan to ensure EVERYONE was being utilized...tried to make Zeke Emmit Smith...in an era where even Emmit Smith would NOT be Emmit Smith.

Zeke should not be playing right now. It is short sighted for him to be playing. But because we are paying him...we are PLAYING him. We are also paying Dak...but when he could not go...we put someone else in until he could. You cannot survive with one RB anymore. They finally trusted Pollard to share the load and were better for it. People who hate Zeke because of his contract do not understand that if Zeke does not get back to how he was playing at the beginning of the year...we have ZERO chance to make a run.

Todays NFL...with todays athletes...and the extra game...is a war of attrition. We will be better for Lamb and Cooper missing a few games. We will be better for Tyron Smith missing a few games. Providing they are professional about staying focused when they miss a game or 2. This is the future ladies and gentleman. Load management MUST be a part of the future. Resisting this or fighting against it is like sticking your head in the sand.

 

[RonnieT24]

Key players at key positions..

Yeah no doubt the biggest issue with this team right now is health. Once they get back to full health.. or should I say IF they get back this team will go back to being one of the 3 or 4 best teams in the league. I'm not interested in sitting around acting like missing two pro bowl caliber DEs and two pro bowl caliber receivers is "nothing." If any of the missing guys were JAGs I wouldn't say anything about it.. but when you replace a great player with a JAG your teams takes a hit. That's just reality. We are not as good without the four missing great players as we are with them. Go figure.

 

[G2]

Simple. health. When we're 100% we can beat anyone.

 

[Denim Chicken]

Interior D-Line
Depth at DE
LBs outside Micah are soft

Continuity on OL
Consistent kicking

A intelligent fanbase.

 

[Creeper]

They need to settle the offensive line. I watch the Eagles and WFT and both have injuries on their offensive lines and both seem to play more consistently than the Cowboys OL. I think the Cowboys need to settle on 5 starters and stick with those 5 for a few games to see if the gel together as a unit. Of course this is impossible of Tyron gets hurt again.

Certainly getting their two top receivers back will be helpful. I am grown more and more concerned that Cooper is not going to play Thursday night. All this talk about conditioning after missing just 10 days seems contrived to me. I was under the impression that Cooper as asymptomatic.

Getting healthy on the DL is also going to help. Gregory will not be back this week but hopefully he will be back for the WFT game. Having him, Lawrence and Parsons together will help control that pesky Washington QB.

Finally, they need a kicker they can depend on to at least make extra points. Those missed points are killers.

 

[blueblood70]

In your opinion , is the quarterback. Is it the defense backfield . Is it that we don’t have a great offensive line . Is it the head coach. Is it the defensive line. Is it the linebackers.

its attrition, to many players and coaches are in and out of this team to build consistency. Its not one thing or one player or one coach, its all the above...

recently yes we are struggling but our 6 game win streak was built on physicality and the run game, teams took the run game away mostly due to having lost important players and threats all over the team and same thing on the defensive side.

We can be physical they have never been that way..so maybe the last 4 games KM has decided that what the defense is given us so that what he decided would be best and well its not working..so finding the OL continuity is priority one, then using it to reestablish the run game and then that will back the defense off enough and the balance should be back..

we are very capable of being that team again , got to 6-1 because of our balance and the run game. we lost our way but if it ever clicks, we will be fine..

great thing is we have time..6 games left..

to the OP, so and BTW i told you all fools' stop hoping for wins by our east rivals as that was dumb and only furthers the ignorance of fans feeling 6 weeks ago if they won it don't matter, we were unstoppable force..lmao

some of you need to take off the blinders, this is the nfl and things change quickly..

Injuries', suspensions, and the protocol list have really effected this team.

we overcame a lot of of the next man up philosophy for while but at some point it catches up to you..teams just cant sustain losses of your best players week in and week out..as they come back and hopefully get that TEAM back we started with before the playoffs we will be that 6-1 team again..

however can we hold on until that happens now missing half our coaching staff and losing more players? hope so...

battle of attrition has began..lets see who can rebound the fastest.

 

[egn22]

A QB that can elevate the team even when injuries impact the team and doesn't need everything to be perfect around him to flourish instead of being a system QB.

If you took away Tyreek Hill, Travis Kelce, Chiefs LT and Chiefs starting DE's, but the Cowboys had a healthy ACoop, CD Lamb, Zeke, Randy Gregory and DLaw, do you think the Cowboys win? Seeing as we limited them to 19 points, would they have scored that many points without their top players? Would they have held us to 9?

The suggestion that we're losing BECAUSE of Dak, is just extremely stupid. You can apply this logic to any QB in the league. Take away their best offensive weapons, AND their best defensive weapons, and you're going to see some ugly games.

 

[fivetwos]

It's lacking NOT losing a player or two every week to covid or suspension, and other one or two to injury.

Every....single....week.

When that stops so will the bleeding on the field.

Matter of it being too late and losing a playoff game that would have been won at home.

 

[egn22]

Yeah no doubt the biggest issue with this team right now is health. Once they get back to full health.. or should I say IF they get back this team will go back to being one of the 3 or 4 best teams in the league. I'm not interested in sitting around acting like missing two pro bowl caliber DEs and two pro bowl caliber receivers is "nothing." If any of the missing guys were JAGs I wouldn't say anything about it.. but when you replace a great player with a JAG your teams takes a hit. That's just reality. We are not as good without the four missing great players as we are with them. Go figure.

THIS RIGHT HERE. That's all it is. You don't take away all of these key players and then start complaining that the QB isn't making miracles happen.

 

[RonnieT24]

If you took away Tyreek Hill, Travis Kelce, Chiefs LT and Chiefs starting DE's, but the Cowboys had a healthy ACoop, CD Lamb, Zeke, Randy Gregory and DLaw, do you think the Cowboys win? Seeing as we limited them to 19 points, would they have scored that many points without their top players? Would they have held us to 9?

The suggestion that we're losing BECAUSE of Dak, is just extremely stupid. You can apply this logic to any QB in the league. Take away their best offensive weapons, AND their best defensive weapons, and you're going to see some ugly games.

Don't bother trying to argue logic with these people. They are blinded by their Dak hate. Aaron Rodgers won a game in AZ without his top receiver... By handing the ball off like 40 times.. When Dak wins games like that he's being "carried by the running game.." When other QBs do it it's brilliant game management. It is what it is and it's not going to change..

 

[USArmyVet]

If you took away Tyreek Hill, Travis Kelce, Chiefs LT and Chiefs starting DE's, but the Cowboys had a healthy ACoop, CD Lamb, Zeke, Randy Gregory and DLaw, do you think the Cowboys win? Seeing as we limited them to 19 points, would they have scored that many points without their top players? Would they have held us to 9?

The suggestion that we're losing BECAUSE of Dak, is just extremely stupid. You can apply this logic to any QB in the league. Take away their best offensive weapons, AND their best defensive weapons, and you're going to see some ugly games.

Yes, the defense gave up 19 points to a loaded KC offense.....and Dak was missing Cooper and Tyron Smith....but had everyone else.....and Dak performed as follows: 28 of 43 (65.1% Comp %) for 216 Yards 0 TD's 2 INT's 2 Fumbles 1 Lost Fumble