What would our record be if

[MRV52]

It is easy to see what the problem on Defense has been the last two weeks. It has not been the secondary, It has been the disappearance of Sean Lee. Do you think Gurley and the Packers would have been able to get all those runs on us. Sean Lee is a stud and would have made a number of plays in those two games.

 

[Aven8]

So people think saying that this entire defense is reliant on one oft-injured player is supposed to make things better?

Yes. It makes them feel better about the beloved team. The FO totally wet the bed thinking that Lee would go another year without an injury and Jaylon would even play. Huge mistake!! It cannot be understated. If I'm Jerry I'm calling my old buddy Rolondo to see if he wants to stop fishing it's so bad right now!! Lol

 

[IheartRomo]

Sean Lee out with a hamstring.....we hanging hopes on 1 player? Like Sean, but he is missing games again.

You never want to hang your hopes on one player. But there are, what, 15 total defensive All Pros in the entire league? And Sean Lee is one of them. Not having him, especially when he's the QB of the defense as well, is crippling for an otherwise horrific defense. I'm not sure why so many are resistant to this idea.

I have seen nobody imply that our defense is great or even good with Sean Lee. However, we quickly go from mediocre/below average to absolutely abysmal/worst of all time contender without him. That makes a difference.

 

[okstateCowboy]

It is easy to see what the problem on Defense has been the last two weeks. It has not been the secondary, It has been the disappearance of Sean Lee. Do you think Gurley and the Packers would have been able to get all those runs on us. Sean Lee is a stud and would have made a number of plays in those two games.

Agree and Lee will be 32 next season. We really need to draft a LB early or go spend money in free agency. Our window is open. We have to stop being cheap.

 

[kevm3]

This team would still be a dumpster dive. No DC is going to come in here and limit Aaron Rodger with what we have on defense, especially when our best defender and leader on defense is out.

We shouldn't have blown up the secondary. We have a team full of rookies and second year players, so why is ayone is surprised that this team is getting shredded against high powered offenses? The problem is cowboys fans believed the fantasy that the fo sold that these rookies are going to come in here and play better than the secondary we had. The secondary wasn't the problem last year. It was the garbage pass rush. Instead of spending money improving the pass rush, we blew up the secondary, didn't do anything in free agency but dumpster dive and fielded one of the most inexperienced defenses in the league while keeping the same ineffective d-line. Heath isn't a starter. Byron Jones is average. Jaylon Smith hasn't played football in a year and is essentially a rookie. Anthony Brown, second year player. Scandrick is perenially injured and is slightly above average. Aside from Lawrence and Irving, who we just got back, do we even need to speak about the D-line? While other teams spent money to improve their weaknesses, we penny pinched and our team looks like it.

 

[robjay04]

Sean Lee out with a hamstring.....we hanging hopes on 1 player? Like Sean, but he is missing games again.

Pretty much.

Average defense with Lee. Franchise worse defense without.

 

[NeonNinja]

I said it when the Eagles got him.

It was ridiculous that Buffalo made the change to Rex Ryan and the 3-4 defense when Schwartz had their D running well and leading the league in sacks.

2 years later, Ryan is gone from Buffalo and Schwartz is quickly whipping the Philly defense into shape and they're quickly recovering from the Chip Kelly debacle.

It’s weird what happens when a team has competent coaching...

But Rod is “magical.”

 

[DFWJC]

We are 4-1 with Sean Lee, it’s that simple.

That's probably true.

It is worth noting that in our two wins, however, the teams were missing their very best offensive players.
Might have won anyway, but it's notable.

 

[Vtwin]

If I see another "with Lee we would be 4-1" I might puke. Give me a break. We had Lee at Denver and he looked pedestrian. Lee is a stud but we need way more then him!

This is true.

If your success on defense comes down to whether or not one LB is playing you're doing it wrong.

 

[Stash]

It’s weird what happens when a team has competent coaching...

But Rod is “magical.”

It's also weird that teams can somehow improve over one season, maybe two, with some competent coaching, while ours is apparently a 10-year "process".

Players can come and go, careers can begin and end, and the constants remain.

 

[mcmvp]

This is true.

If your success on defense comes down to whether or not one LB is playing you're doing it wrong.

Amen. The Eagles have been without Cox and Darby (their best player up front, and their best on the back end). The injury excuse is just that.

 

[robjay04]

Amen. The Eagles have been without Cox and Darby (their best player up front, and their best on the back end). The injury excuse is just that.

I do believe Lee is the difference between 2-3 and 4-1.

I also believe it’s pathetic that this defense is amongst the worse this franchise has seen without him in the lineup. You shouldn’t be that reliant on any one player on defense.

 

[zrinkill]

We need a defensive coordinator that has some imagination.. marinelli has run his course. Time to move on.

I agree ........ everyone and their mamma knew what Rodgers was gonna do that last 50+ seconds..... and a pro D coordinator had no idea how to slow him down.

I am done with the excuses ........ do not waste Dak's prime like you did Romo's Jerry ....... get a real D coordinator in here ........ hell Pay Wade 20 million a year to come fix this D.

 

[Blackspider214]

Marinelli has cost us the last 2 games.

But he's a genius!!

 

[TwoDeep3]

I read threads like this and then wish I had invested in the ground floor operation of creating rose-colored glasses.

The reason the offense is not running up a storm is Dallas lost 40% of its offensive line this past off-season. People whined about Free, but he was better than people gave him credit for. People wanted Collins to take over Leary's spot, but with the subtraction of both of those guys, the replacements for guard and tackle are lacking. Elliott was such a star last year his accomplishments hid the short comings of the passing game.

Teams are now moving 8 and more into the box and trying to overwhelm this front and stop Zeke. They then double Beasley and Witten on obvious passing downs and force Dak to beat them with Dez and Williams (and others.)

The notion that if Lee was here Dallas would have beaten the Rams is ridiculous. The idea that swapping coaches with the Eagles would produce a win yesterday is equally as sophomoric.

The tell-take sign that these are fans wearing rose-colored glasses comes in the form of things said last year and this year about Linehan.

Last year people were worried he would be given a head coaching job, and were hand wringing about his departure. This year I have seen posts calling for his head.

It is all about the talent. Dallas let go several DBs from last year and supplanted them with rookies. It takes time for these guys to get up to speed with this league. Especially playing the best quarterback in the league. It also requires consistent pressure to move the quarterback off his spot, or make him throw early when the receiver is not on his spot.

No Pass Rush, No Pass Defense

I was crushed yesterday by the loss. It was the very same feeling I had at the end of the GB play-off game last year. But even in my sour disposition, I can see through all the BS and understand this team is not finished building yet. All the impatient fans need to allow the kiddie corps to catch up. Allow the defensive line to get firing. And it still may take another solid draft and free agency for this team to flourish.

And this goes for the myopic fans predicting Dallas is going to waste the careers of Zeke and Dak. All you Madame Cleos need to calm down.

Included is this whining about Marinelli which is equally absurd. People talk about Romo winning games because he took the team on his back, with little talent, and lifted everyone up.

Marinelli has been doing this for his entire time here.

He needs play makers.