Why this team was worse this year and how we improve in the post season

[cmoney23]

I've seen a lot of people trying to cast blame on the Cowboys "failure" this year AND while a lot of blame is to go around, I think we are missing the key point.
The NFL, in a lot of ways, is about finding ways to win football games.

• Players are going to have off games.
• Injuries will happen.
• Game plans might not pan out.
• Other teams might have better talent.
• Etc.

But you have to find ways to win games... and the teams that are the best in this league can win games in different ways.

To me, the Cowboys biggest flaw is in the core of their construction.
They only had TWO ways to win games this year... and neither way is very reliable.

1. Dak had to play extremely, extremely, well. I'm talking MVP, herculean effort, play.
2. The defense had to get multiple turnovers AND score.

That's it. If one of those two things didn't happen, we weren't winning. And heck, even when you'd have one of them happen, it wasn't guaranteed. Timely penalties, poor execution, or elite opponents could overcome a great game by Dak or a pick six.

So, how do we improve for next year?
Simple. Add players and coaches that can maximize the way we win!!!
Here's how:
1. Develop a REAL running game. (Watching the Chiefs, Ravens, 49ers, Bills, Dolphins, Eagles, etc. etc. This year, and in the playoffs it's clear to see, good running games travel, and WIN!
2. Alter your defensive philosophy and personnel. Rangy, speed LBs and undersized speed on the edge is nice when you have a lead (Dak elite, turnovers, etc..) but when The Bills are jamming it down your throat... or the Dolphins need to drive the field and you need a stop. That doesn't' win games.
3. Manage the game better. A lot of winning in the league is done in the margins. Fat Mike has proven he can't do this at a high level. So, bring someone on staff that can!!!
4. Add more skill position talent. Bring in more weapons to carry you when the season is long and they are taking away your top options. Cooks was great, but there were more options available and will be this offseason.

I could go on and on... but if we don't address THIS. We are in for more of the same.
If we do, we could see late season success.

 

[jsb357]

Team as a whole was better
all other variables worse

 

[Tangle_Foot]

Change happens when the pain of staying the same is greater than the pain of change. True, personnel changes need to happen. We need an upgrade in talent at a few positions. But without accountability, physicality and discipline, we will only be a more talented team that failed.

The pain of failure has to force a change in the way we do business. GM hold your coach accountable, head coach hold your players and assistance accountable, players in the leadership role hold your brother's accountable. If we do this regardless of talent we will always compete when the stakes are at their highest.

 

[DogFace]

Draft one of the top 5 RB’s. One can be had later in the draft. Get Overshown and Diggs back.

For once since Jimmy make it seem like our coaches outmaneuvered the opposing coaches in the playoffs.

 

[75boyz]

I see zero improvement for this year and possible regression.

At this point, this organization's improved future on field post season success will require a new GM not named Jones who picks his own head coach and together build a roster around a shared philosophy of what a Dallas Cowboy player should look like.

Kinda how the other 31 teams front offices do business.

And THEN to nail the QB pick.

That's how onfield NFL post season success is accomplished most of the time these days.

jmo

 

[cmoney23]

I see zero improvement for this year and possible regression.

At this point, this organization's improved future on field post season success will require a new GM not named Jones who picks his own head coach and together build a roster around a shared philosophy of what a Dallas Cowboy player should look like.

Kinda how the other 31 teams front offices do business.

And THEN to nail the QB pick.

That's how onfield NFL post season success is accomplished most of the time these days.

jmo

Regression is a possibility if we don't make corrections/additions.

I don't think all other 31 teams are built like you say. I really only know one, the Lions. They didn't "nail" the QB pick but they play to his strengths and built a great team around him. They coach well and can win in many ways.

 

[kevm3]

There is no real improvement to be made because there is no GM and the culture will be the exact same. We didn't have a position failure where maybe if we just had one key player, they would have put us over the top. Our whole team gets demolished by physical teams over and over. That's a culture and coach problem. One or two guys, especially picked in the latter half of the round, aren't going to come here and change that.

 

[WillieBeamen]

Same team. We just faced a good team earlier in the playoffs

 

[75boyz]

Regression is a possibility if we don't make corrections/additions.

I don't think all other 31 teams are built like you say. I really only know one, the Lions. They didn't "nail" the QB pick but they play to his strengths and built a great team around him. They coach well and can win in many ways.

The 7 or 8 years it took building around Romo netted us nothing.
The 8 years spent building around Prescott has achieved the same. Nothing.

The risk is worth the reward to finally draft a higher pedigreed QB. No guarantees like I said. But the risk is long overdue.

But as always, opinions will vary.

 

[big dog cowboy]

We all know the Cowboys struggled to run and stop the run. That needs fixed. But the biggest problem is coaching. It still matters and MM and his staff failed the Cowboys this year. They were underprepared for every big game and got outcoached in them also.

How you could go into that Packers game and face the leading rusher in the last month of the season with 205 pound safety Bell at MLB is unfathomable to me. And the WR's were running wide open all day because they changed from man to zone due to Gilmore's injury?

 

[KJJ]

We were worse in the playoffs this season. We folded against a hot team.

 

[Creeper]

I think not having a dependable running game, especially against good teams really hurt the offense. I also think Gallup never produced like a WR2.

I also think We expected too much out of Mazi his first year. The run defense was not fixed. In fact, when LVE went down it just made it all worse. We are too small on defense and not stout enough on the DL. That has to change for the better.

Watch Baltimore's DL. When the ball is snap on running plays, the offensive line get pushed back or held to a stand still up and down the line. Dallas's DL get shoved around badly. No one gets any penetration and that is why they cannot stop the run. Then when the RB gets through the line our LBs get washed out or sealed off and instead of a 4 yard gain, it becomes a 9 or 10 yard gain way too often.

 

[Havic]

Can’t run the ball
Defense faltered down the stretch
Dak doesn’t understand zone concept
The team had virtually no lbers all year
Culture is still entitlement based with players having an after victory party already scheduled before the game was played

 

[Swagger]

The worry is that you can see why other supposed good teams lost - e.g., Bills and Miami had most of their defense missing and a playmaker on offense.

The Cowboys were largely healthy bar missing Diggs.

Will the Cowboys have the luxury of being so healthy next season? If not then how will they overcome it?

 

[cowboyblue22]

I've seen a lot of people trying to cast blame on the Cowboys "failure" this year AND while a lot of blame is to go around, I think we are missing the key point.
The NFL, in a lot of ways, is about finding ways to win football games.

• Players are going to have off games.
• Injuries will happen.
• Game plans might not pan out.
• Other teams might have better talent.
• Etc.

But you have to find ways to win games... and the teams that are the best in this league can win games in different ways.

To me, the Cowboys biggest flaw is in the core of their construction.
They only had TWO ways to win games this year... and neither way is very reliable.

1. Dak had to play extremely, extremely, well. I'm talking MVP, herculean effort, play.
2. The defense had to get multiple turnovers AND score.

That's it. If one of those two things didn't happen, we weren't winning. And heck, even when you'd have one of them happen, it wasn't guaranteed. Timely penalties, poor execution, or elite opponents could overcome a great game by Dak or a pick six.

So, how do we improve for next year?
Simple. Add players and coaches that can maximize the way we win!!!
Here's how:
1. Develop a REAL running game. (Watching the Chiefs, Ravens, 49ers, Bills, Dolphins, Eagles, etc. etc. This year, and in the playoffs it's clear to see, good running games travel, and WIN!
2. Alter your defensive philosophy and personnel. Rangy, speed LBs and undersized speed on the edge is nice when you have a lead (Dak elite, turnovers, etc..) but when The Bills are jamming it down your throat... or the Dolphins need to drive the field and you need a stop. That doesn't' win games.
3. Manage the game better. A lot of winning in the league is done in the margins. Fat Mike has proven he can't do this at a high level. So, bring someone on staff that can!!!
4. Add more skill position talent. Bring in more weapons to carry you when the season is long and they are taking away your top options. Cooks was great, but there were more options available and will be this offseason.

I could go on and on... but if we don't address THIS. We are in for more of the same.
If we do, we could see late season success.

very well written and very good observations

 

[GoCowboysGo]

Offense was one dimensional all season, plus really only one consistently reliable WR. Take away CeeDee and you shut down the whole offense.

What running game?

The defense was what I was calling it all season, not just down the stretch…fool’s gold. After three seasons still isn’t built to stop runs up the middle (see SF, and every other elite team), so only one big body on the DL.

So teams knew if their runners could get past the DL, there were no LBers. Literally no linebackers. We get two back, one is very promising, one should retire, and one should be cut.

We have a great secondary.

The last thing this team needs is more/new skill position talent, we need more “big uglies” clogging the middle of each line.

LT, C and RT must be addressed.

All of these issues have again mostly been the same the last 28 years, I remember when JJ said he didn’t need to invest in an offensive line because he had a scrambling QB (Romo)!

Why does anyone think things will change in this family business? I keep watching because I keep hoping the players would overcome their stupidity and ignorance.

But I know it won’t, there’s a reason why certain kinds of players and coaches would never consider coming into this clown show.

 

[john van brocklin]

Change happens when the pain of staying the same is greater than the pain of change. True, personnel changes need to happen. We need an upgrade in talent at a few positions. But without accountability, physicality and discipline, we will only be a more talented team that failed.

The pain of failure has to force a change in the way we do business. GM hold your coach accountable, head coach hold your players and assistance accountable, players in the leadership role hold your brother's accountable. If we do this regardless of talent we will always compete when the stakes are at their highest.

We don't do accountability in Dallas.

 

[75boyz]

Change happens when the pain of staying the same is greater than the pain of change. True, personnel changes need to happen. We need an upgrade in talent at a few positions. But without accountability, physicality and discipline, we will only be a more talented team that failed.

The pain of failure has to force a change in the way we do business. GM hold your coach accountable, head coach hold your players and assistance accountable, players in the leadership role hold your brother's accountable. If we do this regardless of talent we will always compete when the stakes are at their highest.

Great post.

 

[jazzcat22]

The team faded at the end of the season, as they have done so for the past 10 years.

Players seem tired and no energy like the first half of the season. That needs to change, but how.

 

[DandyDon52]

I've seen a lot of people trying to cast blame on the Cowboys "failure" this year AND while a lot of blame is to go around, I think we are missing the key point.
The NFL, in a lot of ways, is about finding ways to win football games.

• Players are going to have off games.
• Injuries will happen.
• Game plans might not pan out.
• Other teams might have better talent.
• Etc.

But you have to find ways to win games... and the teams that are the best in this league can win games in different ways.

To me, the Cowboys biggest flaw is in the core of their construction.
They only had TWO ways to win games this year... and neither way is very reliable.

1. Dak had to play extremely, extremely, well. I'm talking MVP, herculean effort, play.
2. The defense had to get multiple turnovers AND score.

That's it. If one of those two things didn't happen, we weren't winning. And heck, even when you'd have one of them happen, it wasn't guaranteed. Timely penalties, poor execution, or elite opponents could overcome a great game by Dak or a pick six.

So, how do we improve for next year?
Simple. Add players and coaches that can maximize the way we win!!!
Here's how:
1. Develop a REAL running game. (Watching the Chiefs, Ravens, 49ers, Bills, Dolphins, Eagles, etc. etc. This year, and in the playoffs it's clear to see, good running games travel, and WIN!
2. Alter your defensive philosophy and personnel. Rangy, speed LBs and undersized speed on the edge is nice when you have a lead (Dak elite, turnovers, etc..) but when The Bills are jamming it down your throat... or the Dolphins need to drive the field and you need a stop. That doesn't' win games.
3. Manage the game better. A lot of winning in the league is done in the margins. Fat Mike has proven he can't do this at a high level. So, bring someone on staff that can!!!
4. Add more skill position talent. Bring in more weapons to carry you when the season is long and they are taking away your top options. Cooks was great, but there were more options available and will be this offseason.

I could go on and on... but if we don't address THIS. We are in for more of the same.
If we do, we could see late season success.

This all sounds good, too bad jerry didnt hire you lol.
But none of this is going to happen with the same HC staff and players.
Might as well accept there wont be much change with the 24 team and results.
Our draft picks will all be low so dont expect much help there. FA.....LOL