WEBVTT - Cowboys Break: Speculating On Coaches 0:00:03.520 --> 0:00:06.040 The following is a production of Dallas Cowboys dot Com 0:00:06.080 --> 0:00:09.200 and the Dallas Cowboys Football Club. Are you ready for 0:00:09.280 --> 0:00:13.480 a break? Are you ready for a break? Absolutely ready 0:00:14.040 --> 0:00:17.720 for a break? Yeah, and so much for that. It's 0:00:17.760 --> 0:00:22.040 time for The Break on Dallas Cowboys dot Com Wait 0:00:22.079 --> 0:00:27.800 Well with Nick Eatman, David Hellman, and bar Garcia and 0:00:28.120 --> 0:00:32.680 Derek Eagleton. It is Monday, January fourteenth, twenty eighteen, Season fourteen, 0:00:32.680 --> 0:00:35.520 episode number one hundred and twelve. Welcome to another edition 0:00:36.040 --> 0:00:38.479 of The Break. We are live from s WBC Mortgage 0:00:38.479 --> 0:00:41.600 Studios at the Star. And yeah, it's one of those days. 0:00:41.640 --> 0:00:45.360 It's that day following the playoffs, following a playoff loss 0:00:45.560 --> 0:00:48.160 when everything just kind of comes crashing to a halt. 0:00:48.880 --> 0:00:51.880 Cowboys loose to the Rams thirty to twenty two out 0:00:51.880 --> 0:00:54.280 in LA. And we're gonna break down for you guys 0:00:54.320 --> 0:00:56.520 for the next hour what we think happened in that game, 0:00:56.560 --> 0:00:59.680 why the Cowboys are now sitting outside the playoffs. We 0:00:59.760 --> 0:01:01.640 might can get into a little bit of talk on 0:01:01.960 --> 0:01:04.840 some I don't know if it was news, but something 0:01:04.920 --> 0:01:08.080 Jason Garrett had to say this morning about the offensive coordinator, 0:01:08.120 --> 0:01:10.360 which I think it's a big topic right now for fans. 0:01:10.920 --> 0:01:13.360 But let's start first with that game and let's go 0:01:13.400 --> 0:01:15.039 around the table. I know there were a lot of 0:01:15.080 --> 0:01:17.720 things that went wrong for the Cowboys. I want each 0:01:17.760 --> 0:01:19.560 of you to tell me which do you think What 0:01:19.959 --> 0:01:23.280 do you think was the biggest problem for Dallas in 0:01:23.319 --> 0:01:26.000 the game against the Rams. Let's start with you, Nick. Well, 0:01:26.000 --> 0:01:28.760 I'm gonna steal everyone's then and say that they couldn't 0:01:28.760 --> 0:01:32.160 stop the run. That was the biggest problem. And they 0:01:32.360 --> 0:01:34.840 obviously couldn't run the ball, but they couldn't stop the 0:01:34.920 --> 0:01:36.920 run at all. I had no answers for it. And 0:01:37.319 --> 0:01:39.920 the defensive line, as good as they played all year, 0:01:40.319 --> 0:01:42.399 they did not show up in that game. And that's 0:01:42.440 --> 0:01:44.520 too bad because it was a great opportunity for them 0:01:44.600 --> 0:01:47.000 to really show what kind of hot boys that they 0:01:47.160 --> 0:01:49.800 were and have been all year. And they didn't stop 0:01:49.840 --> 0:01:51.840 the run. They didn't even touch golf at all. They 0:01:51.840 --> 0:01:55.640 couldn't get any pressure. And it was brought to my attention. 0:01:55.760 --> 0:01:58.120 And I don't know if I believe this first drive 0:01:58.120 --> 0:02:01.760 of the game two off sides almost maybe change their 0:02:01.760 --> 0:02:03.600 aggressiveness a little bit. I mean, it seemed like a 0:02:03.600 --> 0:02:05.760 bit that they didn't do anything on that side of 0:02:05.800 --> 0:02:08.960 the ball all game. Yeah, I think you can extend 0:02:09.000 --> 0:02:11.480 that as well to the linebackers too. Up. The whole 0:02:11.480 --> 0:02:15.040 front seven kind of no showed in this game. You know, 0:02:15.200 --> 0:02:18.080 we talked a lot before the game about misdirection and 0:02:18.160 --> 0:02:20.320 pre snap motion and all the you know, the play 0:02:20.360 --> 0:02:22.400 fakes the Rams like to use. And they did it, 0:02:22.480 --> 0:02:26.880 and I'm positive the Cowboys spent the whole week preparing 0:02:26.880 --> 0:02:29.960 for it, but man, it didn't look like it. They 0:02:29.960 --> 0:02:32.239 couldn't get pressure on golf, they couldn't stop the run. 0:02:33.080 --> 0:02:36.320 Jalen Smith and Layton vander esh looked like first and 0:02:36.360 --> 0:02:40.040 second year players for the first time all season. Really. Yeah, 0:02:40.160 --> 0:02:42.720 not a good game by really anybody in the front seven, 0:02:42.760 --> 0:02:45.280 although I will I mean, and certainly that's the story 0:02:45.280 --> 0:02:48.200 of this game. The Cowboys defense has been the one 0:02:48.240 --> 0:02:49.799 thing you could hang your hat on for most of 0:02:49.840 --> 0:02:54.800 the year, but you know, the inability of the offense 0:02:54.840 --> 0:02:58.280 to really keep themselves on the field to help the 0:02:58.320 --> 0:03:01.200 defense with that problem is is equally important to mean 0:03:01.200 --> 0:03:03.520 one of ten on third down, especially as good as 0:03:03.560 --> 0:03:06.120 they've been since they traded for Amari Cooper. You know, 0:03:06.520 --> 0:03:07.840 I don't have the stat in front of me, but 0:03:07.880 --> 0:03:09.880 I know they were top five in the league, and 0:03:09.960 --> 0:03:13.280 third down conversion percentage after they traded for Cooper one 0:03:13.320 --> 0:03:17.840 of ten. That's pretty bad too. So those are the 0:03:17.840 --> 0:03:20.240 two things that really stand out to me. Okay, amber 0:03:20.919 --> 0:03:25.240 Well again, just to run overall both team, one that 0:03:25.280 --> 0:03:29.760 could run, the other one that couldn't. It's amazing to 0:03:29.880 --> 0:03:32.120 me to see that the Cowboys were only able to 0:03:32.240 --> 0:03:36.320 rush the ball fifty yards, three of them being Dak, 0:03:36.760 --> 0:03:40.760 forty seven of them being Zeke. The fact that we've 0:03:40.760 --> 0:03:44.280 seen this happen before, to where as soon as defenses 0:03:44.320 --> 0:03:47.320 take away the running game for the Cowboys, they don't 0:03:47.320 --> 0:03:51.720 really find the answers of how to make it happen. 0:03:51.920 --> 0:03:54.880 And Dak, I thought he threw the ball a few times. 0:03:54.920 --> 0:03:59.440 He had some nice shots there, but it just wasn't enough. 0:03:59.520 --> 0:04:02.480 And he got two hundred and sixty six yards in 0:04:02.520 --> 0:04:05.040 the passing game. But at the end of the day, 0:04:05.240 --> 0:04:08.160 they just can't they can't find a solution as soon 0:04:08.200 --> 0:04:11.320 as defense take away their running game. You know, I 0:04:12.680 --> 0:04:15.240 just think in what she just said about they took 0:04:15.240 --> 0:04:16.960 away the run, and that's what I was in the 0:04:16.960 --> 0:04:19.480 press conference and Jason Garrett said, you know, they just 0:04:19.520 --> 0:04:21.680 stopped a run and that they were committed to it, 0:04:22.240 --> 0:04:25.720 and that's fine, but it's just, you know, dak Is, 0:04:26.000 --> 0:04:29.320 it's frustrating for fans because on one game you're like, Wow, 0:04:29.400 --> 0:04:33.320 what an unbelievable performance against Seattle. He was great, and 0:04:33.400 --> 0:04:35.800 he was great at times or really good at times 0:04:35.800 --> 0:04:39.039 against the Rams, but like, if they're taking away your run, 0:04:39.200 --> 0:04:42.240 you've got to be able to beat them, and he 0:04:42.400 --> 0:04:46.279 couldn't and they couldn't, and so it's just frustrating. Something 0:04:46.360 --> 0:04:48.480 has definitely got a change there. So when we get 0:04:48.520 --> 0:04:51.320 to that other topic you've got that you alluded to, 0:04:51.800 --> 0:04:54.920 I I'd like to comment on that. Let me ask 0:04:54.960 --> 0:04:58.120 a question though about that. There's a lot going I mean, 0:04:58.720 --> 0:05:00.800 but I think that when you when you start talking 0:05:00.839 --> 0:05:03.640 about them, you know they were committed to stopping the run. 0:05:04.640 --> 0:05:06.160 The first thought that comes to my mind is this 0:05:06.200 --> 0:05:08.080 is a conversation that goes all the way back to 0:05:08.080 --> 0:05:10.919 training camp. We all talked about the fact that guess what, guys, 0:05:11.120 --> 0:05:13.040 if you're gonna roll out there without a number one 0:05:13.080 --> 0:05:15.400 wide receiver, teams are gonna try to stop you. And 0:05:15.440 --> 0:05:17.560 what did they say? They said, we've been facing eight 0:05:17.640 --> 0:05:20.080 nine men fronts. Zeke said, we've been facing eight men 0:05:20.080 --> 0:05:22.000 eight nine men fronts until it since I've been here. 0:05:22.760 --> 0:05:26.359 My thought is, if if that's what they knew, and 0:05:26.400 --> 0:05:29.240 if that's what they always said, we can still run 0:05:29.279 --> 0:05:32.120 against that, are we starting to see now and I 0:05:32.120 --> 0:05:33.880 don't even want to say starting to see? Did we 0:05:33.920 --> 0:05:37.240 see this year and it become very apparent that this 0:05:37.320 --> 0:05:41.120 team doesn't have the offensive line that it once had. 0:05:41.200 --> 0:05:43.920 That could maybe press the issue when team said we're 0:05:43.920 --> 0:05:46.000 definitely gonna put eight nine men in the box, We're 0:05:46.040 --> 0:05:48.320 going to be committed to stopping the run, and the 0:05:48.360 --> 0:05:50.920 Cowboys would say, we're still gonna run. Have they now 0:05:51.000 --> 0:05:53.480 been shown they cannot do that with how they were 0:05:53.520 --> 0:05:56.719 currently constructed. Yes, I mean well, whether or not they 0:05:56.800 --> 0:05:59.680 want to accept that is a different question, But yes, 0:05:59.800 --> 0:06:04.279 they've been shown that. That's that's I said that yesterday. Um, 0:06:05.040 --> 0:06:08.840 this team still calls plays and runs its offense, in 0:06:08.839 --> 0:06:11.360 my opinion, at least as if they have the twenty 0:06:11.360 --> 0:06:14.480 fourteen or twenty sixteen line and it just plays. But 0:06:14.640 --> 0:06:17.400 the play, the one you're talking about, fourth down, fourth down, 0:06:17.440 --> 0:06:20.560 fourth in a very long one. That's this this and 0:06:21.279 --> 0:06:23.599 we've said it till we're blue in the face. Sorry, 0:06:23.600 --> 0:06:26.880 if we're repeating ourselves. I have at least is uh 0:06:27.320 --> 0:06:31.560 this this team Jason Garrett, Scott Nahan, the Cowboys, whoever 0:06:31.600 --> 0:06:33.880 you want to pin on their whole thing is like, well, 0:06:34.160 --> 0:06:36.880 we're just gonna do us and execute as well as possible. 0:06:36.920 --> 0:06:39.080 We're not. We're like, we're gonna line up and we're 0:06:39.120 --> 0:06:41.680 gonna beat you. Except that that hasn't worked for them, 0:06:41.800 --> 0:06:44.960 especially in those obvious types of situations. It's not all 0:06:44.960 --> 0:06:48.480 their fault. Nobody could have predicted that Travis Frederick would 0:06:48.520 --> 0:06:53.000 come down with an autoimmune disease, etc. Etc. The point 0:06:53.040 --> 0:06:56.880 still remains, this offensive line is not the just jaw 0:06:56.960 --> 0:07:00.440 dropping dominant unit that it was in previous playoff fronts, 0:07:00.520 --> 0:07:03.680 and they have not adjusted to that fact. It's not 0:07:03.839 --> 0:07:06.680 it's not, but you can. You can still do things 0:07:06.720 --> 0:07:09.600 with them, and you've seen them being able to so. 0:07:09.920 --> 0:07:12.480 And again, there are certain plays that happened throughout the 0:07:12.480 --> 0:07:16.320 game that I thought were good but missed opportunities. There were, okay, 0:07:16.520 --> 0:07:19.160 the Blake Jarving one where he was just completely open 0:07:19.720 --> 0:07:22.840 um and he got the ball. You remember that one. Um. 0:07:23.840 --> 0:07:25.880 The point is they can get certain guys to be 0:07:25.920 --> 0:07:28.840 open Beasley where he had a nice place and for 0:07:28.880 --> 0:07:32.040 some reason, he didn't execute it to where he turned 0:07:32.040 --> 0:07:36.080 and caught the ball. D just threw it at him, 0:07:36.080 --> 0:07:38.320 and it seemed like the ball was intended to just 0:07:38.400 --> 0:07:41.840 go to seek Um sorry basilely on that play. And 0:07:42.000 --> 0:07:46.360 it's just the connecting parts. It's just they're just not 0:07:46.480 --> 0:07:50.040 always on the same rhythm. And I believe, yes they're not. 0:07:50.160 --> 0:07:52.559 The old line is not at the level we once 0:07:53.000 --> 0:07:57.480 saw them. But at the same time, you can't accomplish things. Okay, 0:07:57.800 --> 0:08:00.680 you're right about that. That I completely agree you can't 0:08:00.680 --> 0:08:04.640 do it. But it's it's a complete arrogance and or 0:08:04.920 --> 0:08:08.680 delusional or whatever. It's like, Steph Curry, as great as 0:08:08.720 --> 0:08:10.640 you are shooting, don't go in there and try to 0:08:10.720 --> 0:08:13.400 dunk on on check. That's not what you do. Everybody. 0:08:13.400 --> 0:08:15.000 He was just going into the pain and try dunk 0:08:15.160 --> 0:08:17.400 quite acting like like you can do that. Why do 0:08:17.440 --> 0:08:19.720 you think, Oh, I see you, I see Donald, I 0:08:19.760 --> 0:08:21.640 see you, Sue, I see all that stuff. We're gonna 0:08:21.680 --> 0:08:24.600 run it right at you, yell, and you know what 0:08:25.160 --> 0:08:27.560 I actually want to do those five plays if they 0:08:27.560 --> 0:08:29.480 won the game. I was gonna put that fourth and 0:08:29.560 --> 0:08:31.560 one way early in the game when they went right 0:08:31.600 --> 0:08:33.520 at him and they got it, and then Cooper got 0:08:33.520 --> 0:08:36.280 the penalty and all that stuff. But that almost was like, 0:08:36.920 --> 0:08:38.920 we got this, We're gonna go right at you. Well 0:08:39.000 --> 0:08:41.520 it happened later on a full yard and they said, yeah, 0:08:41.960 --> 0:08:44.319 we're just gonna run over you because we got Connor Williams. 0:08:44.360 --> 0:08:47.240 And that's not to say and Looney and Zach Martin. 0:08:47.280 --> 0:08:49.960 Apparently Zach Martin played pretty bad too, I will and 0:08:50.480 --> 0:08:52.079 I don't. I don't think they were horrible by any 0:08:52.120 --> 0:08:54.800 stretch of the imagination. Dak only was sacked once. I thought, 0:08:54.800 --> 0:08:59.280 I mean, Aaron Donald didn't register that we can talk 0:08:59.280 --> 0:09:02.800 about that. I thought Connor Williams held up pretty well, 0:09:02.840 --> 0:09:04.480 Like and that's the point, like this is not a 0:09:04.480 --> 0:09:07.439 bad offensive line, but it ain't the Great Wall of Dallas. 0:09:07.520 --> 0:09:10.640 And to just line up, to quote Jason Garrett on 0:09:10.640 --> 0:09:14.199 a long one and just plow right at him it 0:09:14.440 --> 0:09:18.520 maybe it's just not the best idea. And the equally 0:09:18.559 --> 0:09:21.320 frustrating part was they had a great play call for 0:09:21.360 --> 0:09:24.000 a similar situation because they used it five minutes later 0:09:24.040 --> 0:09:27.120 when the game was gone. I mean, like, yeah, get 0:09:27.160 --> 0:09:30.200 your quarterback moving. Sean McVay made a great call as well, 0:09:30.200 --> 0:09:33.640 like misdirection, multiple options, play action, give your quarterback a 0:09:33.720 --> 0:09:37.439 chance to do two things in one play, or even 0:09:37.520 --> 0:09:40.959 it's something as simple, how about motioning your wide receiver 0:09:41.040 --> 0:09:43.880 across the formation every time you run the ball, not 0:09:43.960 --> 0:09:45.840 giving it to him, and then on a crucial third 0:09:45.840 --> 0:09:48.520 down you do and he gets nine yards like stuff 0:09:48.559 --> 0:09:51.400 like that, stuff that we haven't seen from the Cowboys 0:09:51.440 --> 0:09:55.800 all year. And straight up they thought, or I don't 0:09:55.800 --> 0:09:57.800 know this for sure, but they certainly appeared to think 0:09:57.840 --> 0:09:59.520 that they could just line up and run it however 0:09:59.559 --> 0:10:01.560 they wanted. And it's not true. Let me ask you this, 0:10:01.640 --> 0:10:04.520 Do you think that because and obviously Garrett made it 0:10:04.520 --> 0:10:06.520 clear that they were committed to stopping the run, that 0:10:06.760 --> 0:10:09.440 the Rams are committed to stopping the Cowboys run. Are 0:10:09.440 --> 0:10:11.840 you at all surprised that the Cowboys didn't take an 0:10:11.840 --> 0:10:16.000 approach or should they have taken approach that maybe they 0:10:16.000 --> 0:10:18.560 should just start throwing it a lot more. And the 0:10:18.600 --> 0:10:20.520 reason why I say that is because we did. We 0:10:20.600 --> 0:10:22.640 did see I know it was at the end of 0:10:22.679 --> 0:10:24.400 the season, but we did see in that New York 0:10:24.400 --> 0:10:26.880 Giant game. They win in that game, and they were 0:10:26.920 --> 0:10:30.640 aggressive offensively with the passing game that would suggest to 0:10:30.679 --> 0:10:32.800 me that maybe it might have built a certain level 0:10:32.800 --> 0:10:34.599 of confidence with them. You would think that kind of 0:10:34.640 --> 0:10:37.880 success could that you maybe say, hey, we know they're 0:10:37.880 --> 0:10:41.160 committed to running the ball, let's at least show them that. 0:10:41.240 --> 0:10:43.680 We'll go at them with the passing game, and then 0:10:43.720 --> 0:10:45.400 we can come back to our run once we get 0:10:45.480 --> 0:10:47.000 them to back off a little bit. But are you 0:10:47.000 --> 0:10:52.079 surprised it didn't take that that strategy. Yeah, And no excuses. 0:10:52.080 --> 0:10:54.720 I don't think they were. They were really that they 0:10:54.720 --> 0:10:56.840 weren't as healthy as they have been. And this again, 0:10:56.920 --> 0:10:58.960 this is not an excuse, but you know, Beasley and 0:10:59.040 --> 0:11:00.960 Jarwin didn't practice week, didn't know if they were going 0:11:01.000 --> 0:11:03.760 to play, and and and does it matter you know, well, yeah, 0:11:03.760 --> 0:11:05.840 I think so Beasley's running across the field and there's 0:11:05.880 --> 0:11:07.559 a ball thrown right at him. He doesn't even know 0:11:07.600 --> 0:11:10.400 it's there. I mean, they were off and so I 0:11:10.440 --> 0:11:12.719 think that kind of limited him a little bit. And 0:11:12.800 --> 0:11:15.200 also they only got sacked once. But we all we 0:11:15.320 --> 0:11:17.000 know that that clock has got to be a little 0:11:17.000 --> 0:11:19.880 bit less in Dack's head because they do bring the heat. 0:11:19.920 --> 0:11:23.400 I mean, there were it was a fight every single snap. Um, 0:11:23.920 --> 0:11:26.160 but there were some things that they could have done 0:11:26.240 --> 0:11:28.319 and for sure, and I agree with you Dave about 0:11:28.320 --> 0:11:30.800 what watch what the Rams did. That's what Tavan was 0:11:30.840 --> 0:11:33.240 supposed to bring. Doesn't even have to be him, just 0:11:33.320 --> 0:11:36.719 somebody faking it across and they just get away from 0:11:36.720 --> 0:11:38.240 it and they don't do it. I feel like I 0:11:38.280 --> 0:11:40.760 never saw tavon Like I know, it was hard to 0:11:40.960 --> 0:11:46.800 watch the game from where we were seating standing, It sucked. 0:11:46.880 --> 0:11:50.760 The press box more talking to got a much better 0:11:50.840 --> 0:11:54.040 view than what we can. Yes, yes, but from the 0:11:54.200 --> 0:11:56.440 very little I got to watch, I feel like I 0:11:56.480 --> 0:12:00.000 never really saw a Tavan do anything. No, because he didn't. 0:12:00.000 --> 0:12:05.040 And that's that's very very unfortunate and disappointing. Like it's ridiculous. 0:12:05.360 --> 0:12:10.480 Nick Nick said, they got away from it. Yeah, you're right. 0:12:10.480 --> 0:12:14.360 Training yea from training, got away from it after training camp. Um, 0:12:14.400 --> 0:12:18.000 you look good at training camp. That's I'm I'm reluctant 0:12:18.000 --> 0:12:20.000 to say I can hear I can hear the DAK 0:12:20.080 --> 0:12:22.800 haters lining up on me already. I'm reluctant to say 0:12:22.840 --> 0:12:25.240 that they need to just be back in the shotgun 0:12:25.360 --> 0:12:29.000 chucking it because that's not Dak's game. Like you're probably 0:12:29.200 --> 0:12:31.800 you're probably not as as highly as I think of him, 0:12:31.840 --> 0:12:33.760 You're probably not going to win a game if he's 0:12:33.840 --> 0:12:36.520 just back there throwing in fifty times. And that's not 0:12:36.559 --> 0:12:38.559 just because of where he has a quarterback, but you're 0:12:38.559 --> 0:12:42.320 also limiting the best player on your offense, Ezekiel Elliott, 0:12:42.320 --> 0:12:43.760 in that situation. I mean, I know you can throw 0:12:43.800 --> 0:12:46.600 him the ball, but you still you are limiting him 0:12:47.240 --> 0:12:49.640 by not leaning on the run game. I just think 0:12:50.280 --> 0:12:52.160 you need to be more creative in the way you 0:12:52.440 --> 0:12:54.880 try to execute that. So you don't think it's necessarily 0:12:54.920 --> 0:12:57.800 a situation where you have a problem with the Cowboys 0:12:57.840 --> 0:13:00.200 relying on the running game as their primary thing. Do 0:13:00.360 --> 0:13:03.400 if that's a problem to be more consistent with, or 0:13:03.440 --> 0:13:05.240 you have to be more creative in how you do it. 0:13:05.360 --> 0:13:07.600 They built the team to run the ball, so if 0:13:07.679 --> 0:13:09.880 they can't, if that's not a viable way to win games, 0:13:09.880 --> 0:13:12.880 and then they're kind of screwed. Um, So no, and 0:13:12.880 --> 0:13:16.080 and it's worked like they've won. They've had three winning 0:13:16.080 --> 0:13:18.080 seasons in a row leaning on the run game. And 0:13:18.120 --> 0:13:21.559 even when Tony Romo was here, twenty fourteen was all 0:13:21.559 --> 0:13:24.240 about the run. As you know, as many great plays 0:13:24.240 --> 0:13:26.199 as he and Dez made, it was all about the run. 0:13:26.320 --> 0:13:29.679 So no, I I don't. I think it's a viable strategy. 0:13:30.120 --> 0:13:33.920 But but that's that's why. But still a viable strategy. 0:13:34.000 --> 0:13:36.680 We just said earlier that you don't think the offensive 0:13:36.679 --> 0:13:38.959 line is the same what it was. So is it 0:13:39.040 --> 0:13:41.720 still a viable a viable strategy if the offensive line 0:13:41.720 --> 0:13:44.920 doesn't play up to a certain level. Yes, but you 0:13:45.040 --> 0:13:48.280 just you're gonna come up against opponents that can make 0:13:48.360 --> 0:13:52.480 you uncomfortable and make you have to adapt. And I 0:13:52.520 --> 0:13:54.920 would argue Jason Garrett's whole thing is like, well, we're 0:13:55.000 --> 0:13:56.920 not gonna adapt, We're gonna do us like we're just 0:13:56.960 --> 0:13:59.920 not executing. And I don't believe that. I don't because 0:14:00.520 --> 0:14:03.319 you will all there will always in life, forget football 0:14:03.360 --> 0:14:06.439 in life, like you're gonna fail, Like that's just gonna 0:14:06.440 --> 0:14:08.439 happen and you have to change up. I mean the 0:14:08.600 --> 0:14:10.800 thing about when you look at when you look at 0:14:10.800 --> 0:14:13.040 the four teams that are remaining in the playoffs, you 0:14:13.080 --> 0:14:16.679 would say all four of them are extremely creative in 0:14:16.800 --> 0:14:19.640 how they run their offenses. I mean, you look at 0:14:19.680 --> 0:14:21.680 all of Andy Reid out in Kansas City, you look 0:14:21.720 --> 0:14:24.480 at obviously Belichick in New England, but you look at 0:14:24.520 --> 0:14:27.720 Sean Payton in New Orleans. You look at Sean McVay 0:14:27.920 --> 0:14:31.440 out in with the Rams, like that's what the NFL is. 0:14:31.560 --> 0:14:33.640 And that doesn't mean I'm a big believer in the 0:14:33.680 --> 0:14:35.400 fact that you can win in the NFL with running 0:14:35.400 --> 0:14:38.160 in good defense. But I think that the thing you 0:14:38.200 --> 0:14:39.720 have to do is if you're gonna do that, you 0:14:39.760 --> 0:14:42.160 can't line up and just run the power. You know, 0:14:42.240 --> 0:14:44.840 power run the ball the whole game like that's just 0:14:45.000 --> 0:14:46.800 that doesn't I don't know that that would work over 0:14:46.800 --> 0:14:48.680 an entire season, and certainly when you get to the 0:14:48.720 --> 0:14:52.280 playoffs where you're playing everybody's good, every team is good. 0:14:52.360 --> 0:14:53.760 I don't know that you can line up like that 0:14:53.800 --> 0:14:58.040 and expect to get that level of of of consistency 0:14:58.360 --> 0:15:00.800 and be able to win when teams say, hey, we 0:15:00.880 --> 0:15:02.640 know exactly what you're gonna do, and if we know 0:15:02.720 --> 0:15:05.200 exactly what you're gonna do, we can stop you exactly. 0:15:05.200 --> 0:15:08.080 And when you have other teams are the opponents and 0:15:08.160 --> 0:15:10.640 they're studying what you do. They know what you do. 0:15:10.680 --> 0:15:13.680 They've seen throughout the season that you don't really get creative, 0:15:13.720 --> 0:15:16.560 you don't really give them any surprises. This is exactly 0:15:16.600 --> 0:15:19.080 what you do and we're gonna take it out. Now, 0:15:19.240 --> 0:15:21.800 what are you left to do if you have a quarterback. 0:15:21.840 --> 0:15:23.600 I mean, that's the point of having a quarterback to 0:15:23.640 --> 0:15:26.120 throw the ball. So if they take away your running game, 0:15:26.520 --> 0:15:28.800 you should be able to figure it out and throw 0:15:28.840 --> 0:15:31.720 the ball and make it happen somehow. This is more 0:15:31.760 --> 0:15:34.440 about the it's the Dallas defense, but I think it 0:15:34.480 --> 0:15:36.880 fits within the larger narrative. Did y'all see the quotes 0:15:36.880 --> 0:15:39.360 coming out of the Rams locker room immunity? Like we 0:15:39.360 --> 0:15:42.320 could tell based on how Collins was shaded what they 0:15:42.360 --> 0:15:43.920 were going to do. Based I mean, if he's over 0:15:43.960 --> 0:15:45.960 here in his hand is placed this way, we know 0:15:46.000 --> 0:15:49.840 what they're doing. Like that's not encouraging. And like I said, 0:15:49.880 --> 0:15:52.680 that's the defense. But it just goes to show you 0:15:53.240 --> 0:15:56.400 this team can be really really good when they're firing 0:15:56.400 --> 0:15:58.840 on all cylinders and you can't deal with it. But 0:15:58.880 --> 0:16:00.920 when you are ready for it and you can stop it, 0:16:00.960 --> 0:16:03.040 then they don't. They don't have a plan B. But yeah, 0:16:03.040 --> 0:16:04.920 and that is the larger narrative because it's not just 0:16:04.960 --> 0:16:07.160 the offense, it's the defense. And so that comes down 0:16:07.200 --> 0:16:10.520 to just the overall I don't know if it's just 0:16:10.600 --> 0:16:12.880 the message, but it's the overall strategy of what they 0:16:12.920 --> 0:16:16.240 at least preached publicly publicly, which is nameless, faceless opponent. 0:16:16.600 --> 0:16:18.840 We don't adjust to them. We do what we do 0:16:19.080 --> 0:16:22.400 and that's good enough. And maybe that just doesn't work. 0:16:22.440 --> 0:16:24.560 Maybe you have to think again. If you look at 0:16:24.600 --> 0:16:27.400 the most successful strategy in the NFL over the last 0:16:27.440 --> 0:16:30.200 twenty years, I don't think anybody doubts it's been the Patriots. 0:16:30.200 --> 0:16:33.400 And what do they do every single game? Every single game, 0:16:33.920 --> 0:16:36.440 they have a different strategy. They morph their offense in 0:16:36.480 --> 0:16:39.240 there every year to fit whoever they're gonna play, and 0:16:39.280 --> 0:16:41.800 that's why they have to have versatile, smart players. But 0:16:41.840 --> 0:16:44.160 they do it and that's how they're so successful. And 0:16:44.440 --> 0:16:47.160 not everybody can. Nobody's been able to replicate it. But 0:16:47.240 --> 0:16:50.080 the fact is that's a complete opposite strategy of what 0:16:50.200 --> 0:16:52.520 is publicly said here. Well, I mean you're right about that. 0:16:52.560 --> 0:16:55.880 You said, nameless faceless opponent. Well, you think that if 0:16:55.920 --> 0:16:58.240 if Aaron Donald lines up here or he lines up 0:16:58.280 --> 0:17:00.840 over here, that it doesn't really matter block him. I mean, 0:17:00.920 --> 0:17:03.120 I remember back in the eighties when Lawrence Taylor was 0:17:03.160 --> 0:17:04.879 lining up. I mean, that was the first thing you 0:17:04.920 --> 0:17:07.040 had to do was figure out where he is. And 0:17:07.040 --> 0:17:09.360 when you have dynamic players and they have more than one, 0:17:09.800 --> 0:17:11.680 you have to do that. So you can't just just 0:17:11.760 --> 0:17:14.119 say it doesn't really matter. We're gonna blog, you know, 0:17:14.280 --> 0:17:17.280 next man doesn't matter. Connor Williams block it whatever. I mean, 0:17:17.840 --> 0:17:20.800 it didn't. It didn't work, and you had to get 0:17:20.840 --> 0:17:23.040 them on the move, get away from their best guy. 0:17:23.240 --> 0:17:26.439 And it's just like I said, it's kind of an arrogance. 0:17:26.480 --> 0:17:30.720 It's kind of this. I'm I'm getting upset. No, I 0:17:30.880 --> 0:17:33.680 was sad. I was sad after the game. I was disappointed. 0:17:33.960 --> 0:17:36.960 But now that we're discussing it and just fans talking 0:17:37.000 --> 0:17:39.360 about it, now, I'm getting fans are pissed right now 0:17:39.359 --> 0:17:41.520 based off of the story we put out an hour ago. 0:17:41.680 --> 0:17:45.399 Oh well, yeah, let's take a break and let's come 0:17:45.440 --> 0:17:47.760 back and let's talk about that a little bit. Uh. 0:17:47.800 --> 0:17:49.280 There was an art I mean, I'm not an article. 0:17:49.280 --> 0:17:52.720 There was a phone interview that coach Garrett did today 0:17:53.320 --> 0:17:55.320 with one or five out three the fan where he 0:17:55.480 --> 0:17:59.240 did mention that it looks like he expects the offensive 0:17:59.280 --> 0:18:01.840 coordinator to return. We'll talk about that when we come back. 0:18:01.840 --> 0:18:03.639 This is Dallas Cowboys dot Com radio. 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