The Dallas Cowboys and Green Bay Packers played each other this past weekend and gave us one of the best playoff matches of all time. Unfortunately, I was forced to miss the game because of work but I felt the need to catch-up on all the excitement. I watched the highlights and turned to social media-the most biased source imaginable. When doing this, I couldn't help but notice that the bulk of the coverage dwindled down to three topics: Aaron Rodgers is a phenomenal talent, Jared Cook's amazing catch, and an overwhelming amount of hate on them 'Boys. By no means am I a Dallas Cowboys fan, but I found it really unfair that the narrative of such a marvelous game had turned into a few basic ideas. Yes, I find the team to be oversaturated by the national media. Yes, I wholeheartedly agree that they should not be considered "America's team". And yes, I absolutely find the fact that Ezekiel Elliott always wears crop tops to be a really strange fashion choice. But let's not throw them on a dumpster fire for simply being outplayed by Aaron Rodgers. The team is filled with players that have great talent, and quite a lot of them that have great characters too; this team has a very bright future. The unfair headlines led me to look through articles, video, and highlights and study the game as much as I could. Here are my thoughts on Dallas after their tough loss.
1. The Cowboys didn't choke.
The Cowboys lost despite being the home team and having the most wins in their conference, but no one would think you're crazy for picking the Packers to win this game (at least I hope so since I chose Green Bay). The Packers grew throughout the season and are currently riding an 8 game win streak, so it's fair to say that they're completely different than the Packers team that lost to the Cowboys in Week 6. Aaron Rodgers also became the hottest player in football during said win streak. On top of that, two of the most important centerpieces of this team were both rookies. In short, there were a lot of factors that pointed in the Packers' favor! And even then, the Green Bay Packers needed a miraculous catch just to get them in long field goal range after Rodgers was sacked at the 32 yard line with less than 20 seconds left.
Dallas didn't drop the ball (pun intended... although I'd still argue that it was a catch), blow a lead, or get annihilated by a great team; they were simply outplayed.
2. Jason Garrett and the rest of the coaching staff seemed ill-prepared.
Everyone and their mother knows that this team's offense is built around Dallas' run game. This tells us that the Cowboys should have have pounded the ball right out of the gate and sustained a long drive to keep Aaron Rodgers off the field and out of rhythm. Instead, Ezekiel Elliott only had two carries on an opening drive which only lasted 3:37. They improved on the rushing attempts as the game went on, but seemed to forget that Elliott is multi-faceted and a great pass catcher as well. He wasn't featured in the passing game as he only finished with 1 catch for -2 yards. I thought if Dallas wanted to win they would need to stick to their roots and get Elliot somewhere between 25-30 touches this game.
On the flip side of the ball, Garrett couldn't find a package to consistently help his secondary throughout the game. More on that in the next point...
3. Dallas' Zone Coverage was questionable.
When coaches are confident in their secondary players' ability to win their individual matchup, they'd put them in man coverages without safety help. Despite Jordy Nelson, the Packers' leading receiver, missing the game, it was blatantly obvious that the Dallas coaching staff didn't feel comfortable in doing that with their corners. They resorted to zones, which isn't a bad idea, but they didn't change up their looks often enough to confuse Aaron Rodgers. On top of that, the Packers found an effective way to respond. They'd dictate the spacing on the field by spreading formations out and gave each safety a large net to cover. Whether the Packers were running their plays with three, four, or five receivers, the result was always the same.
4. Dallas' achilles heel is covering Tight Ends.
Linebackers often guard opposing tight ends, so at a glance you would think that Dallas would be fine in this department. They have All-Pro Sean Lee to help out in pass coverage, but it seemed as if he's lost a step and was routinely a few steps behind where he should have been. It wasn't too long ago where he was finishing seasons with 4 interceptions, but maybe his injuries are catching up to him. Regardless of what the reason was, Jared Cook ended up being the Packers' best receiver and even Richard Rodgers came up with a big play of his own.
5. Dez Bryant is a top 5 Wide Receiver.
People love to hate on Dez Bryant, and I was even part of that group when he was first drafted. The media was quick to point him as a top receiver before he even played an NFL game, so I thought he was overrated from Day 1. As he got more games under his belt, his play was convincing enough for me to change my thoughts. But it didn't take long for me to find another problem with him: his personality. I thought he carried a Terrell Owens-type attitude and complained too much, only for a friend to point out that he's actually a team-first guy and that the media portrays him in an unfair way (shoutout to Ben). Listening to sound bits and watching his passion for the game changed my mind again. I can never fault someone for caring about the game too much, and that's exactly what Dez Bryant does.
Anyways, he's had a couple of up-and-down seasons these past two years, but that was mostly due to injuries and instability at quarterback. When he's on the field, he's a proven top tier talent. In no particular order, my top five are: Antonio Brown, Julio Jones, Odell Beckham Jr., A.J. Green, and Dez Bryant.
6. Jason Witten is ageless.
Jason Witten has all the three most necessary traits to be an "ageless" football player: durability, toughness, and most importantly, smarts. Witten has been in the league since 2003 and has played in all but one game, which he missed in his rookie season. Throughout his 223 game career, he's proven time and time again to be a tough by being a relentless blocker even when matched against bigger linemen, and being an active pass-catcher in traffic. One thing that is most overlooked though is how high his football I.Q. is. His ability to read coverages and find soft spots helped him prolong his career as a reliable tight-end.
7. Tony Romo was a really good Cowboy.
It's painfully apparent that Romo's tenure as a Dallas Cowboy is over, but let's not think any less of his career because of that. Far too often we hear Romo hate comments from people who are overlooking how great of a quarterback he's actually been. The most often insult is that he's a choker, yet he has 25 4th quarter comebacks in his career. Another knock on him is that he hasn't won a Super Bowl, which I think is a stupid argument. Romo has been an NFL touchdown (2007), passing yards (2009), passing rating (2014), and completion percentage leader (2014). He's set Dallas Cowboy passing records in yards, touchdowns, and interception percentage-ahead of Hall of Famer Troy Aikman. So let's stop with the Romo is bad comments, because he's anything but.
1. The Cowboys didn't choke.
The Cowboys lost despite being the home team and having the most wins in their conference, but no one would think you're crazy for picking the Packers to win this game (at least I hope so since I chose Green Bay). The Packers grew throughout the season and are currently riding an 8 game win streak, so it's fair to say that they're completely different than the Packers team that lost to the Cowboys in Week 6. Aaron Rodgers also became the hottest player in football during said win streak. On top of that, two of the most important centerpieces of this team were both rookies. In short, there were a lot of factors that pointed in the Packers' favor! And even then, the Green Bay Packers needed a miraculous catch just to get them in long field goal range after Rodgers was sacked at the 32 yard line with less than 20 seconds left.
Dallas didn't drop the ball (pun intended... although I'd still argue that it was a catch), blow a lead, or get annihilated by a great team; they were simply outplayed.
2. Jason Garrett and the rest of the coaching staff seemed ill-prepared.
Everyone and their mother knows that this team's offense is built around Dallas' run game. This tells us that the Cowboys should have have pounded the ball right out of the gate and sustained a long drive to keep Aaron Rodgers off the field and out of rhythm. Instead, Ezekiel Elliott only had two carries on an opening drive which only lasted 3:37. They improved on the rushing attempts as the game went on, but seemed to forget that Elliott is multi-faceted and a great pass catcher as well. He wasn't featured in the passing game as he only finished with 1 catch for -2 yards. I thought if Dallas wanted to win they would need to stick to their roots and get Elliot somewhere between 25-30 touches this game.
 |
| I had higher expectations for Jason Garrett and his staff. |
3. Dallas' Zone Coverage was questionable.
When coaches are confident in their secondary players' ability to win their individual matchup, they'd put them in man coverages without safety help. Despite Jordy Nelson, the Packers' leading receiver, missing the game, it was blatantly obvious that the Dallas coaching staff didn't feel comfortable in doing that with their corners. They resorted to zones, which isn't a bad idea, but they didn't change up their looks often enough to confuse Aaron Rodgers. On top of that, the Packers found an effective way to respond. They'd dictate the spacing on the field by spreading formations out and gave each safety a large net to cover. Whether the Packers were running their plays with three, four, or five receivers, the result was always the same.
4. Dallas' achilles heel is covering Tight Ends.
Linebackers often guard opposing tight ends, so at a glance you would think that Dallas would be fine in this department. They have All-Pro Sean Lee to help out in pass coverage, but it seemed as if he's lost a step and was routinely a few steps behind where he should have been. It wasn't too long ago where he was finishing seasons with 4 interceptions, but maybe his injuries are catching up to him. Regardless of what the reason was, Jared Cook ended up being the Packers' best receiver and even Richard Rodgers came up with a big play of his own.
5. Dez Bryant is a top 5 Wide Receiver.
People love to hate on Dez Bryant, and I was even part of that group when he was first drafted. The media was quick to point him as a top receiver before he even played an NFL game, so I thought he was overrated from Day 1. As he got more games under his belt, his play was convincing enough for me to change my thoughts. But it didn't take long for me to find another problem with him: his personality. I thought he carried a Terrell Owens-type attitude and complained too much, only for a friend to point out that he's actually a team-first guy and that the media portrays him in an unfair way (shoutout to Ben). Listening to sound bits and watching his passion for the game changed my mind again. I can never fault someone for caring about the game too much, and that's exactly what Dez Bryant does.
 |
| Dez Bryant won me over with his talent and passion. |
6. Jason Witten is ageless.
Jason Witten has all the three most necessary traits to be an "ageless" football player: durability, toughness, and most importantly, smarts. Witten has been in the league since 2003 and has played in all but one game, which he missed in his rookie season. Throughout his 223 game career, he's proven time and time again to be a tough by being a relentless blocker even when matched against bigger linemen, and being an active pass-catcher in traffic. One thing that is most overlooked though is how high his football I.Q. is. His ability to read coverages and find soft spots helped him prolong his career as a reliable tight-end.
7. Tony Romo was a really good Cowboy.
It's painfully apparent that Romo's tenure as a Dallas Cowboy is over, but let's not think any less of his career because of that. Far too often we hear Romo hate comments from people who are overlooking how great of a quarterback he's actually been. The most often insult is that he's a choker, yet he has 25 4th quarter comebacks in his career. Another knock on him is that he hasn't won a Super Bowl, which I think is a stupid argument. Romo has been an NFL touchdown (2007), passing yards (2009), passing rating (2014), and completion percentage leader (2014). He's set Dallas Cowboy passing records in yards, touchdowns, and interception percentage-ahead of Hall of Famer Troy Aikman. So let's stop with the Romo is bad comments, because he's anything but.
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| Prescott's superb play is pushing Romo out of the door, closing a great Cowboy career. |
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