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Cowboys in total meltdown mode
By Gregg Easterbrook | ESPN.com | Nov 12, 3:00 AM ET
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How Bad Are The Cowboys?
Will the Dallas Cowboys be the worst team ever to win their division? Cary Chow and Eric Allen break it down.
Let's not beat around the bush -- right now, if there were a championship of Texas, could the Dallas Cowboys defeat the Baylor Bears?
Rarely has an NFL division leader looked as awful as the Boys looked against New Orleans on Sunday night. One reason was the Saints played well, and another reason was Dallas has numerous injuries. But a lot of pro teams play well, and in the NFL everybody has injuries. The Boys looked uniquely bad.
Dallas played so poorly, at times the Cowboys looked like a short-handed hockey team. Dallas allowed 625 offensive yards, 49 points and an NFL-record 40 first downs. Texas is the center of America's football culture, yet its highest-profile team plays like a group of high schoolers on defense. New Orleans leading 21-10, the Saints were on the Dallas 28 with 13 seconds remaining before intermission, holding one timeout. Since New Orleans is already in field goal range, the Saints are close to certain to try for the end zone. Yet Dallas lined up with nine of its 11 defenders on or close to the line of scrimmage. Darren Sproles took a simple screen pass and, behind downfield blocks by Jahri Evans and Brian De La Puente, legged out a touchdown. The Dallas defense allowed an easy six with the clock nearly expired -- not the first time this season that's happened.
Maybe it was running up the score for Drew Brees to throw deep at the start of the fourth quarter, his team already leading 35-17. But Jerry Jones and his players boast so much, then play so poorly, it's impossible to feel sympathy. For the game's final 13 minutes, the Saints did not attempt a forward pass. This did not matter: The Boys allowed a 78-yard touchdown drive consisting entirely of plain-vanilla running plays. Dallas is on a pace to allow 7,037 yards, which would be the second-worst performance ever by an NFL defense.
The Boys' offense, which had been carrying the team, on Sunday looked awful, too. Just nine first downs -- Dallas tied an NFL record by allowing 31 more first downs than it gained. Tony Romo, paid about as much as Super Bowl winners Tom Brady and Joe Flacco, does hit lots of passes but often vanishes in the clutch. The Boys were 0-for-9 on third downs. Ye gods.
[+] Enlarge
Ronald Martinez/Getty Images
QB Tony Romo's new deal pays $55 million guaranteed; he has one career playoff victory. Oh, the negotiating skills of that canny Jerry Jones.
Many teams experience ups and downs -- just ask the Falcons or Giants. But there's something uniquely nutty about the Cowboys' situation. Jason Garrett, the head coach, is a Princeton graduate, so why is the Cowboys' football IQ so low? Owner Jerry Jones spends money lavishly, seemingly always in salary-cap trouble, so why don't the Boys have depth? With injuries inevitable, winning teams must have depth. The Cowboys remain tied for first in the NFC East, but only because no club in that weak division has a winning record. Spending right up to the cap limit, the Cowboys of 2013 are 0-4 against winning teams.
And then there was the sight of defensive coordinators Rob Ryan on the New Orleans sideline. He was sent packing by Jones after last season, scapegoated for another year of the Boys not making the playoffs. Sunday, he outcoached the team that dismissed him. Ryan was tossed overboard so that Dallas could hire Monte Kiffin; since Kiffin's arrival, the Cowboys' defense has dropped from 19th in 2012 to dead last. And it hasn't been a banner year for the Kiffin bloodline: USC is 4-1 since Lane Kiffin was given the ejection-seat treatment.
Say this for the Dallas Cowboys, they can always be relied on for entertainment -- either winning big or melting down in spectacular fashion. Here's a disturbing thought: Since three of the Boys' remaining games are against NFC East foes who are themselves struggling, could the Cowboys of 2013 become the worst team ever to win its division?
By Gregg Easterbrook | ESPN.com | Nov 12, 3:00 AM ET
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
How Bad Are The Cowboys?
Will the Dallas Cowboys be the worst team ever to win their division? Cary Chow and Eric Allen break it down.
Let's not beat around the bush -- right now, if there were a championship of Texas, could the Dallas Cowboys defeat the Baylor Bears?
Rarely has an NFL division leader looked as awful as the Boys looked against New Orleans on Sunday night. One reason was the Saints played well, and another reason was Dallas has numerous injuries. But a lot of pro teams play well, and in the NFL everybody has injuries. The Boys looked uniquely bad.
Dallas played so poorly, at times the Cowboys looked like a short-handed hockey team. Dallas allowed 625 offensive yards, 49 points and an NFL-record 40 first downs. Texas is the center of America's football culture, yet its highest-profile team plays like a group of high schoolers on defense. New Orleans leading 21-10, the Saints were on the Dallas 28 with 13 seconds remaining before intermission, holding one timeout. Since New Orleans is already in field goal range, the Saints are close to certain to try for the end zone. Yet Dallas lined up with nine of its 11 defenders on or close to the line of scrimmage. Darren Sproles took a simple screen pass and, behind downfield blocks by Jahri Evans and Brian De La Puente, legged out a touchdown. The Dallas defense allowed an easy six with the clock nearly expired -- not the first time this season that's happened.
Maybe it was running up the score for Drew Brees to throw deep at the start of the fourth quarter, his team already leading 35-17. But Jerry Jones and his players boast so much, then play so poorly, it's impossible to feel sympathy. For the game's final 13 minutes, the Saints did not attempt a forward pass. This did not matter: The Boys allowed a 78-yard touchdown drive consisting entirely of plain-vanilla running plays. Dallas is on a pace to allow 7,037 yards, which would be the second-worst performance ever by an NFL defense.
The Boys' offense, which had been carrying the team, on Sunday looked awful, too. Just nine first downs -- Dallas tied an NFL record by allowing 31 more first downs than it gained. Tony Romo, paid about as much as Super Bowl winners Tom Brady and Joe Flacco, does hit lots of passes but often vanishes in the clutch. The Boys were 0-for-9 on third downs. Ye gods.
[+] Enlarge
Ronald Martinez/Getty Images
QB Tony Romo's new deal pays $55 million guaranteed; he has one career playoff victory. Oh, the negotiating skills of that canny Jerry Jones.
Many teams experience ups and downs -- just ask the Falcons or Giants. But there's something uniquely nutty about the Cowboys' situation. Jason Garrett, the head coach, is a Princeton graduate, so why is the Cowboys' football IQ so low? Owner Jerry Jones spends money lavishly, seemingly always in salary-cap trouble, so why don't the Boys have depth? With injuries inevitable, winning teams must have depth. The Cowboys remain tied for first in the NFC East, but only because no club in that weak division has a winning record. Spending right up to the cap limit, the Cowboys of 2013 are 0-4 against winning teams.
And then there was the sight of defensive coordinators Rob Ryan on the New Orleans sideline. He was sent packing by Jones after last season, scapegoated for another year of the Boys not making the playoffs. Sunday, he outcoached the team that dismissed him. Ryan was tossed overboard so that Dallas could hire Monte Kiffin; since Kiffin's arrival, the Cowboys' defense has dropped from 19th in 2012 to dead last. And it hasn't been a banner year for the Kiffin bloodline: USC is 4-1 since Lane Kiffin was given the ejection-seat treatment.
Say this for the Dallas Cowboys, they can always be relied on for entertainment -- either winning big or melting down in spectacular fashion. Here's a disturbing thought: Since three of the Boys' remaining games are against NFC East foes who are themselves struggling, could the Cowboys of 2013 become the worst team ever to win its division?
