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Learn from Jason Garrett’s mistakes
By Scott Pianowski
Jason Garrett needs a nickname, and I'd like to throw out Jellyfish as a candidate. I know a no-backbone head coach when I see one.
Garrett's ice-the-kicker call at the end of the fourth quarter in Arizona was lambasted all across the Internet over the last 24 hours, but many pundits are overlooking Garrett's biggest gaffe in this mess. The Cowboys had 26 seconds to work with, and two timeouts, after Dez Bryant's(notes) sliding catch at the Arizona 31-yard line. A proactive coach, an aggressive coach — heck, a smart coach — would have immediately called a timeout when the Bryant play was complete, looking to get closer for the-game winning kick.
But that's not how the Jellyfish opted to play it: Garrett felt a 49-yard kick was close enough for comfort and he didn't want to risk a negative play. Geesh. It's not like you have a veteran quarterback, a stable of stud receivers, and a solid running game. If Garrett held 11 at the blackjack table against a dealer's 3, he'd probably decline on a double down because there are some small cards in the deck.
Mike McDermott outlined the playbook in Rounders: you want your money in the pot when you think you have the best of it, and you want to protect your stack when you don't have the cards. Garrett failed to recognize that his Cowboys were in a very advantageous position in the final 26 seconds, with resources (time on the clock, stoppages remaining) and talent on their side. Flushing that advantage down the toilet against an inferior opponent is begging to get beat, and in a karmic sense I'm glad the Cardinals were able to win this game in overtime.
The Arizona giveaway wasn't the first Jellyfish blunder of the season, of course. Backtrack to the Dallas at Philly game back in Week 8, when Dallas refused to target its two top wideouts in the first half, fearful of the big-name cornerbacks on the other side. The Eagles raced out to a 24-0 lead at the half and the game was as good as over. (As Andy Behrens likes to say, if you're going to play it that way, Dallas, why even make the trip?). And then there was the meek way the Cowboys handled their Week 6 endgame at New England, sticking with a conservative plan that practically begged the aggressive and opportunistic Patriots to beat them (and beat them New England did).
Garrett's personnel management hasn't been impressive either. DeMarco Murray(notes) hardly played for the Cowboys until a Felix Jones(notes) injury forced a change, and even after Jones got hurt, the Cowboys opted to start Tashard Choice(notes) over Murray in the first post-Felix game. You have these guys in practice every day, coach; you can't tell the difference between a potential breakout star (Murray) and a journeyman waiting to happen (Choice)? The Laurent Robinson(notes) emergence was also a happy accident of sorts, born out of necessity when others got hurt.
By Scott Pianowski
Jason Garrett needs a nickname, and I'd like to throw out Jellyfish as a candidate. I know a no-backbone head coach when I see one.
Garrett's ice-the-kicker call at the end of the fourth quarter in Arizona was lambasted all across the Internet over the last 24 hours, but many pundits are overlooking Garrett's biggest gaffe in this mess. The Cowboys had 26 seconds to work with, and two timeouts, after Dez Bryant's(notes) sliding catch at the Arizona 31-yard line. A proactive coach, an aggressive coach — heck, a smart coach — would have immediately called a timeout when the Bryant play was complete, looking to get closer for the-game winning kick.
But that's not how the Jellyfish opted to play it: Garrett felt a 49-yard kick was close enough for comfort and he didn't want to risk a negative play. Geesh. It's not like you have a veteran quarterback, a stable of stud receivers, and a solid running game. If Garrett held 11 at the blackjack table against a dealer's 3, he'd probably decline on a double down because there are some small cards in the deck.
Mike McDermott outlined the playbook in Rounders: you want your money in the pot when you think you have the best of it, and you want to protect your stack when you don't have the cards. Garrett failed to recognize that his Cowboys were in a very advantageous position in the final 26 seconds, with resources (time on the clock, stoppages remaining) and talent on their side. Flushing that advantage down the toilet against an inferior opponent is begging to get beat, and in a karmic sense I'm glad the Cardinals were able to win this game in overtime.
The Arizona giveaway wasn't the first Jellyfish blunder of the season, of course. Backtrack to the Dallas at Philly game back in Week 8, when Dallas refused to target its two top wideouts in the first half, fearful of the big-name cornerbacks on the other side. The Eagles raced out to a 24-0 lead at the half and the game was as good as over. (As Andy Behrens likes to say, if you're going to play it that way, Dallas, why even make the trip?). And then there was the meek way the Cowboys handled their Week 6 endgame at New England, sticking with a conservative plan that practically begged the aggressive and opportunistic Patriots to beat them (and beat them New England did).
Garrett's personnel management hasn't been impressive either. DeMarco Murray(notes) hardly played for the Cowboys until a Felix Jones(notes) injury forced a change, and even after Jones got hurt, the Cowboys opted to start Tashard Choice(notes) over Murray in the first post-Felix game. You have these guys in practice every day, coach; you can't tell the difference between a potential breakout star (Murray) and a journeyman waiting to happen (Choice)? The Laurent Robinson(notes) emergence was also a happy accident of sorts, born out of necessity when others got hurt.