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It is a long season that requires the willingness to live in the moment. You cannot start the playoffs in September and you certainly cannot think coasting is ever the disposition to take in this league. We don't know if the Cowboys were already guilty of getting ahead of themselves just one game into the regular season, because we have no idea the team's mentality in their preparations for this game in Denver. We don't know if they took their opponent as seriously as they should and had the game-plan installed that would have them ready to start on their front foot on Sunday.
But, we do know the results. The results were a severe beatdown of the highest order to what is considered a fringe playoff contender in the AFC. Being physically manhandled on both sides of the ball in a way which we seldom see in these parts in the last few years. In fact, the 25-point loss was the most punishing loss on the scoreboard since similar humiliations in New Orleans in 2013 by 32, in Philadelphia in 2011 by 27, and that night Wade Phillips was fired in Green Bay back in 2010 by 38.
Those games did not receive the same cosmetic treatment this one did as the Cowboys were able to make the final boxscore a bit more flattering after the Broncos had extended the drubbing to 35-10 with 6 minutes to go in the 3rd Quarter. From there on in, the Broncos allowed the Cowboys to grow their absurdly low offensive numbers from 92 yards to 268 (still atrocious, but no longer historically atrocious) and their first down total from 6 to 16. But the damage was there for all to see. Dallas was never remotely competitive in this game from the opening kickoff where they meekly surrendered a quick 3-and-out series and then allowed Denver to march right down the field 78 yards and punch in an opening Touchdown.
The next sequence was more of the same. Dallas seeing that Denver wanted to crash the line of scrimmage to force them out of running the ball, so the Cowboys never really forced them to stop the running game. Instead, the Broncos wanted to make Dak Prescott beat them and the Cowboys seemed comfortable with the challenge. And one can hardly blame them, because they went into Pittsburgh and Green Bay last year, two other renowned environments for being so difficult to find success for road teams with young QBs, and the Cowboys were able to systematically destroy both of those defenses in front of their adoring fans. Why would this be any different?
Perhaps because neither of those teams were able to challenge the Cowboys defense in the ways that this Denver team can. We grant you that this is a new year and that Denver defense will need to prove it is still elite due to Wade Phillips and DeMarcus Ware no longer a part of it, but consider the following:
They were #1 in the entire NFL in passer rating allowed in 2016 (69.7 when the league averaged 89.3).
They were #1 in the entire NFL in completion percentage allowed in 2016 (55.4% when the league averaged 63%).
They were #1 in the entire NFL in passer rating when the QB was not being pressured (78.3 when the league averaged 96.9).
And, they were #1 in the entire NFL in not allowing 20-yard passes (5.8% when the league averaged 8.7%).
So, as we tick down that list, it is easier to understand the Dak Prescott passer rating of 68.6 with a completion percentage of 60% and just one 20-yard play all day long (the 28-yard touchdown to Jason Witten well after the game was decided). The Broncos have the personnel in their secondary to match-up, get physical, and not allow a catch of substance. If they do, they definitely aren't going to allow big runs after the catch because the physical mentality of their defensive backs is right there with Seattle and similar to those Seahawks, pressure on the QB helps, but is not mandatory. Even if Prescott gets a clean pocket and time to look, there is just not much downfield to see.
Once you enter the game with this plan of allowing the pass to set-up the run, you begin chasing the game upfield as the defense has no real ability to slow down the Broncos. This was certainly not Peyton Manning with all the weapons that helped them attend two Super Bowls in three seasons, but there was still enough from Trevor Siemian and his weapons DeMaryius Thomas, Emmanuel Sanders, and the very competitive RB CJ Anderson. All three had moments where they humiliated the Cowboys efforts to "tackle" them in space and gave up explosives to each of them. Siemian gained the respect of the Cowboys by repeating throws that often only required one move from the target to test the ability of his defender to stay with him. The answers were harsh and repetitive.
Tackling hurts. We can watch the league every Sunday and see how defensive backs often don't wish to engage in this sort of physical contact where they are often undersized and overmatched. Business decisions are contagious and it certainly didn't seem that the personnel on the field yesterday was capable of putting a stop to the Broncos threats. That is how this game works. If Nolan Carroll or Byron Jones or even the great Sean Lee are not going to do better than that when it comes to tackling, then this defense will have no chance. This defense requires a fair amount of conservative positioning combined with all 11 showing the ability to surround the ball and get it to the ground. Yesterday was the opposite of Week 1's performance - likely because the opponent was not so agreeable - and all it took were some high percentage throws wide to the flanks and then the Broncos would make the one guy miss and be off to the races.
The defense was quite poor. In fact, that is putting it nicely. They allowed five touchdowns in the first seven drives and the other two were: a drive that stalled when Siemian missed an open Bennie Fowler on 3rd down and then the Field Goal was missed and the other drive was stopped when Demarcus Lawrence continued his exceptional early season work (helps to have another very poor right tackle to face in Menelik Watson, but still) by getting the sack and the strip to help the Cowboys get into the end zone the one time they did before the game was declared over.
There was so much to discuss from yesterday's humiliation that we made it to this point of the report without even discussing the specifics of the offensive performance beyond Denver's defense just being really good. And make no mistake, Denver has beaten down some very impressive offenses at their place and those teams still went on to have great years and in some cases even win the Super Bowl. Denver is a very difficult place to play and in September, you absolutely face the issues of altitude after a soft, modern-day training camp in which main players hardly play 50 snaps in the entirety of the preseason. So, then to ask for 70+ snaps in one afternoon where oxygen is thin often greatly swings things for Denver.
But, this game also had the special characteristic of the lightening delay. When you start the game as lethargic and as out of sorts as this game, you likely don't deserve the football gods to smile on you and allow you to take your rear ends to the room and rethink things. But, the Cowboys apparently did not think they had issues with their plan.
I would beg to differ.
We used to see this all the time with the Jason Garrett offense. They would have a different game-plan for hostile settings and it would often be to run the 2-minute drill offense all day and never even bother trying to establish the running game. There was a time they were a passive and finesse offense. But, of course, that is before they decided to rebuild the dynasty offensive line from the 1990s. Since assembling this offensive line with 1st round picks and the cap number that is already going to be $50 million in 2018 for just the 4 big money guys, this coaching staff has remembered to use it. They have understood that circumstances matter for this offense, and that playing the way they want to play requires a conviction to run physically to set up their play-action package. They run the ball and they believe in controlling the game and the clock. They believe that their QB is good, but they don't want to ask him to leave his comfort zone.
And they can dictate those terms quite a bit. For reasons that are not clear, they lost the plot yesterday and we could easily argue they were out-coached. Even after they had an hour to go in the room, huddle up as a braintrust and think it over as the storm passed over.
If you recall, the delay occurred with 0:33 to go in the 1st Quarter with the score still in a fortuitous spot of 7-0, Denver. Dallas had the ball at the Denver 46 facing a 2nd and 10. From there, the next 14 snaps and offensive plays were these: pass, pass (scramble), run, pass, pass, pass, pass, pass, pass, pass, pass, pass, pass, and pass.
That befuddles me to no end.
The worst part was being given the gift of what amounts to a defensive touchdown, squaring the game at 7-7 (somehow, despite how poorly things were going), and then when Denver comes back down and converts a field goal into a touchdown (off that leveraging penalty on Lawrence that is just the worst call of the day), you take the ball over with 5:54 in the 2nd Quarter. Everything is fine. You have tried one way and it didn't work, but now you have the ball and you can calmly re-find your identity and try to tie the game up before halftime. Basic stuff, right?
That is when they came out and decided to start slinging the ball around in shotgun. Poor throw to Dez on the slant. Quick dump to Terrance Williams. 3rd and 4 is the offensive pass interference on Dez, and then 3rd and 14 was the ball Brice Butler should have caught but did not and would not have moved the chains, anyway. How they go through that sequence without lining up in a physical formation (under center) and force Denver to prove they can stop the $50 million dollar line and Ezekiel Elliott is just as frustrating as it gets.
Oh, speaking of Elliott.
I don't know when Zeke actually hung the moon for the rest of us, but for a 22-year old RB to stand there and watch Chris Harris return an interception from 5-yards away and have his hands on his hips and not even flinch, let alone consider helping his teammates chase down a pick, is just epitome of horrendous. There is no excuse for that and I hope he is properly humiliated when his team watches the film today and see how little he cared to pitch in and help his team. We all know his authority figures in the organization are extremely unlikely to light him up for that, but perhaps a teammate or two will let him know that greater players than him didn't find it difficult to keep trying when the day is not going your way. That was very, very poor.
This performance was horrid all around. Two thousand words was not enough to spend time on each aspect. But, let's also understand that this is a tough league and it happens to just about every single team in the business.
But, hopefully, to the guys in the uniforms, the message is clear: You don't just show up and expect to win. In this game, they gave the impression that the Broncos should have been honored to be in the same stadium. Denver slapped them around all afternoon and gave them a humiliation that they haven't felt in a long time.
Did they learn anything from that humbling? We shall soon find out.
