The Cowboys have opened the season with a 1-2 record for just the third time in fifteen years.
But if the losing wasn’t enough, Dallas’ ineptitude on defense and poor starts on offense have left everyone groping for viable answers. This squad has a lot of problems and not enough answers going into their NFC East matchup against the New York Giants on Thursday night.
Is the run game being fixed?
If so, the offensive schemers and the upfront blocking will have to do it. The play-calling and offensive line play we have seen thus far indicate that the present backs will not become much better, and even if Dalvin Cook were to start, it would not make a difference.
Pass protection is one thing. As a rookie left tackle, Tyler Guyton was always going to struggle, and Terence Steele has never really been good at it. However, it seems that there was false optimism heading into the season that the rookie arrivals and a purportedly healthier Steele would improve the run blocking from the previous campaign.
Although Cooper Beebe and Guyton will improve with time, it could not be quickly enough to address these problems. Dallas must now turn to Mike McCarthy and Brian Schottenheimer to begin developing plays that counteract the weak points, which requires a level of inventiveness from them that has not been demonstrated previously.
And what about the other ongoing issue?
If Dallas’ own running attack wasn’t ineffective enough, their run defense is even worse. Regardless of who is out there, the Cowboys are being dominated on the opposite side of the ball. Prior to being on IR, we witnessed Jordan Phillips accomplishing nothing; Mazi Smith and Linval Joseph have been ineffective; and at this point, Osa Odighizuwa is also limited in what he can accomplish.
On his way out, Dan Quinn was heavily criticized, which was understandable considering the poor performance of the defense in the playoff defeat to Green Bay. Given how much the defense has depended on standout players like Micah Parsons, Trevon Diggs, and DaRon Bland, concerns have been raised over Quinn’s actual worth. However, it would not matter even if Bland was playing because their best assets are taken away from them by their failure to stop the run.
When Quinn got to Dallas, things were simple. Mike Nolan’s 2020 work established a low standard, then Parsons, a generational talent, came along and surpassed it. However, what we are witnessing at this point is by no means growing pains, even if Mike Zimmer is unable to make the same kind of instant improvement. The Cowboys seem to be putting the wrong players in charge of both the field and the sidelines.
Will Mike McCarthy survive till December?
Speaking of coaches, McCarthy is facing more outside heat than he’s ever faced since coming to Dallas. Is it the same, though, within the structure? Though it may seem obvious that the Jones guys are unhappy with their head coach, let us not forget what has transpired over the previous eight months.
We have been telling you throughout the offseason that the Cowboys did not seem committed to going all in this year. Their attitude to both free agency and the draft was apparent, as they selected players with more eye on the future than those who would provide immediate assistance. Furthermore, keeping McCarthy as a stand-in during a transition year appeared like another concession for 2024 following all of the postseason busts.
Although Jerry and Stephen Jones will never acknowledge it, the proof is indisputable. Why remove McCarthy now if that is the attitude they have had ever since they chose to retain him? Jason Garrett is not standing by in the wings. Al Harris is the closest thing, yet he has not even had a coordinator position. There does not seem to be much of a push to fire McCarthy until the Cowboys move Zimmer to the head position and assign Harris the DC position to see how they feel about him in that capacity.
