The Dallas Cowboys’ 47-9 loss to the Detroit Lions has prompted a postmortem, and it’s not a pleasant one. The Cowboys’ defense, although being beset by injuries, has some justification for giving up 47 scores, 492 total yards (184 on the ground), and no takeaway. Better was still anticipated.
The Lions’ defense made the offense incompetent. Dak Prescott and company only managed 251 total yards, their lowest of the season, had five total turnovers, and failed to score an offensive touchdown. After reviewing the fiasco, head coach Mike McCarthy had one main conclusion: his club cannot perform as it should under the current circumstances.
Speaking about his message to the team, McCarthy stated inside The Star on Tuesday: “Our fundamentals are not in order… Football fundamentals are a part of your daily life in this game, and we can’t continue as we are in terms of the quantity of giveaways and the dearth of takeaways.
“I therefore just talked about football, its technique, its foundations, how to get better at it, and how to stay focused on it. Even though there are a lot of moving elements, we still need to be more cohesive and consistent, so we should just talk about what we did and didn’t do and make sure that our direction is clear.” The six-word statement, “Our basics are not in order,” must be memorable. It’s also so… well, simple. However, using one category as an example, the Cowboys’ defense was among the best in football for a number of years under Dan Quinn, but that has completely changed under Mike Zimmer.
The offense is putting the injury-hit defense in difficult situations, which is increasingly worrying, especially in recent times, even if Zimmer’s team has only had five takeaways in six games.
After six games, the Cowboys offense has committed 11 turnovers, eight of which have occurred in the previous two weeks. Self-inflicted wounds are the reason McCarthy’s team “cannot function,” but this is nothing new.
Dallas is providing them numerous opportunities to score in advantageous positions, and they have taken them most of the time. When playing against the best football teams, you can’t give them more possessions.
McCarthy is aware of the issues, and during the bye week, he, his coaching staff, and the players must resolve them. Because even though things are starting to get ugly right now, they won’t be quite as bad as what might occur if the San Francisco 49ers completely destroy Dallas in Week 8.