FRISCO, Texas – As the playoffs approach, the Dallas Cowboys’ deep confidence in the playoffs is gone and quot;Hey, this is a team you don’t want to play in January. that andquot;Itand#039;s the same Dallas team, just a different year.andquot; While there are logical points and flaws in the argument, it’s hard to look at back-to-back road losses — two chances to get just one quality road win before the end of the regular season — and feel confident going forward. To San Francisco or Philadelphia in a few weeks. At this point, it almost seems worrisome to go to Tampa Bay in recent weeks for the Buccaneers. But when we heard from the players in the locker room after the Miami loss, the confidence that prevailed at the beginning of the month is still there. andquot;We know who we are,andquot Dak Prescott said after the game. andquot;You saw it on the first two drives and at the end of the game. It’s just consistency. If we stay consistent and the defense plays like it did today, it will be a different story.andquot Continuity. That’s been a theme in all of the Cowboys’ wins, and it’s been a problem in all five of those losses, as trends leave the Cowboys behind in games and make it harder to win.
Let’s look at those numbers starting with the running game. Tony Pollard’s performance Sunday in Miami (38 yards on 12 carries) was one of his worst of the season and prevented the Dallas offense from fully opening when the game was used. While the rest of the ball carriers combined for a healthy 13 yards for 59 yards, the Dallas offense failed to break 100 yards for the fifth time this season. In those games, the Cowboys have four losses, with the lone win coming against the Chargers in Week 6.
The running game is played live in Dallasand#039; effort to win possession – this is what Mike McCarthy tries to emphasize both from an attacking point of view and during free football. If the Cowboys can’t win the possession battle, they will be healthier, but still a 3-3 season. Four of those six games were won on the field. At the same time, running also helps to maintain long distances. In Mike McCarthyand’s West Coast-style system, quick, short action that picks up pieces at once helps maintain a possession advantage, allowing for long, deliberate drives. in Dallas#039; In 43 drives of 10 or more games, the Cowboys won 36. Of the seven they did not convert, four were catalysts for the loss, which was due to a lack of attacking success.
But if you’re looking for one statistic that has been definitive in summing up Dallas’ five losses this season, you can point directly to the biggest factor in free football; turnover battle If the Cowboys lose the turnover battle, they are 1-5 on the season. In their last two losses, the Cowboys have been unable to create snaps, putting the offense in dangerous situations.
Those problems are only exacerbated when the offense gives the ball back. Overall, the Cowboys’ problems in 2023 are fixable. If you can feel the frustration in the players’ locker room after tough losses like Miami, it’s because the team really is. The biggest question that will determine success in January is whether they can excel in certain areas
