Things are not great in Dallas, to say the least. Another loss to the 49ers has the team at its lowest point of the Mike McCarthy era, and their next chance to right the ship comes on the road against a Falcons team that has won four of its last five games and appears to be closing in on form.
As far as things are concerned in Dallas, the odds of a dramatic turnaround are very low. Their next four opponents have a combined record of 24-9, two of which are division foes. The Cowboys are on a path where they could effectively be out of the NFC East race by Thanksgiving, and it already looks like morale can’t get any lower than that.
Are they really approaching the point of no return, or are we being a bit dramatic? Tom Ryle and David Homan have some different views on the doomsday machine that is America’s Team.
David: In Hudson’s own words, “That’s it, man! Game over, man! Game over!” I have no confidence that this team can turn things around. The 49ers game proved that for me. They came out with some great energy, but it faded quickly. However, the energy was not accompanied by a new focus, with Mike McCarthy later admitting there were many misunderstandings in the opening campaign. Miscommunication happens, but it can’t happen on scripted drives like the ones teams start games on.
If the Trevon Diggs incident wasn’t proof enough, this team is weak and they are going to bust their head coach. This is not a recipe for a major turnaround during the year, in fact quite the opposite. I think this team is ready, and it’s time to roll out the mock drafts.
Tom: Woof. I think it’s fair to say that you’ve lost your optimism.
decent. I don’t think you can leave a 3X5 card among our actions this week. We can delve into the dismal stats or how poorly the roster ranks according to things like PFF, but to me, the morass of failure is barely visible.
The players seem lost. The coaches seem to have no ideas. Jerry Jones continues to display unparalleled levels of ignorance. For years this team insisted on doing things their way despite a lack of success. Now the reckless approach is finally starting to blow up in their faces.
The only question about this being a lost season is whether they’re still getting close to that point, or if they’ve already crossed the line.
David: I think things would be more salvageable if it weren’t for the division over it. The Commanders are one of the best teams in the NFL right now, with Jayden Daniels looking like a legitimate phenomenon and Kliff Kingsbury rediscovering his magic as a coordinator. Washington has high odds of at least making the postseason, if not winning the division outright. On their heels are the Eagles, who continued their trend from last year of trying to lose every game before ultimately emerging victorious.
Both teams had just two losses on the year, creating a steep hole to climb out of for the Cowboys. Not only does Dallas suddenly need to start winning, it also needs Philadelphia or Washington to start losing. It’s not impossible, but it seems unlikely with the way each team is heading at the moment.
Oh, and then there’s the rest of the NFC. There are only three Wild Card spots available, and the NFC East runner-up will very likely claim one of them. The NFC South appears to be a tight two-man race between the Falcons and Buccaneers, both of whom are playing the Cowboys this year. The entire NFC North has a winning record right now and is probably a safe bet to make at least two Wild Card teams.
In other words, there are a lot of things that suddenly have to start going the Cowboys’ way for them to make the playoffs. This, of course, is only half the battle in living up to the high expectations that always exist in Dallas.
Tom: Those are the external things, which of course the Cowboys can’t do much to change. It’s also a bit fleeting, as this year’s qualifying contenders demonstrate. There’s always about a 50% turnover from year to year, and Dallas has fallen behind a bit.
The problem is how likely they are to get it wrong. After three straight 12-win seasons, they will likely be eliminated from the postseason before December.
It’s harder than ever to argue against Jerry Jones who set Mike McCarthy up for failure. If anything, the decision to change coaches was made shortly after the latest playoff debacle. It is puzzling why McCarthy was brought back.
That shouldn’t necessarily impact the roster, but it certainly seems like it has. The team is rudderless, likely because they realize they’ve never really been given a chance to excel. This may seem like a good plan for ownership, but the cost of doing it this way may extend beyond one season.
David: I’m not sure it’s puzzling why they would bring back McCarthy if ownership is already ready to move on. Jerry Jones has officially fired his coach only twice this century, because he would rather let the contract lapse than pay buyout money. It’s the same mentality that has led to the team’s extremely cautious approach to free agency. Which ultimately amounts to a commercial approach rather than a football approach.
This is the main problem now, as you pointed out. McCarthy is a pure football man, while Jones is only interested in making money and minimizing financial losses. The path to success in Dallas is to find a coach who can tune out the noise that Jones repeatedly invites into the building, something McCarthy has been able to do for an extended period of time.
However, Jones has robbed him of any authority by making him a weak coach this season, and the players have taken that to heart. Now that the crisis has arrived, no one wants to play under their coach anymore, and that’s why we see what we see. McCarthy may be able to find a new way to motivate his players, but it certainly looks as if he has run out of tricks to make up for his boss throwing him under the bus.
