What’s next in the dramatic world of the Dallas Cowboys?
If anybody cares, Michael Irving has “sounded the alarm” about the Dallas Cowboys. And Skip Bayless is oddly emotional about the state of the team. Guys, it’s just football. But since people love to toss blame, here are three Cowboys, including Dak Prescott, most to blame for the loss to the Lions in Week 6.
The Cowboys got manhandled 47-9 by the Lions. At home. Yep, 47-9. In that kind of a loss, it’s easy to point fingers. In fact, it would be more difficult to find areas for encouragement. But there is one. The Cowboys have the best place-kicker on the planet.
OK, back to the bad stuff.
Cowboys QB Dak Prescott didn’t get it done
He missed on almost half of his pass attempts, completing 17 of 33 tosses. He totaled 178 yards with two interceptions — including an ugly one in the end zone — and no touchdowns. Meanwhile, the ground game only supported him with 17 carries for 53 yards.
Cowboys head coach Mike McCarthy said there were many problems for Prescott.
“I think really the passing game you can start with the protection,” McCarthy said. “I think he was, you know, he was on his back foot all day from the get-go. And we had a couple things that were not clean, as far as a chip, check down, release and so forth were mistakes. Young players, but we need to be better, at the end of the day we need to take care of the football.”
Of course, Prescott’s performance impacted CeeDee Lamb. And the Lions added to the mix by playing supreme attention to the star wideout.
“They doubled CeeDee pretty much most of the day,” McCarthy said. “And then definitely Jake Ferguson saw some doubles too. We got to continue to do more in those areas. Not getting the run game really kind of put us on our heels. And that’s not fair for, you know, our alignment. But you know, the combination of run and pass is where you want to be. But once again, I think they I think they were ahead of us at the line of scrimmage.”
What did Dak Prescott have to say about loss
Prescott said it turned into a tough day, according to a post on X by NBC’s Pat Doney.
“Very frustrating,” Prescott said. “I don’t want to say I’ve got to play perfect, but I’ve got to be better. We’re 3-3, six games under us, a long season to go. We need to look in the mirror and figure out how we can be better for this team. Humbling for sure. That’s the #NFL. Concerning? I’m not a guy to hit the panic button.”
It added up to the Cowboys’ third straight home loss.
“We’ve played winning football on the road,” McCarthy said. “We’ve played three good teams. We have three good teams that have come in here and played well against us. It’s the National Football League. It’s not who you play, it’s when you play them. And you know, that’s part of where we are. You know, we have, our lineups are changing. This is a good experience with some rough moments and this definitely was a rough moment today.”
Cowboys head coach Mike McCarthy under fire
After putting together thre straight 12-5 regular seasons, the Cowboys don’t currently look like that kind of team in 2024. It could turn around, but McCarthy has to be feeling a little heat. Still, Prescott has his back for now, according to a post on X by Jon Machota of The Athletic.
“The man he is,” Prescott said. “The preparation that he puts into this. The leader. I’ll go to war for that guy, with that guy, every single day. And I’m not the only one in that locker room. I feel like everybody feels that. If you heard what he said after that game (last night), not something that I care to let you guys in on honestly, but strong message. Strong message. In a loss, to be able to feel that way and show those emotions and respond, I’ll follow him. I’ll follow him. I know he said it to you guys, he said it in there, he’s looking in the mirror, as we all should. Thankful for him as my coach. Period.”
“First of all, that’s not (Jones’) history,” Schefter said. “No. 2, who do you want to appoint from that staff that’s going to be a better coach than Mike McCarthy? Who on that staff is taking over? His contract is up after this year, so there’s no reason for the best coach on their staff not to continue on. Let the season play out and then make a decision, especially considering Jerry’s history.”
The Cowboys’ defense isn’t holding up
As the final score suggested, the Lions did what they wanted to do. Jared Goff passed for 315 yards with three touchdowns and no interceptions. On the ground, they racked up 184 yards on 36 rushing attempts with a pair of scores.
That’s kind of been what is has looked like for the Cowboys at home. They’ve been tougher on defense on the road, but it came against the lesser offenses of the Browns, Giants, and Steelers. McCarthy said it has been a rollercoaster.
“We’re up and down right now,” McCarthy said. “If you want to put it on a grid, use mathematics, the analytics. I mean, the ebb and flow of what we’re doing is there’s way too many highs and too many lows. This is all over right now. There’s none of us that feel good about how we performed today. That’s where it’s important for every one of us, starting with myself, they need to look in the mirror. We don’t need any help; don’t want any help. So, we just need to stay after it, keep working. And I’m very confident we’ll come out the other end.”
