The Dallas Cowboys were lit up for 44 points in their Week 2 loss to the New Orleans Saints, and defensive coordinator Mike Zimmer is under fire as a result.
However, Zimmer is vowing to get things rectified.
“Yeah, I talked to [the defense] for a while,” Zimmer said, via Patrik Walker of the Cowboys’ official team website. “We watched film together. We talked about things we need to do better, things I need to do better and we’ll just keep working on it. … If I didn’t fix those, I wouldn’t be standing here today.”
The Saints piled up 432 yards of offense against the vaunted Cowboys’ defense and had 35 points by halftime. They scored six straight touchdowns to open the game.
Derek Carr went 11-for-16 with 243 yards and a couple of touchdowns, and New Orleans’ rushing attack gashed Dallas for 190 yards. Alvin Kamara had 115 of those and reached the end zone three times.
Considering that defense is the Cowboys’ calling card, eyebrows have been raised.
Of course, Dallas changed defensive coordinators this past offseason, as Dan Quinn departed to take the Washington Commanders head-coaching job.
Zimmer has a solid NFL history, but it may take him some time to adjust in his new surroundings.
Unfortunately for Zimmer, he doesn’t have a ton of clock to work with in a 17-game campaign, especially with Dallas having a desperate Baltimore Ravens team coming into town this Sunday.
“I’ve never seen us [give up] plays in a practice like that,” Zimmer said he told his team. “I mean, these guys, typically, they are on point and do everything the right way. They play very, very hard. They like to compete.”
The Dallas Cowboys are 1-1 thus far in 2024.