2025 Season | Week 1 | Gameday Chatter Thread | Cowboys @ Eagles | 9/4/2025

[Cowboysrock55]

Impossible to say, but it's still an issue that Dak is the highest paid QB while only being probably somewhere around 8th-10th best or so.

Agreed, and its because our owner fucking sucks at his job. And its why this season like every other in the last 30 years will not end with a Superbowl.

 

[Simpleton]

They look more or less exactly like they did in the Garrett and McCarthy (probably a little worse, honestly) years.

Please don't bring up Garrett, his teams only started looking good after 4 years because they somehow stumbled into an all-time caliber OL. His teams were largely pathetic for the first 3 years.

Comparing to the McCarthy teams is fair, and I do think this team will end up in a similar realm as the 2021-23 teams.

 

[Smitty]

Yeah I know some here will judge and disagree but I've learned that you just have to enjoy the journey. If you can't enjoy the regular season because you know how the story ends, then there really isn't a point in watching the games at all. And so yeah, I'd much rather watch a Dallas team play well and win football games than to not. And if I can take anything from last nights game (Still not sure that you really can) I think this team is capable of a really good season.

Addiction is a good reason.

 

[Cowboysrock55]

No, he didn't. You don't know that he punches it in on the final drive if CD doesn't drop it.

It's much more of a sure thing that a properly led pass to Ferguson results in a TD. We know Dak flubbed that pass (I'm not talking about the one where Ferguson was drilled for the penalty, I mean the one earlier where it hit the defender's helmet and Ferguson had to reach back for it).

And like I said, it's nuts to say on an evening where he couldn't move the ball at all in the second half that you won't find missed open receivers, bad decisions, etc.

I know which pass you're talking about. And all I'm saying is you don't know. The one where Ferg got the penalty went right between his hands like he had no idea the ball was there. You have no idea if he catches the other pass if Dak throws it higher like he should have. You'd blame Dak for that drop too I'm sure.

 

[Smitty]

Yea, the contract is preposterous, no arguing that.

So he didn't play well then. At least not in relation to what we MUST expect from him given his pay scale.

 

[UncleMilti]

Right, people want to act like we were the final drive away from beating the Champs.

This isn't the team that won the Super Bowl. Their defense has atrophied and they are a league figuring out their gimmick QB away from being mediocre on offense too.

That's not to say a win wouldn't have been nice. They are the team you have to beat in this division. Maybe the conference still.

But losing by 4 isn't some hang your hat accomplishment either.

We want to be in that conversation. Losing this game in that fashion where the Eagles were misfiring on either side of the ball for an entirely half tells me that we are not there or even close yet.

I gotta disagree with you a little bit on Dak.

He was definitely not good enough last night, but he was a hell of a lot better than I thought he’d be given as much time as he missed. But at the end of the day, we already know what we have with Dak… this is no surprise.

I think more focus should be on why did all the motion that we saw at the beginning of the game go away when we really needed it the most?
Why don’t we have a competent stable of running backs on the field at any time??
Why can’t we seem to get wide receivers open down the field??

There is just a lot of dysfunction that seems to follow this team season in and season out… no matter who the coach is… no matter who the quarterback is.
I just think until Jones is gone this is the kind of shit that we’re gonna have to deal with. The whole fucking Jones family is a cancer that just eats at the core of this football team. What else could it possibly be?

 

[Smitty]

I know which pass you're talking about. And all I'm saying is you don't know. The one where Ferg got the penalty went right between his hands like he had no idea the ball was there. You have no idea if he catches the other pass if Dak throws it higher like he should have. You'd blame Dak for that drop too I'm sure.

We don't "know" a lot of things other than the good QBs don't have these mistakes stonewall them as often as it happens to Dak.

That's the problem.

 

[boozeman]

I fear his long run may have gotten Sanders at least another week on the roster.

But lost in blaming this loss on Lamb (and rightly so) is Sanders' fumble, which may have been just as instrumental in the loss if not more so.

I would have made his ass walk home. He got ran down by a LB and the fumble. Fuck him.

 

[Simpleton]

No, he didn't. You don't know that he punches it in on the final drive if CD doesn't drop it.

It's much more of a sure thing that a properly led pass to Ferguson results in a TD. We know Dak flubbed that pass (I'm not talking about the one where Ferguson was drilled for the penalty, I mean the one earlier where it hit the defender's helmet and Ferguson had to reach back for it).

And like I said, it's nuts to say on an evening where he couldn't move the ball at all in the second half that you won't find missed open receivers, bad decisions, etc.

He also hit a mostly covered Ferguson right in the hands on the very next play (the personal foul call on 3rd down), you seem to overcorrect on the passes that were slightly off while ignoring the ones that were made it into tight windows and should've been caught.

It's one thing to say "Dak is the highest paid QB, he's not in the elite tier of QB's and as such doesn't live up to expectations", it's another to blow slight misthrows out of proportion while brushing off tight window throws that literally go straight through the WR's hands, hitting them in the helmet.

 

[Smitty]

I gotta disagree with you a little bit on Dak.

He was definitely not good enough last night, but he was a hell of a lot better than I thought he’d be given as much time as he missed. But at the end of the day, we already know what we have with Dak… this is no surprise.

Well then I think we mostly agree.

"Definitely not good enough."

I don't need to dig any deeper. That's my point.

We are paying him top dollar. That requires that he play at an elite level.

Instead we don't even get "good enough," most weeks.

We get "not good enough."

 

[Cowboysrock55]

We don't "know" a lot of things other than the good QBs don't have these mistakes stonewall them as often as it happens to Dak.

That's the problem.

Yeah and I'm talking about last night. You're talking about an entire career. Way different things.

 

[Smitty]

He also hit a mostly covered Ferguson right in the hands on the very next play (the personal foul call on 3rd down), you seem to overcorrect on the passes that were slightly off while ignoring the ones that were made it into tight windows and should've been caught.

It's one thing to say "Dak is the highest paid QB, he's not in the elite tier of QB's and as such doesn't live up to expectations", it's another to blow slight misthrows out of proportion while brushing off tight window throws that literally go straight through the WR's hands, hitting them in the helmet.

What I'm saying is the elite QBs, of which Dak is paid to be one, come back and make elite throws to make up for their misthrows and they move the ball, compile yards, and score points.

Dak gets derailed by his misthrows or drops because he doesn't convert elite plays at a high enough rate.

Drops kill him because he won't come back on the next down and make you pay a second time. A blown opportunity is not rectified the next play or the next drive nearly enough. Because he doesn't have the ability. Not trying to be mean, he just doesn't have it.

 

[GShock]

I can't imagine being optimistic after 30 years.

It's Candide level naivety.

 

[Smitty]

Yeah and I'm talking about last night. You're talking about an entire career. Way different things.

Last night was the epitome of his career.

 

[Cowboysrock55]

I would have made his ass walk home. He got ran down by a LB and the fumble. Fuck him.

I'll give him credit for being patient on that run but besides that it was awesome blocking and being run down by a fucking LBer. Unfortunately you're right, I think Sanders will get that number 2 roll for a few more weeks. Much like last year we will be slow to recognize a washed up player.

 

[UncleMilti]

Well then I think we mostly agree.

"Definitely not good enough."

I don't need to dig any deeper. That's my point.

We are paying him top dollar. That requires that he play at an elite level.

Instead we don't even get "good enough," most weeks.

We get "not good enough."

But you left out the most important part- we know what we have already in Dak. That’s not going to change. His contract isn’t going to change. Jones isn’t going to kick him to the curb. We have one hope, and that is to grab a quarterback in the draft, but until then we are where we are.
Dak just simply has to be decent, get the ball to the wide receivers and not throw the big back breaking INTs.
Lamb makes a few of those catches last night and Pickens is a little bit more involved…I believe we win that game.

 

[Cowboysrock55]

Last night was the epitome of his career.

Last night is the epitome of your inability to see a team sport and judge the play of the entire team. You're so hyper forcused it's like you can't even see what's actually happening on the field.

 

[UncleMilti]

Agreed, and its because our owner fucking sucks at his job. And its why this season like every other in the last 30 years will not end with a Superbowl.

The only good thing I see is when I see Jones these days he looks a bit pale and not so healthy but maybe it’s me just projecting.

 

[Cowboysrock55]

The only good thing I see is when I see Jones these days he looks a bit pale and not so healthy but maybe it’s me just projecting.

Who knew how close we were a decade ago....

 

[Simpleton]

What I'm saying is the elite QBs, of which Dak is paid to be one, come back and make elite throws to make up for their misthrows and they move the ball, compile yards, and score points.

Dak gets derailed by his misthrows because he doesn't convert elite plays at a high enough rate.

Drops kill him because he won't come back on the next down and make you pay a second time. A blown opportunity is not rectified the next play or the next drive nearly enough. Because he doesn't have the ability. Not trying to be mean, he just doesn't have it.

Generally I agree, but he kept making throws last night and many of them kept being dropped.

If Lamb had the one single drop (pick any of the three) and the other two never happened, or maybe if only one more happened, I could easily see the argument because in general I get what you're saying about Dak not being dynamic consistently enough.

But last night the drops were egregious.