2020 Season | Week 8 | Gameday Chatter | Cowboys @ Eagles| 11/1/2020

[Cotton]

 

[Cotton]

We are now slated to pick 5th, so I guess there's that.

 

[Cowboysrock55]

We are now slated to pick 5th, so I guess there's that.

It's what's best for this team. We aren't winning anything this year with the injuries.

 

[Simpleton]

LVE had one tackle and a sack. The sack is nice of course but 1 tackle? That isn't good. He is rusty as hell.

The box score is one thing and the eye test is another. The run defense in general was much more cohesive and you didn't have these gaping holes all over the field for guys to run through. That could've been partially because of Poe being gone as well, or just the defense playing generally inspired, but my first impression was that he was involved in almost everything in the middle of the field and the front 7 looked as cohesive as they have all year.

The sack/FF was great but there is one play that typifies what LVE is and what he brings to our defense that they sorely lack when he's out. It was in the 3rd quarter I believe, he was positioned near the hash against a run, stepped up into the hole a bit without vacating the middle, forced the RB to bounce it out then exploded out towards the sideline and completely cut off his angle, allowing Lawrence to recover and force a fumble. As I was watching the play live I remember thinking in real time, oh, there's a massive amount of space and the RB is about to be 1 on 1 with a DB with pretty much everybody else blocked up, this is at least 7-8 yards and maybe 10-15. Instead LVE showed the discipline to force the RB to bounce it without overpursuing or overcomitting, then the athleticism to go make a play that ultimately resulted in a loss.

It's the type of assignment sound gap discipline/patience Jaylon doesn't have, and I personally believe that his lack of gap discipline and inability to work through traffic in tight spaces is one of the biggest issues with our run defense. That play right there is the type of play that sent LVE to the Pro Bowl in 2018 and if he can stay on the field and keep flashing like that I'll feel really good about him going forward.

 

[Simpleton]

I also think Donovan Wilson looked excellent, not just the strip sack but the play he made on Wentz on the 2 point conversion where he was in a full sprint to the sideline and met him just a yard or so short of the goal line was very impressive. We'll see how he does from here on out but if last night was any indication he may be a keeper as a box safety type.

Just the fact that he seems to generally make the tackles he should make is a huge upgrade over Darian Thompson.

 

[Cujo]

I also think Donovan Wilson looked excellent, not just the strip sack but the play he made on Wentz on the 2 point conversion where he was in a full sprint to the sideline and met him just a yard or so short of the goal line was very impressive. We'll see how he does from here on out but if last night was any indication he may be a keeper as a box safety type.

Just the fact that he seems to generally make the tackles he should make is a huge upgrade over Darian Thompson.

That was Hurts on the 2 point. That was a nice play.

 

[Simpleton]

That was Hurts on the 2 point. That was a nice play.

Even more impressive then.

At this point all I care about the rest of the year is seeing some guys on the defensive side make strides so that we don't have to replace 8 fucking players or something. If guys like Lawrence/LVE can play like they're supposed to, Diggs keeps making plays and a few guys like Wilson, Brown and Gregory continue to flash, I'll take it.

The offense is a wash with the disaster OL although I'll be keeping a close eye on Biadasz. He's permanently supplanted Looney as the starter and has been solid so far, I haven't watched the all-22 yet but I suspect he was at least decent overall considering we ran the ball up the middle pretty well and he didn't clearly bust anything in pass protection, aside from some communication issues which are probably just as much on DiNucci as the OL.

 

[boozeman]

 

[p1_]

The box score is one thing and the eye test is another. The run defense in general was much more cohesive and you didn't have these gaping holes all over the field for guys to run through. That could've been partially because of Poe being gone as well, or just the defense playing generally inspired, but my first impression was that he was involved in almost everything in the middle of the field and the front 7 looked as cohesive as they have all year.

The sack/FF was great but there is one play that typifies what LVE is and what he brings to our defense that they sorely lack when he's out. It was in the 3rd quarter I believe, he was positioned near the hash against a run, stepped up into the hole a bit without vacating the middle, forced the RB to bounce it out then exploded out towards the sideline and completely cut off his angle, allowing Lawrence to recover and force a fumble. As I was watching the play live I remember thinking in real time, oh, there's a massive amount of space and the RB is about to be 1 on 1 with a DB with pretty much everybody else blocked up, this is at least 7-8 yards and maybe 10-15. Instead LVE showed the discipline to force the RB to bounce it without overpursuing or overcomitting, then the athleticism to go make a play that ultimately resulted in a loss.

It's the type of assignment sound gap discipline/patience Jaylon doesn't have, and I personally believe that his lack of gap discipline and inability to work through traffic in tight spaces is one of the biggest issues with our run defense. That play right there is the type of play that sent LVE to the Pro Bowl in 2018 and if he can stay on the field and keep flashing like that I'll feel really good about him going forward.

It will also reinforce your opinion on Smith too

 

[boozeman]

 

[bbgun]

I am very frustrated by Moores play calling. I just feel like McCarthy should be anthe one calling the plays. Moore is a Jason Garrett clone that leaves zero protection for the QB.

Cedric Wilson had two big losses in the backfield on almost identical plays. And a plodding runner like Zeke doesn't make for a good wildcat back.

 

[Simpleton]

I said it during the week, McGovern is a way better RG than Steele is RT. Steele literally kills like 2-3 drives a week all by himself and has 10-12 plays where he's just completely whipped.

I get not wanting to move around Martin too much but not only should you put your best 5 out there when you've had as many injuries as we've had, but the real reason I want McGovern out there is just to accelerate his development. Steele has no future on this team, he's completely horrendous, has literally allowed like 7 sacks in less than half a season, including like 3-4 strip sacks, and when Smith/Collins are back Knight will be the swing tackle and there's no place for him.

 

[Simpleton]

It will also reinforce your opinion on Smith too

I don't think that'll be changing anytime soon. I just hope they cut him at the end of the year, especially if they're in position to draft Parsons.

 

[Chocolate Lab]

I said it during the week, McGovern is a way better RG than Steele is RT. Steele literally kills like 2-3 drives a week all by himself and has 10-12 plays where he's just completely whipped.

I haven't kept up with the details, but have they said why they don't want to move Martin out, other than the generic "move as few pieces as possible" bit? I almost get the feeling that Martin himself doesn't want to move, could that be it?

 

[Genghis Khan]

I haven't kept up with the details, but have they said why they don't want to move Martin out, other than the generic "move as few pieces as possible" bit? I almost get the feeling that Martin himself doesn't want to move, could that be it?

Martin publicly said he'll do whatever the team asks.

 

[1bigfan13]

This game was probably the best case scenario.

The defense showed some life, the supposed defensive "cornerstones" (Lawrence/LVE) finally looked good, Diggs showed why he's a long-term keeper, the Eagles looked just as shit as they have all year, the team in general didn't quit and finally played something resembling a normal NFL game. Most importantly, we didn't win an unnecessary game and are now slotted in for the 5th pick, and I personally think it's more likely that we end up in that 3-6 range than 7-10.

I mean, we had 100+ yards rushing, the defense gave up 15 points and got 4 turnovers, but you literally can't run an NFL offense with a QB like DiNucci at this point in his career. Maybe in 3-4 years but not right now, so it is what it is.

Agreed. Last night played out perfectly. With the team generally looking better prepared and like a normal NFL team, it made it easier to identify the real weak spots on the team. Jaylon's lack of awareness and general football IQ stood out again. Chris Jones continues to be a liability.

There were a few others like Steele and Crawford that stood out as well but guys like him aren't in the team's future so their positions should be corrected next season once starters return from injury or via the draft.

On the coaching side, Kellen Moore continues to struggle as an OC. Not only did they go overboard with the trick plays and reverses, but the timing of some of them was flat out awful. There were a couple of drives where the OL and RBs were gashing the Eagles D at about 7 yards a clip. They got inside the Eagles 40 yard line and instead of mixing it up by utilizing some play-action, Moore dialed up one of his reverses that got blown up for huge loss. Drives and momentum gone due to coach inexperience and stupidity.

 

[Chocolate Lab]

There were a couple of drives where the OL and RBs were gashing the Eagles D at about 7 yards a clip. They got inside the Eagles 40 yard line and instead of mixing it up by utilizing some play-action, Moore dialed up one of his reverses that got blown up for huge loss. Drives and momentum gone due to coach inexperience and stupidity.

That was terrible. What was it, eight run plays in a row? (Michaels was keeping a running count.) And marching down the field doing it. Perfect for a green rookie QB. Then the slow-developing reverse for the drive killer.

Reminded me of Garrett. We better go away from what's working, because that's what they'll be expecting.

 

[1bigfan13]

It wasn't pretty but it was at least entertaining. At this point I'm just looking for entertainment.

Three hours of 5 yard check downs are what makes me turn games off. Plus those shots down field could result in free chunk yardage via PI calls.

I need to see more of this from Andy Dalton going forward.

 

[Simpleton]

Play action is one of the most basic and effective offensive strategies, teams like the Rams and 49ers have literally built their offense around a diverse set of play action packages, and yet despite the fact that we have had one of the best running games over the NFL over the last several years we barely use it, maybe only 4-6 plays a game if I had to guess.

The situation we're in now, with defenses 100% keyed in on Elliott, is the perfect time to go heavy play-action on early downs, simplify the reads for our QB's and let them take some downfield shots, and yet we barely ever do it.

I mean, I'm not surprised considering Moore is basically a Garrett disciple, but you'd hope McCarthy would be more pragmatic.

 

[1bigfan13]

That was terrible. What was it, eight run plays in a row? (Michaels was keeping a running count.) And marching down the field doing it. Perfect for a green rookie QB. Then the slow-developing reverse for the drive killer.

Reminded me of Garrett. We better go away from what's working, because that's what they'll be expecting.

I don't understand why play-action passes wouldn't be the automatic choice in those situations. At that point in the drive you know they're keyed in on the RBs....making it a perfect situation to take a shot off play-action.