Watkins: No team meeting needed for Cowboys

No team meeting needed for Cowboys

December, 12, 2013

By Calvin Watkins | ESPNDallas.com


IRVING, Texas -- It's pretty clear several Cowboys players feel they need to win their remaining three games to reach the postseason. A Philadelphia Eagles loss over the next two games could boost the Cowboys' chances to win the NFC East, in which they're a game behind.

So is it time for the Cowboys to hold a team meeting to make sure everyone is on the same page?

"I think everybody is very well aware of where we’re at right now for sure," tight end Jason Witten said simply.

The Cowboys controlled their own destiny by maintaining a first-place lead in the division but after a two-game win streak, this club had a major letdown in Chicago on Monday night, losing 45-28 to fall into second place.

There's no need for the Cowboys to worry about the New York Giants or Washington Redskins in the division race. The odds of gaining a wild-card spot are remote.

"In our minds, there’s no other way we’re going to make it to the playoffs unless we win out," safety Barry Church said. "We had it in our own hands for the most part until we lost [Monday] to Chicago. Now we know that we’ve just got to win out these last three games if we have any chance to make it to playoffs."

They still control their own destiny.

I heard this same dialogue last year and it was straight downhill after that. The coaches are going to have to ride them hard and show no mercy. That is the only way they will turn it around. Garrett should just stay home because he just doesn't have the stomach to get in their face.

Genghis Khan said:

They still control their own destiny.

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Kinda hard to do that with a toothless defense and a sputtering inconsistent offense.

If we did one thing fairly well, on either side of the ball, I could get on board.

I honestly feel worse about this team than I did about last year's and they had that same "chance". I guess the blowout embarrassments have got to me.

They keep saying that they have to win out but they say it as if they think they can just flip a switch and magically play better.

I want to know what's going to change to help them win out.

Are they going to bench some under-performing players?

Are they going to go with more of a ball control offense to keep the defense off the field as much as possible?

Are they going to blitz more so that they can generate some kind of pressure on the QB for a change?

I just want to know.

1bigfan13 said:

They keep saying that they have to win out but they say it as if they think they can just flip a switch and magically play better.\

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Don't blame them.

The guy that signs their checks has been talking about that concept for the last two-three offseasons.

boozeman said:

Kinda hard to do that with a toothless defense and a sputtering inconsistent offense.

If we did one thing fairly well, on either side of the ball, I could get on board.

I honestly feel worse about this team than I did about last year's and they had that same "chance". I guess the blowout embarrassments have got to me.

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Oh I agree. I was just commenting on the article implying they blew controlling their own destiny by losing to the Bears. Technically they still do.

But if they lose to GB, there is a pretty good chance the Eagles clinch before even getting to that final game. For now, though, we are kind of equally in control.

1bigfan13 said:

Are they going to bench some under-performing players?

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No.

Are they going to go with more of a ball control offense to keep the defense off the field as much as possible?

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Nope.

Are they going to blitz more so that they can generate some kind of pressure on the QB for a change?

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Nyet.

I just want to know.

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It's hard to win in this league. There are no bad teams. We try hard, study hard, and keep working to improve. It's a process.

boozeman said:

Don't blame them.

The guy that signs their checks has been talking about that concept for the last two-three offseasons.

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Two, three, seventeen. Whatever.

Plan9Misfit said:

No.


Nope.


Nyet.


It's hard to win in this league. There are no bad teams. We try hard, study hard, and keep working to improve. It's a process.

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So true.

This team had a chance to win in Chicago until the offense went pass happy with under two minutes left in the 1st half. Romo looked half-panicked in that series. Garrett just doesn't have a clue how to control the tempo of a game-- it's all numbers and philosophy to him.

ravidubey said:

This team had a chance to win in Chicago until the offense went pass happy with under two minutes left in the 1st half. Romo looked half-panicked in that series. Garrett just doesn't have a clue how to control the tempo of a game-- it's all numbers and philosophy to him.

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Interesting...

1bigfan13 said:

They keep saying that they have to win out but they say it as if they think they can just flip a switch and magically play better.

I want to know what's going to change to help them win out.

Are they going to bench some under-performing players?

Are they going to go with more of a ball control offense to keep the defense off the field as much as possible?

Are they going to blitz more so that they can generate some kind of pressure on the QB for a change?

I just want to know.

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Yeah. Just like it was going to be "uncomfortable" for some people last off season.

Genghis Khan said:

Interesting...

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And incorrect.

mschmidt64 said:

And incorrect.

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Opinions are like assholes. Everybody has them and they all stink.

ravidubey said:

This team had a chance to win in Chicago until the offense went pass happy with under two minutes left in the 1st half. Romo looked half-panicked in that series. Garrett just doesn't have a clue how to control the tempo of a game-- it's all numbers and philosophy to him.

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Would have been nice to try running the ball 35-40 times to keep the damned defense off the field.

Clay_Allison said:

Would have been nice to try running the ball 35-40 times to keep the damned defense off the field.

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Romo's body language was all hunched and desperate looking from the start of that series with the crowd totally amped and the Bears waiting for the pass. The first pass, Dez gets smashed-- like a hint from God that the strategy is probably flawed.

It's the job of coaches to understand what's working and go with the hot hand-- Murray. Instead they felt the need to press the offense to score in a hurry. Ridiculous. With just under two minutes remaining there was plenty of time to call any kind of plays.

Garrett and Callahan were the only thing that stopped Murray all night.