2023 Cowboys Coaching Staff Thread

[p1_]

A bunch of people thought Schottenheimer was being too conservative offensively with the run game and holding Wilson back. They wanted a more wide open offense that would let Wilson throw it around more.

Their offense took a big step back in 2021 after Schottenheimer was let go, and we all saw what happened last year.

Wilson threw 100+ TD's and just 25 INT's over Schottenheimer's 3 years, it'll probably go down as the most productive 3 year stretch of his career.

and look what happened in Denver.

 

[boozeman]

Did Frank "Third" Reich shit can McAdoo? Is he available?

Yes, unless the Panthers decide to retain him. I bet he rolls right into Dallas soon.

 

[Cowboysrock55]

and look what happened in Denver.

Yep, Wilson may not be actually that great of a QB.

Also I feel like there have been a lot of Dak comps for most of his career. So it seems like it would be a good fit.

 

[boozeman]

so what is the 'Let Russ Cook' thing about schott's time in Seattle? Ive read it in several places.

It boiled down to the philosophy of grinding on the run and then springing play action.

That was supposed Carroll's preference but there was a stretch where Wilson was producing at a high clip for the first half of the season in 2020 through the air.

Fact or Fiction: Did Seahawks Stop Letting Russell Wilson Cook?
Since the Seahawks season abruptly ended in the wild card round, one of the common narratives has been that the team's return to a run-heavy attack and taking the ball out of Wilson's hands led to their latest early playoff exit. But analytics and film all suggest that theory is a big, fat lie.

• CORBIN K. SMITH

The 2020 season opened with a bang for Russell Wilson, who had successfully lobbied coach Pete Carroll and offensive coordinator Brian Schottenheimer into letting him "cook" during offseason meetings.

The star quarterback lit up scoreboards for the Seahawks over the first eight weeks, throwing 26 touchdowns as the Seahawks raced out to a 6-1 start and sat in first place of the NFC West. He threw four or more touchdown passes in four of the first seven games, including tossing five touchdowns in victories over the Patriots and Cowboys, putting him on pace to break Peyton Manning's single season record.

But starting in Buffalo in Week 9, everything started to unravel. Though Wilson threw for 390 yards in a 44-34 loss to the Bills, he threw a pair of costly interceptions and coughed up two fumbles that were recovered by the defense. The next week, he once again threw two critical picks and lost a fumble in a 23-16 road loss to the Rams, dropping the Seahawks to 6-3 and out of first place.

As recently outlined in an article breaking down the escalating rift between Wilson, Carroll, and the Seahawks by The Athletic, the star quarterback met with coaches prior to a Week 11 matchup with the Cardinals to offer schematic suggestions for jump-starting the offense.

While the coaches heard him out, they apparently dismissed his advice and Wilson angrily "stormed out" of the room.

Despite that unpleasant meeting, Seattle rallied to win six of its final seven games, including enacting revenge against Los Angeles at Lumen Field to capture a division title. But while the team found ways to win thanks to a rejuvenated defense, Wilson and the offense continued to struggle, averaging 24.1 points per game during that stretch. This average also was heavily influenced by a 40-point outing against the then-winless Jets.

With the win over New York as the lone exception - Wilson threw four touchdown passes that afternoon - the seven-time Pro Bowler failed to come close to recapturing his prior MVP form. From Week 9 on, he threw one or less touchdowns in five different games, failed to hit 200 passing yards four times, and posted a sub-60 percent completion rate three times.

While Wilson had a point when he publicly vented about being hit too much last month, the quarterback bears some of the responsibility for fixing that problem. And contrary to the popular narrative, the Seahawks didn't stop letting the star quarterback cook. They didn't suddenly take the chef out of the kitchen.

Despite Carroll's persistent comments to reporters about leaning more heavily on the run game, the Seahawks didn't necessarily do that over the final two months. Starting running back Chris Carson didn't have a single game with more than 16 carries in the second half and though the team averaged 28 carries per game over the final seven weeks, that statistic is a bit misleading.

Why? Though the team rarely called designed quarterback runs or read option plays, Wilson's propensity for escaping the pocket led to numerous tuck-and-run scramble opportunities. He ran the ball 83 times for 513 yards on the season and during those final seven games, he averaged five carries per game, and the vast majority of those runs came after he dropped back on pass plays.

Starting with the aforementioned rematch against Arizona, Seattle dialed up 36.5 drop backs per game over the final eight games, including a wild card loss to Los Angeles. In that same set of games, excluding Wilson's carries as a scrambler and kneel downs, running backs and receivers received just 22.1 carries per game, equating to 38 percent of the team's offensive snaps.


Digging even deeper, the Seahawks only had three games during that span where running backs had more than 21 carries. On the flip side, Wilson dropped back to pass at least 34 snaps in five of those games, including 50 called pass plays compared to just 15 runs in a Week 13 loss to the Giants at Lumen Field.

To truly squash the notion that Carroll and Schottenheimer reverted to their old ways by relying on the run game and shutting down Wilson's five-star restaurant in the process, one has to look no further than Seattle's neutral early-down passing frequency. This metric accounts for play calls on first and second down when teams have between a 20 and 80 percent win probability and excludes the final two minutes for each half.


Per RBSDM.com - which ironically stands for "running backs don't matter" - the Seahawks ranked first in the NFL in neutral early-down passing frequency through the first eight weeks of the 2020 season at north of 65 percent. While they ran the ball a bit more in the second half, however, they remained aggressive throwing the football on early downs, posting the sixth-highest neutral early-down passing frequency from Week 9 to Week 17.

So what was the biggest difference? In the first two months of the season, with Wilson dicing up opposing secondaries, Seattle was one of the six most efficient passing teams with 0.293 expected points added per drop back. But over the final nine games, including the playoff defeat, the team finished 26th overall with negative 0.008 expected points added per drop back.


In retrospect, there were numerous reasons for the steep regression by Wilson and the entire Seahawks offense. Carroll became more involved after Wilson's seven turnovers against the Bills and Rams, which led to his quarterback being overly cautious trying to protect the football. The inability to effectively adjust to two-deep safety looks ultimately led to Schottenheimer's ouster, while a banged up offensive line took big steps back allowing five or more sacks in five of Seattle's final 10 games.

 

[Genghis Khan]

McCarthy’s a punching bag right now

He is?

 

[boozeman]

He is?

Maybe not here, but yeah, I would say your average Joe Fan is on his ass.

 

[NoDak]

Maybe not here, but yeah, I would say your average Joe Fan is on his ass.

We have more than our fair share of those here. Look no further than the game day thread when they’re most active.

 

[p1_]

 

[mcnuttz]

A bunch of people thought Schottenheimer was being too conservative offensively with the run game and holding Wilson back. They wanted a more wide open offense that would let Wilson throw it around more.

Their offense took a big step back in 2021 after Schottenheimer was let go, and we all saw what happened last year.

Wilson threw 100+ TD's and just 25 INT's over Schottenheimer's 3 years, it'll probably go down as the most productive 3 year stretch of his career.

Not many want to see Dak being given any more leniencies...let's get that ground game right.

It's the surest way to a ring, and Dak is plenty good enough to drive that bus...likely making lots of big plays along the way.

Maybe he was just too chummy with Kellen.

He needs a re-programming, stat!

 

[mcnuttz]

We have more than our fair share of those here. Look no further than the game day thread when they’re most active.

Link or gtfo

 

[NoDak]

Link or gtfo

I don't know how to hotlink.

 

[boozeman]

Not many want to see Dak being given any more leniencies...let's get that ground game right.

It's the surest way to a ring, and Dak is plenty good enough to drive that bus...likely making lots of big plays along the way.

Maybe he was just too chummy with Kellen.

He needs a re-programming, stat!

This could be the case.

Assigning the stroke to McCarthy is one thing.

An overlooked area is that nobody wants openly to admit it is also about trying to salvage the investment in Prescott.

 

[mcnuttz]

I don't know how to hotlink.

I'd be inclined to believe you, we're it not stamped across tour custom user title.

 

[p1_]

I'd be inclined to believe you, we're it not stamped across tour custom user title.

sumbitch.

 

[NoDak]

I'd be inclined to believe you, we're it not stamped across tour custom user title.

Oh yeah.

 

[p1_]

 

[fortsbest]

Exactly. Nobody of consequence was going to take this job, because everyone already knew that Fat Mike is the OC and play caller. So this hire doesn’t move the needle either way for me.

I don't know. There will be some changes and different players added. But with McCarthy running things Schott will have to direct Dak differently than Moore did. Maybe a different eye and mouthpiece in his ear will help him actually improve out of his comfort zone. Plus, regardless what they are saying, I bet the offense will change. I hope for a more WC style offense that requires quick decisions and keeps Dak from holding on to the F'n ball forever. If Pollard comes back healthy, or we get a Bijon, can you imagine them running plays like Ricky Waters did? Get a #2 WR (Another Volunteer one might be a good one), and I can see better things ahead.

 

[Cowboysrock55]

I don't know. There will be some changes and different players added. But with McCarthy running things Schott will have to direct Dak differently than Moore did. Maybe a different eye and mouthpiece in his ear will help him actually improve out of his comfort zone. Plus, regardless what they are saying, I bet the offense will change. I hope for a more WC style offense that requires quick decisions and keeps Dak from holding on to the F'n ball forever. If Pollard comes back healthy, or we get a Bijon, can you imagine them running plays like Ricky Waters did? Get a #2 WR (Another Volunteer one might be a good one), and I can see better things ahead.

All I remember was an ungodly amount of slant passes by Rodgers that teams struggled to stop. I don't think we run enough of them but I also worry that we will go too far.

 

[ravidubey]

All I remember was an ungodly amount of slant passes by Rodgers that teams struggled to stop. I don't think we run enough of them but I also worry that we will go too far.

It’s such an unstoppable play when you have a QB with reading skills, accuracy, and arm strength on the same page as a well-coached WR corps

Might be what the doctor ordered for Dak since you always have a read and throw option without needing to wait for plays to develop

Key with McCarthy is 1) Don’t forget to run and 2) Don’t go empty backfield in key situations.

 

[Cowboysrock55]

It’s such an unstoppable play when you have a QB with reading skills, accuracy, and arm strength on the same page as a well-coached WR corps

Might be what the doctor ordered for Dak since you always have a read and throw option without needing to wait for plays to develop

Key with McCarthy is 1) Don’t forget to run and 2) Don’t go empty backfield in key situations.

The good news is I actually think Gallup runs a pretty damn good slant. He just didn't get many opportunities. Obviously Lamb can as well.