2023 Season | Week 5 | Gameday Chatter Thread | Cowboys @ 49ers | 10/8/2023

[Chocolate Lab]

It is a small ball offense that only works if the run game works. There is no explosion and dammit if we weren’t wrong on Kellen Moore.

We weren't wrong. We're stuck with the QB, so we had to try something different. This system may not make Dak any better, but we'd seen the ceiling of the old one.

 

[Genghis Khan]

I go back to the Cardinals game and you said “all is lost”. Even though it was only the third game, that was such a pathetic performance I had a suspicion that you were correct. They were exposed as an average team at best. Same as it ever was since Jimmy left unfortunately. It is a long season yadda yadda but the fundamental flaws of this team won’t be corrected anytime soon.

Yep. We've seen this movie before.

Big Ben. Parliament.

 

[Rev]

It is a small ball offense that only works if the run game works. There is no explosion and dammit if we weren’t wrong on Kellen Moore.

We werent wrong on Moore but that doesnt mean that the Texas toast is the answer.

 

[Genghis Khan]

Like I’ve said, RB1 has lost half a step since that injury. He’s just doesn’t have that explosion anymore.

I don't even think it's that. Prior to the injury the couple of times he's been the primary back were at best mixed results. He's a good player but he's miscast as a primary back.

And that might even have worked had they brought in another reliable guy. But they didn't.

 

[shane]

I've had that opinion for a while now, but I'm starting to wonder if it's the QB. Cooks doesn't look so great either. What's the common denominator? It's either the QB or the scheme or both.

I don't think Gallup is great but him and Cooks are more useful than they've shown.

Gallup is a fine WR3. The problem is the QB, period. The lame ass offensive scheme isn’t helping matters. Opposite problem of last year

 

[Genghis Khan]

No brain.

I saw a lot of that last night, and pointed it out once or twice. I didn't see the second half at all so I can only imagine how much this occurred.

Complain about the scheme all you want and there's certainly merit to it, but Dak's decision making is not good alarmingly often.

He gets away with it against bad defenses because there are a lot of guys open at the same time and you almost can't go wrong. But against good defenses when the windows are small and short and the choices are very limited, the results have been consistently bad.

 

[Rev]

Not even competitive.

So many holes on offense.

 

[Simpleton]

I saw a lot of that last night, and pointed it out once or twice. I didn't see the second half at all so I can only imagine how much this occurred.

Complain about the scheme all you want and there's certainly merit to it, but Dak's decision making is not good alarmingly often.

He gets away with it against bad defenses because there are a lot of guys open at the same time and you almost can't go wrong. But against good defenses when the windows are small and short and the choices are very limited, the results have been consistently bad.

He doesn't see the field especially well, I agree that you can see it happening most games where he misses open guys because he's already written off one side of the field or is locked in on one route combination, but it gets overlooked because the offense is still moving along well enough and we end up winning more often than not. The conundrum is he's good enough to get us 10-12 wins, and he's been really good in the playoffs against everyone except SF for the most part, but does he and the offense have what it takes to beat that defense if our defense isn't playing lights out?

Doesn't seem like it.

 

[Bipo]

Not even competitive.

So many holes on offense.

Not really. Just one really overpriced one.

 

[Simpleton]

Here is the sad reality: we are as good a defense as Philly and SF, but our offense is woefully behind theirs. Each of them have elite running games led by better backs than we have, and each of them have TWO high end CD Lamb caliber WRs instead of one, and each of them have an elite TE. Finally, they each have non elite but competent QBs capable of racking up yards and points. Ours can no longer push the ball downfield (not that he ever was really able to do this consistently).

Agree with this, especially comparing to Philly whose defense has gotten roasted by some mediocre offenses/QB's so far without looking nearly as dominant as our defense against lesser opponents.

I thought SF's defense would take a step back after losing Ryans but somehow they seem as good as ever, almost as if the scheme is not fully emanating from the coordinator but partially from the players, probably Warner in particular.

Our defense is definitely good enough to compete with those teams, and I think our offense can challenge the Eagles because their pass defense seems pretty shit, but I have 0 faith that Dak and/or McCarthy has what it takes against SF's defense, in conjunction with the creativity they show on offense.

The defensive play last night doesn't worry me much but I was hoping to see some strong ideas out of McCarthy and the offense against a defense that obviously had to be one of their main focuses of the offseason, and yet they looked as lost as ever.

 

[Chocolate Lab]

The defensive play last night doesn't worry me much but I was hoping to see some strong ideas out of McCarthy and the offense against a defense that obviously had to be one of their main focuses of the offseason, and yet they looked as lost as ever.

Just curious why the defense didn't worry you? As inept as the offense was, the defense was the worst part of the team in the first half, anyway.

 

[L.T. Fan]

Sadly, at this point the only way we get rid of Dak is i

Care LT. That's what I said last week and you'd think I pissed on Tom Landry's grave or something.

I have had this position for some time and I suppose if some want to hold out for Prescott and not see how he folds under pressure then so be it but Dallas can only go so far with him and that has been evident to me for a long time even before he was signed for his current contract. Jones was the catalyst for making sure he had a QB that was in the high dollar range but if he had been realistic he should have been able to see that Prescott has some limitations that he can’t seem to overcome. If this game doesn’t expose him to the optimistic crowd then it’s an issue that will keep the Cowboys in the false hope posture for many games to come.

 

[boozeman]

 

[Simpleton]

Just curious why the defense didn't worry you? As inept as the offense was, the defense was the worst part of the team in the first half, anyway.

Because I felt like most of what happened while the game was still competitive was correctable, and that they actually stood up and made some stops in critical situations but the offense did absolutely nothing to help them out. The run defense was also pretty solid while the game was competitive, Deebo had like 2-3 solid runs but McCarthy was mostly under wraps.

A lot of the issues early on were penalties, giving up the trick play, allowing a screen to pop on 2nd and 12 and so forth, those are things that can be corrected and/or aren't systemic.

The only drive that really pissed me off was the opening drive of the 2nd half when it was 21-10 and they gave up a 3rd and 12 conversion, although on that drive Purdy was just locked in and making some ridiculous throws after not being forced to do much in the first half because they could afford to play at their pace and rhythm without being forced into high leverage situations.

Like yea, they gave up some plays obviously but the dam is always going to break when your offense is going 3 and out 85% of the time.

 

[boozeman]

 

[Foobio]

Not that it made a difference but this was appalling

 

[boozeman]

Just curious why the defense didn't worry you? As inept as the offense was, the defense was the worst part of the team in the first half, anyway.

The defense worries me after that and now that Vander Esch will be out, the gig is up with our LB clown show. Wilson has played like utter ass and his stupidity last night set the tone. Hell no we aren’t fine on defense either.

 

[son of deadrise]

Jerry's comfort level with coaches lies with retreads. McCarthy is a retread who assured him somehow he could transform Dak into a top QB.

Phillips was a retread. Garrett wasn't a retread because he'd never trod anywhere. But after 8 years he became a retread.

Jerry doesn't seek out innovators. Probably because he wouldn't know innovation if it bit him in the ass.

 

[Bipo]

Jerry's comfort level with coaches lies with retreads. McCarthy is a retread who assured him somehow he could transform Dak into a top QB.

Phillips was a retread. Garrett wasn't a retread because he'd never trod anywhere. But after 8 years he became a retread.

Jerry doesn't seek out innovators. Probably because he wouldn't know innovation if it bit him in the ass.

An innovator that won championships here would get more credit than Jerry would be comfortable with.

 

[Chocolate Lab]

Jerry's comfort level with coaches lies with retreads. McCarthy is a retread who assured him somehow he could transform Dak into a top QB.

Phillips was a retread. Garrett wasn't a retread because he'd never trod anywhere. But after 8 years he became a retread.

Jerry doesn't seek out innovators. Probably because he wouldn't know innovation if it bit him in the ass.

Garrett was Jerry's all-time favorite Pet Project and he wasn't a retread and got way too long a leash. Then Jerry insisted the offense be put in Kellen's hands and he'd never even been a coach anywhere else before. Going way back, Chan Gailey wasn't a retread.

Most of these young coordinators fail or are average as HCs. It happens all over the league all the time.