DALLAS — With the NFC East on the line, with the chance to erase all of the failure from the previous 15 weeks, the Dallas Cowboys needed to beat the Philadelphia Eagles at Lincoln Financial Field, a stadium where they had posted the most wins by a divisional opponent since the venue's 2003 inception.
Instead, Dallas showed up flat and could only muster field goals to compete with the battered Eagles offense. The only optimism Cowboys fans have heading into a despondent Week 17 is that it is the advent of a new era on the sidelines.
Cobb, not Cooper, being absent is the bigger sin — Internet ruckus and Twitter timelines blew up when receiver Amari Cooper was absent on the Cowboys' fourth-and-the-season from the Eagles' 23-yard line with Dallas down a score in the fourth quarter. However, it makes sense that he wasn't in on the play. The Pro Bowl wideout had four catches for 24 yards on 12 targets.
Cooper struggled with drops and wasn't the playmaker Sunday afternoon. Maybe he should have been on the field as a decoy or to clear out some routes.
Wideout Randall Cobb actually was fairly effective on the evening with five catches for 73 yards, including a big 17-yard catch on a fourth-and-9 earlier in the fourth quarter. He also wasn’t on the field for the play.
Even though Michael Gallup was the target for quarterback Dak Prescott on that fourth-and-8 attempt, Cobb needed to be in the game as one of the offense's better targets in the Week 16 match-up.
It doesn't bode well personally for Cooper, who is on the last year of his contract, to not be in the game. However, they had their best target in Gallup (five catches for 98 yards).
They should have also had Cobb out there complementing Gallup as he had been pretty impactful, as well. Instead, Dallas had neither Cooper nor Cobb assigned to the most important play of the season and now they’re 7-8.
Special teams need to be fixed — The spotlight is rightfully placed on coach Jason Garrett, the offense, defensive passing game coordinator Kris Richard, and defensive coordinator Rod Marinelli. However, Keith O'Quinn and the special teams have been atrocious all season, and ugliness was on display in Philadelphia.
The Cowboys entered Week 16 "leading" the NFL in worst average starting field position at their own 25.6-yard line. On all eight of the Cowboys' possessions obtained either by punt or kickoff return, they were behind that average starting field position.
Furthermore, the Eagles entered Week 16 tied with the Atlanta Falcons for 18th-best average starting field position at the 28.2-yard line. On six of the Eagles' nine drives obtained by either punt or kickoff return, they were better than their season average.
In addition to securing transfer of possession, special teams is supposed to be a phase of the game where hidden yardage and hidden possessions are obtained, like $20 left in a jacket or a free reward on a Starbucks card. Instead, special teams all season has been the NTTA Zipcash bill that has snowballed into a costly fine.
Whoever the new coach in Dallas is, they need to have a wise special teams coordinator on the sidelines who has seen it all. Don't tell anyone, but surrounding your coach with the most experienced coordinators is a recipe for success. See McVay, Sean, 2017-18 and Haley, Todd, 2010.
What happened to Tony Pollard? — On the Friday before the game on 105.3 "The Fan" [KRLD-FM], Cowboys COO Stephen Jones told "G-Bag Nation" that, "Pollard is showing that he deserves to be in the game. He's showing that he deserves those touches. As we move forward, I think you'll see more of that."
Cool story, bro, but Pollard had two carries for zero yards and also did not have a single target receiving out of the backfield.
The sensational rookie running back, who produced 131 yards and a touchdown on 12 carries against the Rams the week prior, saw two plays in the third quarter, including a bizarre pitch from Prescott on a third-and-1 in which he fumbled after losing a yard.
The fourth-rounder from Memphis wasn't seen again on offense the whole night. Against the Rams, Pollard saw a carry on the Cowboys' second drive of the game.
Dallas didn't utilize Pollard's skill set as much as ask him to spell starter Ezekiel Elliott, and it has been proven in 2019 that Pollard can complement the two-time NFL rushing champion, not just give him a breather. If Pollard sees more action against Washington, it will be way too late.
The Cowboys' playoff alchemy — If the Cowboys beat Washington on Sunday in Week 17 at AT&T Stadium, and the Giants beat the Eagles at MetLife Stadium (where Doug Pederson hasn't lost since 2016), then Dallas wins the NFC East. If that ends up the case, then for the first time in the history of the NFC East, the division champion would be 8-8. That could also happen if the Cowboys lose and the Eagles lose.
Even though there is technically a chance that Dallas makes the playoffs, the loss to the Eagles in Week 16 recalls coach Jimmy Johnson's reaction after the Cowboys blew a win-and-get-in game 26-7 at the Atlanta Falcons in the 1990 season finale.
The New Orleans Saints still had to beat the Los Angeles Rams on Monday Night Football, but Johnson said, via Jeff Pearlman’s book ‘Boys Will Be Boys,’ "The Saints can get ready to play Chicago. It's over."
In the same vein, that is how the season finale versus Washington will be viewed. What will be interesting to see is if this is the one game out of Jason Garrett's 152 on the sideline that the team quits on him knowing he's on the last year of his contract and materially failed to earn an extension.
Do you think the Cowboys will fight for Jason Garrett in Week 17? Share your thoughts on Dallas quitting on their coach with Mark on Twitter @therealmarklane.
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