DALLAS — Early October is a little soon for a team to have a gut check, but here the Dallas Cowboys have arrived after the Week 5 demoralizing defeat. That’s what happens when a team puts too much stock into a regular season game and flops flat on their face.
The San Francisco 49ers might have their number, and after what the Cowboys showed on the field in their third straight loss to their rivals, it might be a good idea to avoid trying to dial it again. The only shot at retribution for the Cowboys would come in the playoffs, but there’s a long way to go to get to that point.
What Dallas needs to do now is bounce back quickly, but before doing so, here’s what we learned about the Cowboys in humbling Week 5 loss:
New offense remains a work in progress
If there were those who felt that the Cowboys were waiting for the right time to unleash the new Texas Coast offense in its full glory against the 49ers, they were disappointed. Through four games, Dak Prescott was an efficient quarterback, but the next level wasn’t there against one of the best defenses in the league.
The 49ers’ defense sat on all the short throws and quick slants that the Cowboys have been using, and it led to a hesitant Prescott, who threw two interceptions on those routes late in the game, and three total on the night.
We’re all still waiting for the intermediate and deep throws that were expected when the Cowboys traded for wide receiver Brandin Cooks. We’re all still waiting for the offense that has elite players to take off, but it’s off to a slow start.
If the Cowboys were holding off on pulling out all the bells and whistles until a big game, consider it a flop. The offense has now had five weeks to showcase the new scheme, but it looked markedly worse against the 49ers.
CeeDee Lamb needs the ball
Part of any offense for the Cowboys should include their best wide receiver getting the ball more often and that didn’t happen against the 49ers. Lamb only had five targets and caught four of them for 49 yards.
That’s not enough looks for Lamb, but the bigger issue was the star wideout was open for much of the game but didn’t get the ball. Not getting the ball caused some negative body language from Lamb, and it wasn’t difficult to see his displeasure. Mike McCarthy addressed Lamb’s emotions coming out of the loss but the damage was already done.
Lamb’s frustrations are understandable since he had chances to impact the game, but the ball didn’t come his way. Those opportunities were wasted in Week 5 and that cannot happen moving forward if the Cowboys want to take the offense to the next level.
Where’s Micah?
The Cowboys have one of the league’s biggest game wreckers on defense, but defensive coordinator Dan Quinn insists on moving him around in his alignments. Parsons lined up at defensive end, tackle, and middle linebacker at different points in the game, having little impact. In a game of this magnitude, Parsons needs to be a factor, but Quinn playing him at any place other than as an edge rusher was detrimental in the loss.
Quinn also had Parsons going up against one of the league’s best left tackles in Trent Williams all too often which only served to nullify their best defender.
If the Cowboys want Parsons to ruin game plans, perhaps moving him around so much doesn’t help their cause. And if they do want to move him, perhaps matching him up with the best offensive lineman that the 49ers have wasn’t the smartest use of Parsons. Ultimately, it felt like an ill-conceived strategy from Quinn left Parsons and the Dallas defense ineffective.
Bullies got bullied
The Cowboys have a strong defense that likes to fly to the football and cause chaos. It’s a unit that gets to the quarterback and disrupts what offenses like to do. As an added advantage, Dallas’ defense has elite playmakers who force turnovers better than any team in the league. It’s a defense that likes to convert those takeaways into points or put the offense in a position to score points to get a lead so they can pin their ears back and bully offenses.
The tides were turned against the 49ers, however. It was San Francisco that scored early and often to allow their defense to bully the Cowboys’ offense and force four turnovers. Bullies don’t like to get bullied, and the Cowboys got a taste of their own medicine.
In their three wins this season, the Cowboys have forced 10 turnovers and pounded offenses into submission. In their two losses, they’ve taken the ball away just once. Against the 49ers, the Dallas defense managed just one takeaway, had just one sack and surrendered 421 yards of offense, including 170 on the ground.
If the Cowboys can’t get a lead and force offenses into mistakes, their defense isn’t as effective. The 49ers pushed back at the Dallas defense and it looked like an all bark, no bite unit in defeat.
Do you think the Cowboys can recover from their ignominious Week 5 loss? Share your thoughts with Ben on Twitter @BenGrimaldi.
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