The Dallas Cowboys Are in Trouble

 

    As the title suggests, the Cowboys are in trouble. MAJOR trouble. They currently sit at 2-7 and at dead last in the NFC. It's not an offensive issue plaguing them, it's not a defensive issue, and it's not a coaching issue. It's an everything issue bothering them.

    Ever since Dak Prescott went down with a compound fracture and dislocation on his right ankle, nothing has been going right with the Cowboys. It didn't matter that they managed to pull off a win over the Giants on the game when Dak went down. The offense has been sluggish and frequently turned the ball over. That was especially true with Ezekiel Elliott fumbling five times this season and losing four, and with Andy Dalton getting picked off three times this season before going down with an injury.

    Ben DiNucci, the third quarterback the Cowboys used this season, looked terrible. Especially in his only start of the season against the Eagles - fumbling twice and nearly throwing picks during the Week 8 game. He was so bad that he was benched for NFL journeyman Garrett Gilbert, who was a lot more accurate during the Week 9 loss to the Steelers. He proved that he was ready for a major challenge.

    The offensive line, in particular, has been ravaged with injuries. The original starting five at the O-line was Tyron Smith, Connor Williams, Joe Looney, Zack Martin, and La'el Collins. Looney and Collins went down with injuries during the season and Smith revealed that he had a neck issue that has been bothering him in the past years, and opted to forgo the season after having neck surgery. Backup tackles Cam Erving and Mitch Hyatt also went down with injuries. At one point, the Cowboys had Brandon Knight at left tackle. He looked like a swinging door during the loss to the Cardinals on Monday Night Football. Rookie center Tyler Biadasz pulled his hamstring during the loss to the Steelers.

    The defense for the Cowboys this season has been atrocious. Despite signs of improvement in the past few weeks, it never clicked together, as they currently rank in the bottom 10 in total defense and deal last in scoring defense. The most troubling part of their defense is that the run defense ranks 2nd-to-last in the league. They have allowed run totals of 208, 261, and 307 in three separate games this season. Dontari Poe was largely ineffective, leading to his release, and Gerald McCoy ruptured his quad tendon before the season and was released in August. They brought in Ha Ha Clinton-Dix in the offseason to pair up with Xavier Woods as the two safeties on the team, but was released after Darian Thompson passed him on the depth chart.

    It's got so bad for the defense to where Cowboys legend Michael Irvin noted that the team needs a "game-changer" on defense in the 2021 NFL Draft. The Cowboys currently have the 3rd pick in the Draft. The Cowboys' 2020 Draft turned out to be a good one, as cornerback Trevon Diggs emerged as a solid replacement to account for the loss of Byron Jones in the offseason. Despite early struggles, he broke through in Weeks 5 through 9, but broke his foot in Week 9 and could be out for the season. Defensive tackle Neville Gallimore, who had played only 20 snaps in the first four games, played at least 22 snaps in four of the Cowboys' last five games. Pro Football Focus regarded him as one of the best interior defensive linemen on the run defense, run stops, and run stop percentage.

    But even the coaching is bad too. Several Cowboys players called out the coaching staff for being "totally unprepared" for games. One player told Jane Slater of NFL Network that they "don't have any sense of adjusting on the fly."

    Some are even perceiving that some Cowboys players are not giving their best effort on a consistent basis, which was on display during the team's loss to the Cardinals.

    When team owner Jerry Jones was asked about a leadership void on the team by Shan Shariff, a radio show host on 105.3 The Fan, the Cowboys' flagship radio station, Jones answered to Shariff and co-host R. J. Choppy by denying that the Cowboys have a leadership void. He also voiced his support of head coach Mike McCarthy.

    But as of now, it seems as if the decision to hire McCarthy is looking worse and worse through the coming weeks. The players aren't happy with his coaching style. Remember his latter years with the Packers? There was a sense that the team was underachieving and that the relationship between him and Aaron Rodgers was deteriorating. When McCarthy was still coach of the Packers, everyone was questioning who the real problem of the team was. People were speculating that Rodgers drove out McCarthy because of the quarterback's ego and that he was uncoachable. But when Matt LaFleur was brought in as the Packers' head coach, Rodgers has looked more dominant. The 2019 Packers went 13-3 and made an NFC Championship Game appearance. Now, in 2020, the Packers sit at 7-2 and with the NFC North lead.

    Additionally, the only reason the Cowboys have Mike Nolan as their defensive coordinator is because McCarthy brought him in. This is the same Mike Nolan that had the 2014 Falcons' defense rank dead last in the league in yards allowed and 27th in points allowed. McCarthy is responsible for all this, including his offensive gameplan, which continues to be a one-dimensional, pass-happy gameplan. The Cowboys are in the top 3 in passes per game, but in the bottom half in rushing attempts per game. The lack of the run game was noticeably visible when McCarthy was coaching the Packers. He abandoned the run game with Aaron Jones, who is now dominant at his position. Ezekiel Elliott, on the other hand, is having his worst career season.

    And in just his first season with the Cowboys, McCarthy may be finding himself on the hot seat. It's safe to say that they are already doing worse in one season than how they did with Jason Garrett as their head coach. Before the season, they could have hired Lincoln Riley or Urban Meyer to be their head coach. But no, Jerry chose to hire the coach who has shown he can't truly coach a team anymore.

    In the end, the Cowboys are in very hot water. Everything is falling apart, and it seems there is no end in sight for them. It doesn't help that Dak was playing on his franchise tag year and may have played his last snap as a Cowboy. If nothing changes with this team, things could be very dark for them in the future.