Cowboys Break: Defensive Struggle?

We're live from s WBC Mortgage Studios. At the start, we're gonna talk to some Cowboys and Saints. We're getting you guys ready for the Sunday night football game this week. On today, we'll get into the defense. Yesterday we talked about the Saints offense. Dave have a breakdown for us Before we get into that, though, I do want to talk about an injury that popped up yesterday that makes me a little bit nervous. Talk to me about a

Marii Cooper. What's going on with him? Maury Cooper came out of the Dolphins game with a dinged up ankle foot thing. Is it Jason Garrett? But it is a different foot. Okay, so now he's got two feet. He got an MRI on it yesterday that was negative, which is positive. That's always confusing for people, but negative is good. Uh. We saw him yesterday after the MRI and like he wasn't limping or anything. Um again, you know they have one here. It makes sense to get that type of

stuff done. But he was at practice today, so you know, all these guys are dealing with something, but it doesn't look like something that's going to keep him out of the game. So he was a practice. It was a practice, so at least some limited workout, I guess. Yeah. Okay, So now ask me about the other one. Yeah, that's not that's old. That's old news. We got new news. When did this one happen today? Okay, so tell me what happened. Jack Martin's not at practice. Oh my goodness.

So I mean this just happened. I me and Nick walked out of practice and walked into the studio. So we haven't had a chance to look into it too much that Cowboys officials will say, well, he was on yesterday's inter report, But the fact that he's not there this morning in the morning part that we just saw, Now does he come in and do some stuff later? Oh, we'll see. Yeah, that's all we need to really find out there. That's he wasn't limited yesterday, Right he was.

He was limited with a back. So here here's the thing. Right, well, he they upgraded him to full last week, which is the first time that's happened since the season started. But as we've talked about a million times, playing offensive line probably isn't great for your back, especially if it's already hurt. So we set it a training camp like this is probably something that Zack Martin is going to be dealing

with for the entire season. Right. I just took it for granted when I saw that yesterday that okay, well, yeah, of course he's with a back. He's going to be limited with a back all year. But it does take a whole different level of I guess, significance when he's not at practice. We don't know the difference between We

just haven't had enough time to look into it. We don't know the difference between sit down today and let that thing cool off a little bit or I can't go like those are two different things, and I don't know, I don't know what it is right now. I always lean toward thinking a guy like Zach Martin is going

to be available. But it's definitely you know, it catches like literally today and the you know, we sit in the stands in Ford Center for practice, and all the beat writers were looking around, like you see seventy where seventy's not here. He's not even like just walking around in a jersey. He's not here at all. So definitely caught some eyebrows. It's something to keep an eye on. Walk me through what happens in the event do you have an next that you're trying to well, what are

we doing? It just answers your question, Well, go ahead, oh, I'll get it, okay, walking me through what happens in the event that Zack can't play well, the Cowboys would turn to a xavirus to a few there we go and he would start, who are you a memican? Right there? Just out of curiosity, just going to sound in about twenty years, ok, just just some old white guy that that I am. Okay, I guess I just r or will be huh are or will be both turning turning

point quickly turning yeah. Xavier sue O Philo did take the reps at right guard with the first team in Zack's absence. So I think I just think Joe Looney is just your perfect backup for, you know, just center guard, anything that happens on game day. But when it comes to when we saw him playing guard, Looney, you know when was that maybe previous or training camp or something. I know we've seen them put him at that position a guard. I don't quite remember how he performed there

or how that looked like. But do you remember if he looked okay, good enough? Yeah? I don't ever remember a time when Looney really hasn't looked good or looked okay. I guess he doesn't, but it doesn't He's not like just gonna blow you away, but he's but he's good enough. Do you think better than Sophila. I think Sophila is better because I think he's got that old man's strength, even though he's not old. I just think he's got

that strength. That's I think he may be better than Connor, honestly, but they didn't draft him in the second round, so he was better last year. But of course Connor was a rookie. But you know, I think that's a really good. He has strength, but he's also dealing He's constantly dealing with things on his knees, both knees. That is sophilo. Yeah, and that that is something that he's been battling since

last year. And I know that waits on him and he's been working on it with his training, strength coach and stuff. But it's something to look at too. While he might be able to play a full game and all that, it's not necessarily a long term replacement that he could hold maybe two games in a road, three games type of stuff. I don't know if there's a position in football that beats the hell out of you

more than anything. On the offensive line, Yeah, it's just brutal because you're you're constantly catching even running backs like yeah, you get hit pretty much every time you touch the ball, But you don't touch the ball every snap of the game. Offensive lineman like you every play except maybe the victory formation, you're getting someone's coming to hit you every play. Like

they're coming hit you every single play. Yeah, I would be worried if if he doesn't, if he's listened as did not practice today, then I think that's kind of a concern. If he's listed as limited, then then I wouldn't be as concern because we're dealing with the back. So if he is, if he's really having a lot of pain, it's better to just sit him out, you know, because if you have a back, you can hurt that picking up, you know, a piece of paper. So I just feel like if they really wanted to rest him,

they would just rest him, he'd be at home. But if he's limited, then I think they're just trying to man It's I will say though, typically, like when a guy takes a scheduled day off it's Wednesday or Friday, like because it's either the first day of the week and you're like sit this out and then get two days of practice, or get two days of practice and then rest your legs on Friday. Like they've done that with Sean Lee this season, where he just doesn't go

on Friday. It's not injury related, they just let him sit us. It feels weird to me for him to sit in between Wednesday and Friday. So we'll see. And let's be clear too, we were only out you guys were only out there during the opening parts of practice. Yeah, it's very possible that he was getting some treatment or something like that, and then came out and was a part of practice, in the part that well that the

media doesn't see. Keep it, keep it tuned to Dallas Cowboys dot com media channels because they're well, we'll get some info about this later today and tomorrow, and yeah, something to watch. You gotta have something today, get work. I came back. I don't I saw him in the locker room yesterday, and I remember kind of thinking like, he looks stiff, like just kind of like he looks

like he's felt better in his life. Which I say that now now that I know he's HERB, but I do really remember like he came out of the shower area and I was like, you, like, as somebody who's experienced back pain, you look like you're feeling kind of stiff right now. So I don't know, we'll see, all right. A couple other guys, I just want to mention real fast,

Xavier Woods, Tavon Austin returned to practice yesterday. What are we hearing about them and how they performed and look after a day of practice, I was at practice for a little bit and was I guess just looking around at whatever, like oh, I should probably look at some

injured guys. Here. Who am I looking for? And I looked at it right at Xavier Woods, like there he is, and he was catching this interception and then he was doing some spinning and dancing and it wasn't dancing, but he was like doing like a spin like juke move like you would do like the R two button. Like. He just kept spinning and spinning and spinning. I'm like, Okay, he's playing. He saw that the Marcus Lawrence video. I don't know that the Marcus doing the spin, and then

everybody was talking about it. He got in no, he's trying to spin all that. He was doing something like that, and I'm just I was just like, okay, hey, Woods is playing. Xavier's in He's in Who's the Kiss of Death? Though? Because last year you said that about Tavon and what happened. Tavon kept sitting out and just dancing every week and still couldn't play. Yeah, but I think Xavier, Um, I think Xavier's going to play. I think you think you're

thinking very carefully what you Xavi's going to play. Two straight days of practice for Tavan and Xavier. That's always a good sign No, uh no, Tyrone Crawford today, No, Antoine Woods. I don't think you're gonna see them this weekend. You're not gonna see Michael Gallup this weekend. Those are three, I guess at this point the injuries that you just say, and they're probably pretty likely they're not playing this week.

Only three, right, Um, there was somebody else that I wanted to bring up, Um, maybe TV I got, No, I get Yeah, I guess that's it. Those Oh yeah Woods in Crawford, that's it. Yeah, because Gifford. Gifford's back practicing now, so he wouldn't have be one of them. Maybe won't be active, but at least he'll be He should be bad. Doesn't look like he was going to be act just based off of a special teams unit that he would probably be out there for if he was, so,

I don't think he will be this week. All right, let's go and take an early break. When we come back, we're going to get into the Saints and their defense. Dave's gonna give us his breakdown. We'll talk about that when we come right back. This is Dallas Cowboys dot Com Radio. Well, a player could look good on paper, it's one he's out on the field that you really find out what he's made of. That's why the Cowboys rely on more than just stats and scouting reports when

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get your tickets today. Back to the Break, Welcome back into the second segment of the Break. Life in the s WBC Mortgage studios at the Star. Let's jump right in. Let's get into this Saints defense days. Saints fans coming by on this tour No, those were cowboys Jersey guys. Yeah, that was it was. It was cowboys. I have the same reaction earlier this week. I was saw somebody walking in the parking lot, a fan and they had on jersey.

Was one of those, and I thought Saints really and then no, it's cowboys, Steam They'll take your money whatever. Here's the Redskins. Oh oh yeah, come on, it happens every day. No, there were there were some believe it or not, there was some Dolphins fans taking the tour last week last Friday, so believe it or not that they Dolphin there are friends. Yeah, all right, Dave, what you got for us? Let's talk about this Saints defense.

I got the New Orleans Saints in front of me. Um, a lot of a lot of talent, not a lot of production to this point in the season. When you say that, people just jump in and say something real quick. Do it? They got the best names in all of like the whole NFL, do they? Well? Starting with Little Jordan. No, no, it's not Little Jordan's offense. I know, but I'm just like, well, they're defense though, Ray, Ray Armstrong, right, Huddle, jan Eli

Apple and then of course Kiko Alonzo. Yeah, it's better known as Yeah, been around, been around, all right, a little bit, go ahead, all right, Dave give us his defense. Thatt's willing. Uh. It's like and I think he's still a good player. But like, the thing about the Saints is defensive resurgence. I guess it was twenty seventeen when they lost the Minnesota Miracle game, was like, how well their young dbs were playing, Like Marshawn Lattimore is this

lockdown corner, Marcus Williams is a revelation at safety. Von Bell is another guy that they drafted that they really like and they played they were ballers like they were really good that year. Marshawn Latimore had the butt interception if you remember that where you picked the ball up off the guy's butt and it's it's not translating, like it's not there. So far this year case in point, they gave up five passes of twenty yards or more and three of forty yards or more to the Seahawks

the other week. They're the worst in the league at the stat end, by the way, same thing with the rushing they gave up twenty plus. They've given up five twenty plus rushes and that's the worst in the league. I will say, Okay, so they're twenty eighth, and total defense their thirtieth against the past three hundred yards a game. They're twenty sixth against the run. The six points twenty

seven points per game every single team they've played. Actually they've given up like exactly twenty seven across the board, because I think they beat the Texans like twenty thirty to twenty eight. I think Rams beat him twenty seven nine, and then thirty three twenty seven Seahawks, so like you can score on him. Dennis Allen, it seems like he asks these guys to play a lot of man defense, which is awesome if you can do it. They haven't been able to do it, and it's really come everywhere.

Like Lattimore gave up a couple of explosives, David Moore caught a jump ball on him last week. Eli Apple's the obvious one that like you want to pick on, like he gets torched on a pretty routine basis. And one thing that was really intriguing to me is that a lot of these plays happened when Russell Wilson, you know, Shocker of Shockers, was able to extend the play, which you know if you watch the Cowboys, like Dack's not as good at that as Russell Wilson is, but he

can definitely only do it. He did it last week against the Dolphins a few times, So that is really encouraging. If the Saints are going to try to play man up with these guys that, I think you can manufacture some plays. And another really exciting thing is they like they lose track of guys, like the Seahawks will put their receivers in a bunch and Tyler Lockett is just running across the formation and there's crossing routes and all of a sudden, like the corner, you know, Eli Apple's

five yards behind him, like where was my help? Is this my guy? And forty five yard game? That type of stuff. So I think Kellen Moore should be able to manufacture some games in this thing. I don't think they look terrible against the run itself, Like the Seahawks ran for one hundred yards, but fifty of that was Russell Wilson scrambling or designed runs, which Dad can do that too. That maybe there's something to be said. But

like Chris Carson and CJ. Prosie didn't like kill them like they have good They have good players in their seven. Cam Jordan, I think I already said I think he's one of the most underrated players in the league. He reminds me a lot of DeMarcus Lawrence, just in the sense of being super well rounded. He can rush the passer, he's stout against the run. Marcus Davenport's coming along. These are team and sex. Yeah, yeah, I mean which that they're not getting The quarterback is, you know again a

lot like Dallas Um. Your guy Malcolm Brown is playing tackle for them right now because Sheldon Rankins is hurt. Like they have talent there, demaro O'Davis really good will linebacker captain for them. So I don't like, I don't think they're soft. I don't. I think they're better than the stats indicate they are. Put it that way because the stats say is. As I started looking at the stats, I was like, Wow, this defense is not playing very

well at all. You gotta you gotta look at the other games to the Texans ran the ball really well on them, But again they have a supermobile quarterback in Deshaun Watson who can inflate that. And I dak Can too. Yeah, they got cowboys would have to implement that. Though we've seen him do it, we've seen him not do it. But in turn, like I would be surprised if Zeke just bulldozes this defense all on his own, Like, I don't know that that's gonna work, but they're very susceptible

against the pass yep. I had a couple questions for you, Eli Apple. He seems to be the weak link I keep hearing everybody talk about in their secondary. If you agree with that, how does Dallas take advantage of that? I think Dallas takes advantage of that by make make the Saints change it, because as good as they might want Marshawn Lattimore to be, he doesn't travel a lot. And I'm starting to think that like every week it's like is he gonna travel? It's he gonna like It

doesn't seem like it happens that often in the NFL. Honestly, like maybe in college if you have that guy and you know he can just take away that receiver, do it, but you don't see it a lot in the NFL, and Lattimore hasn't done it. He plays on the right side with very little exceptions. Actually against Seattle, they had him travel with Lockett on a third down and Seattle tried to throw it to him to pick up the first and Lattimore came across the formation and tackled him

in the backfield. I was like, maybe you should be doing this more often, but they don't. So put the good receivers on. Eli Apple say, all right, Latimore is over on the right, Well, Amari, we want you over on the left because I don't I mean, I would force Dennis Allen to try to make that happen because it doesn't seem like they want to do it. And you know, last week with Xavier and Howard, who is probably better than Lattimore or at least you know, right

up there, and it didn't seem to matter. You know, Cooper kind of exposed him as well. So I mean, I think I don't know if there's any corners right now that are really just checking Amari. We'll see what his injury status is. But you know, we always say this about guys that travel. It's not just the corner It's not just the great cornerback that travels. It's the other cornerback that has to travel as well. So yeah,

the star star guy might go. He might be good on the right or the left, but the back, your your second corner may not be as good playing both sides, and he has to travel as well. So I think that's something we you know, it helps if you've got two that can be versatile. I really wish Michael Gallup was healthy for this game because I think the combination of Lattimore and the fact that the guys behind Cooper

aren't as good like it gives me pause. I still I think the Cowboys will be all right, but like if Gallop was playing in this game, I would be like, the Cowboys are gonna eat like because they can do whatever they want with Cooper. Gallop will abuse whoever is over there. And I'm not as confident in Devin Smith and Randall Cobb. I still think I think they'll be okay, but like, it would be nice if Gallup was playing. Take me back to last year and talk to me

about what and when the Cowboys played the Saints. What did you see in the Cowboys offensive line versus the Saints defensive front. It was a struggle. I mean the defense. The Saints defense did a really nice job. If I remember they bottled up Zeke pretty nicely. I don't remember him having like just like thirty yards. I would imagine it was like seventy eighty. Maybe he had a hard fought I'm pulling it up for you. He had a hard fought seventy five yards. He averaged three point three

yards per carry. Yeah, that's not anywhere near his typical no day. But you know, they kept they kept doing it. And you know, we always say those games kind of take on a life of their own, and both both offenses were struggling and it was just that type of game. This might be completely opposite of that, but they did.

They did a nice job. But if I remember, you know, Tyrant Smith, he matters, he wasn't in that game, didn't play that game, and Travis obviously didn't play, which we got to wait and see on Zach, But you would think the line will be closer to full strength than it was last year. Who was the defensive player that seemed to give him the most trouble If you guys remember I can't cam Jordan had two sacks and two

and a half tackles for loss. Actually Brian wrote about this for the site Today is again Jordan's like the Law. He plays the left side. He doesn't do a lot of rotating, but they moved him to the right side to play Fleming because Lyle Collins was giving him fits. So he had a great day. But I like that matchup a lot better this time around. He doesn't move this time, probably not. If I had to guess Damario Davis, I was going to say that Demario Davis had eleven tackles.

I don't remember if it was like a good eleven tackles or a bat eleven tackles. I mean, the final score does suggest that obviously both defenses played extremely well last time. I will one thing I noticed, and again, you know, mobile quarterback play action. I would like to think Dallas can take advantage of this. I was not impressed by Kiko. And then they got another linebacker when they played bass by the name of A. J. Klein, who did not wow me like I found he seemed

like he was out of position a lot. There are a couple I don't know off the top of my head. Sorry, actually have it here, AJ Klein. I was I, okay, wow, there's Buckeyes all over this matchup. Um no, I'm sorry. I was dating. Okay, I was seven years in the league. A couple of plays where they bit bad on play fakes. Well, I mean, you know which against this team in this office is what we've seen so far. Not and I don't mean like hesitation, I mean like, you know, taking

two or three steps in the wrong direction. They did it. You know, they lost will Disley the tight end. They let them pick up thirty yards on a play action fake and again like kind of what I'm talking about, Like they lose their guys because I believe A. J. Klein was covering Tyler Lockett. It was incomplete, but not because of the coverage. So that's something that intrigues me.

I think I think Kellen Moore should be able to get these guys out of sorts, like the chunk players should be there, even if the run game is only Okay, giving up twenty seven points in all three games they've played so far this year, it seems like they're able to win the shootout type games. Do you think Dallas has suited to play that kind of game and to be able to beat them at that because they're seeing they've won two of those three games even giving up

twenty seven points. You think that that matches or is favorable for the Cowboys to get into that kind of that kind of game. Yeah. I mean they've scored thirty thirty three points a game, so yeah, I think so. I mean, but I you know one thing that we don't know yet. It's still week three. I mean, I don't know if the Saints aren't a better football team than the Cowboys. I mean, I know that sounds weird, but they're two and one. You know, look at their

schedule and look who they've played so far. They've played the Rams, They've played the Saints, I'm sorry, they played the Texans. They played the Rams, and then they've played the Seahawks, and you know, and so we're good teams. Yeah, three three good teams. And when their schedule came out, I was like that it's gonna be tough. I mean, can you imagine if the Cowboys had played those three teams and Cooper Rush had to play a game and

a half. Yeah, that's honestly, it's it's kind of the opposite. Is like, if you follow the narratives, it's like the Cowboys have to they have to make Hay here because they're playing these bad teams and then it gets hard. Well, once the Saints get through with this game, it kind of lets up for him because they after this they

go Buccaneers, Jags, Bears are tough. But then the Cardinals on the other side of that, so like pretty winnable games out of four, so that it isn't I mean, yeah, I mean they don't look anywhere near as good as the Cowboys, but their resume it certainly looks better right now. And they win this game, then you know, if it comes down to tie breakers, then they would obviously have one. They'd both be three and one, and they'd have one

on Dallas if it gets to that point. So you know, I mean it's again it's it's still early, but but we don't really know just yet. I mean, to be two and one and that schedule and having Breeze missed that game, you know, a game and a half, I

think that's actually pretty much. I really really interesting interested to see why Killen Moore is going to be able to do in this game as far as being creative, because right now, okay, you have Michael Gallup out and we saw how that affected not having him in the offense.

Then I've seen breaking down plays with Brian, what Lattimore can do going up against Amari Cooper, Like that guy has really good instincts and he's able to fall although the receiver and move like there is no trick in him a lot like as soon as you're trying to do like a quick turn, he's gonna turn with you.

So it's I'm interested. I am expecting the Cowboys to run the ball a lot more and lean more on Zeke this time around, because I just think I just don't think we're gonna see the same kind of passing

game that they've been having as an offense. But see, I'd like to go what I'm saying is you know what I saw on tape is I think I think and I like I said, I wish Gallup was playing, but like you think back to the Giants game where there were just easy throws for Dak because of the way they were confusing the Giants, Like I think that we can see that again, Like I would expect Kelly Moore can dial up ways to do that because the secondary just doesn't. They seem confused and not very good.

And like I said, I think I think their run defense is better than the staff would show and that's so I would rather try to pass to open that up than vice versa. Hearing all that, it kind of makes me think that this defense is, at least the way they've played so far is similar to the Redskins defense. The Redskins defense has a pretty stout front and they're the type of defense that at least this year, their secondary has been kind of in shambles and not really

playing great. Now, obviously they don't have Marshawn Lattimore. I mean, yeah, Marshawn Lattimore. But but all that being said, I think it's a similar type setup, and the Cowboys were able to move the ball pretty effectively against that defense, both in the run and the past game. I don't think that that it certainly didn't didn't stop them early in the game. There was some challenges, but once they got going, they got rolling. Yeah, it goes back down to creativity.

Why Kellen Moore is able to do with all those weapons, and maybe if Tavon is back into the mix, how is he gonna use him. He's a guy that, yes, we he's been injured so much and all that, but still having him on the field affects what they're doing because they know that this guy I can freaking run and he's fast, so that's another guy that they have to keep an eye on. This is this This is going to obviously be a bigger challenge than than the first three games even. I mean, but the Saints defense

isn't as statistically as good as like the Redskins. But if they can't at least maybe maybe they don't score thirty one, thirty five, but I mean, they should be able to hit the mid to high twenties like that would be my expectation even on the release. I think this is a dak running game. I think this is one where he needs to to you know, they need to call some plays for him to run the ball.

That's the one thing that'll open up the middle there for for Zeke and and even for in the passing game, is to get him out there on the edge and let him you know, whether it be some bootlegs, naked whatever, let him do that, because I really think that that's what's going to set this up this up. We didn't see it much last week, but I think I think Dakud really hurt some teams, especially the aggressive ones, if he if they dial up some runs. I think ask

a point. But I think more than anything else, it's gonna be most important is don't have the turnovers and the special teams big plays, because I think last week without those, I think that's a different ballgame. I think Seattle probably wins that game. So minus those two play and it's I mean, it's not like the defense gave him short fields like literally a punt return touchdown and a fumble six. Yeah, so that's fourteen out of thirty three.

Why can't I do basic math? That's nineteen offensive points? Right? And so I think that again, if you talk about the Cowboys and their ability to score on teams so far, if that offense can get rolling and just don't make the critical mistakes on special teams or on defense that give up points, I think that's really the key this week. I think, you know, we still haven't seen Bridgewater in a situation where he's got to go out and with

his arm basically win a game that's a shootout. I would think that that's kind of what if I'm the Cowboys, what I would like to see. So you expect Dad to win that kind of battle in that situation. I do. I do what I've seen so far this year suggests to me. And the reason why I say that's because I think good under pressure, that's where somehow the light comes on and he's able to get the job done

when he's really under pressure, right. And the thing about shootouts, when you watch him typically what happens is they sometimes can start off a little slow, but once they start rolling and team start scoring, then they keep scoring. And that's the one thing we've seen about this team all season when they get rolling, once they figure it out, once they figure out what the defense is doing, they

seem to just be like touchdown, touchdown, touchdown. So I think in that kind of scenario, if Cowboys get into a shootout, I think it sets up really nicely for them. And I'm not certain. Again, that's not to say Bridgewater can't do it. We just haven't seen him do it yet. So if I'm the Cowboys, that's kind of the way I kind of hope this thing plays out. All Right, here's here's a just putting you on the spot. What's the best environment where Dak has ever like absolutely balled out?

All Right, we're gonna take a break when we come back. I answer that question. All right, when we come right back. This is Dallas Cowboys dot Com. Recroment's big such a great deal, it's okay, just okay. What's not to do right above the subway? Well, I bet you don't even notice it after that's my neighbor hangs. A deal that's just okay, is not okay? Get a great deal with America's best network. Come into an AT and T store and learn how to buy one smartphone and get second

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current players, alumni and cheerleaders. That's not all, though, You'll get to talk x's and those with Senior Director of Player Personnel Will McClay and of course with yours truly, me, Brian broad Us. You can trust the official fan travel partner of the Dallas Cowboys, and with us you'll travel like a pro. Visit Cowboys Travel dot com to book your travel package today. Back to the break final segment, of the Break live in the SWBC Morgant Studios at

the Star. Nick, what's goat for us? It's the second Let me cool forgot? Oh? Actually I do want to talk about Um. We've talked about Free to Play? Are you we got to play Free to Play? Yes? Actually, what we are doing we are setting up and this is going to be in the app starting next week, I think. But we're setting up. Uh, they're calling it a celebrity League now. They use that term very loosely

because it's going to include all of us. But we're gonna actually set up and we're gonna be playing along so people can see how they rate relative to us. Now, we can't win the money, but we will. I will throw some little prizes out there for our group for the person that wins every week. Okay, I'll just write then I'll just talk about that then. I don't think Dave knew he was playing Free to Play? Yeah he did, because Brian was talking about it this morning. I thought

it was suggested that we play. Yeah, you got to be older than twenty one, I suggested by me. So I'm playing good but people the bus car you guys check out Free to Play, though, because you could get ten thousand dollars in grand prize. So check that out on Dallas Cowboys dot com slash app. If you don't have the app, you need it because it's easy to get our stuff, all our stuff, all our stuff. All right, Dave, right before the break, you had an interesting question you

wanted to past the group. I'm just I'm I was, I'm just spitball and I'm curious, like, you know, what is the best environment where Dak has like gone on the road and really, you know, shut up, like what you're talking about? You talking about like the best game he's had on the road in a really hostile environment. Yeah, okay, he I mean he bawled out against the Giants last year, Big whoop. That was a bad team and MetLife was full of Cowboys fans. FedEx was full of Cowboys fans

a couple weeks ago. Like that ain't hostile, so I and I'm not saying he's never done it. I went and looked during the break. He played a great game at the Link last year against Philly twenty six to thirty six to seventy and a touchdown, ran for a touchdown to Spike getting sacked four times, so that's awesome. And then the obvious one is as a rookie against Pittsburgh, he had a fantastic game at Hinesfield, such a fun game that was such a top three that I've ever

covered for this team, was such fun. He bawled out at Lambeau actually as a rookie two. But really, I mean, so he's had great games on the road, don't get me wrong, but like when I'm like what we're going to see on Sunday night, I think the Philly game is the most recently that he's done it. Because Week seventeen at MetLife against a really bad Giants team just isn't the same as what the superdomes we just break

you down indoors, or what has he done there? Because I I think I could think of all the Colts every home game, you mean the road road home, They're not like, did not play again? Did not play well against the Colts Falcons? Well he well, actually Vikings, he

was terrible against the Vikings. Kirakie is rookie area, Yeah he didn't, I mean, all right, terrible as a stretch, but I think he threw for like one sixty eight or something like that he was fine against the Falcons last year twenty two or thirty two for two o eight, don't I mean yeah end up winning. Yeah they I mean they won. But I'm again so that I get.

My point is like, if I expect him to capitalize the way I think he can on this defense the secondary, it will be a little bit unusual, Like he hasn't had that many of those like really amazing games in these types of environments. No offense to them, those other teams in those day games, but that's not like what these gonna face Sunday night against the Saints. The energy in the Dome at night, especially with the fact that there will be Cowboy fans there, but you know, the

Cowboys are good. The Saints, you know, very protective of their home turf. It will be a really awesome atmosphere and nothing like a noon game at Atlanta, Detroit, Indianapolis.

No offense to them. But my dear, my dear friend John Mashoda, he's so good at like just pulling up random stuff that everybody forgot about, because you remember all or nothing when they filmed it in twenty seventeen when they played Denver, they had he had he posted a flip of Jason Garrett like, yeah, the crowd's gonna be crazy. You know how you shut up the crowd, You hand the ball to number twenty one right there and blow their ass off the line. Which they lost that game

very badly, like they got annihilated. Bad memories that the story, like, the strategy is the same, play well, execute especially early, and you can calm that atmosphere down at David. Wasn't that the game where Dank had like fifty pass attempts? H Denver? I think it was, yeah, no, they I mean they were getting they were getting murdered, and Z couldn't run the ball. I think, yeah, that couldn't do anything eight yards something like it back definitely, I don't

have the box score in front of me. It was like thirty for fifty. Heat threw a lot of passes. I honestly don't know if I've seen the Cowboys get manhandled in Dak's there are quite like that. I mean, that was a bad game against the Colts last year. You can say it was pretty bad. Most of the game against the Rams last year. Neither one of them

they got band handled like they did. It's thirty, Yeah, thirty they could do nothing thirty of fifty or two thirty eight, which is less than five yards per attempt, and Dak was the team's leading rusher. Like, yeah, that was that was a brutalizing like we are not used to seeing in the recent Jason Garrett era. Maybe the other one that comes to mind is in the Superdome in twenty thirteen. That was up there. You know, people start talking about the altitude. Yeah, there's a weather delay

for like an hour. It was like, let's stay focused people, all right, So I had a question for you guys from Art van delay. He said, hard to pick. That's a that's a Seinfeld reference. It's sorry, all right, go ahead, but anyway, hard that's the thing about Twitter, you know, yeah, getting on anyway, hard to knitpick the offense. But thoughts on Zeke only having five receptions? You guys think he's

being underutilized in the passing game. Okay, just when they not to sound like Troy Ekman here, but like before they get to you know, when they get less than thirty one points in a game, let's let's talk about that. No, it's to pick your poison. They haven't had to do that. They haven't had to. They're running the ball, they're they're doing well, they're throwing it down the feel they haven't

had to really throw screens and stuff like that. They haven't done that just yet because they're able to do what they want to do. But they will. I don't think it's a nitpick. I just think it's it's something that just hasn't hasn't needed to be there just yet. But you know they're they're doing it this way. And what I love is we know that works. We know that throwing those screen passes to seek works. They've seen it. I love that Kellen has given himself the chance to

try other things first. You know, he keeps talking about, yes, I have more things on my game plan and things under my sleeve, and he does like, there's no need to do all that with Zeke when you have all these other elements. Now, maybe this is the one game that we do start seeing those kinds of things when you start talking about what's happening with not having Michael Gallup in the offense, and maybe if they take Amari Cooper out a little bit from the game, you know,

as far as defense goes. So I think that's a good thing that we haven't necessarily needed to see that. Yeah, i'd like him to be more involved, but I mean it's hard. It's hard to nitpick what they're doing at this point. I let even said that it is two years. Like, I'm not nick picking, it's I'd like Randall Cobb to be more involved, for that matter, and I think without

Michael Gallup, maybe that's something that you could see here. Uh. I mean, if you know these linebackers are on discipline, maybe z can take advantage of that in a variety of different ways. I think, I mean five through three games, so he's on pace for less than thirty. Yeah, I'd like to see him be a little more active in the passing game. But I'm not losing sleep about it

right now. And honestly, my hope is that all of these kinds of wrinkles that would be, you know, using him in the passing game, maybe using Pollard a little bit more in the passing game, maybe using more jet sleeps with Pollard. I'm hoping some of that stuff is stuff that they have saved they haven't had to use. Yeah, and because they haven't had to use it, it comes up in some of these games where you may need a little more variety. You may need to throw something

at teams that they haven't seen on film just yet. Again,

that's one of the things. And if you go back and you listen carefully to what what was being said after that first game, Kellen Moore talked about the fact that he even said there were some things that we didn't have to go to that we can say for a little later, and that, to me, I think that's the value of a good offensive coordinator is somebody that has so many tricks in their bag that they don't necessarily have to pull them all out at one time.

And as the season goes on, which is his long season, you'll find opportunities to be able to do some things that you haven't put on film before in games, in critical moments and games when you really need them real quick. Before we end the show, I wanted to get some opinions from you guys on the Thursday night game tonight. You got Packers versus Philadelphia Eagles. Who do you think wins that game? I I don't think that the Eagles

lose it. I I know that I'm saying Eagles will win, but I just don't feel like they're gonna lose and go to one and three. I just don't I think that would be two beneficial for the Cowboys for that technical that right now. I don't know if the Packers, well, we'll see. I mean the three and oh and it's you know, it's tough to win there. But I feel like this is the type of game as soon as you think you kind of know, you know, one of those both those two teams, something like this would happen.

I just think the Eagles are too talented to go one in three. I know that they're already one in two, but as I said yesterday, they're very easily three and oh and oh and three. They're just playing right there. I think they win to night. I go back and forth because I agree with everything he just said. It's it's so silly to try to write the Eagles off three weeks into the season. Al Shan Jeffrey is going to be back this week. Deshan Jackson might be back. Really,

I thought he was definitely, Oh oh, he might be. Honestly, I'm too busy to try and keep up with what's going on with the Cowboy either. At least one of them is going back back, yes, maybe two, but at least one. Um At the same time, I said this on the break, like it's it's during the break. It's hard to go on the road on Thursday night and win. Like it's it's tough, You're it's not a lot of rest time. You got to travel. It's a hustle environment.

Pretty good quarterback and defense. On the other side, I still think the Eagles are good, but I think the Packers are gonna win. I think the Eagles I'm gonna go with everything exactly that Nick mentioned, and I just think that I just don't see it happening to where now it creates this good lead within the division, you know, between the Eagles and the Cowboys. It always happens where it's just kind of right there in that battle. I just don't see them falling that far behind from the Cowboys.

The Eagles could fall to one in three and still the races and over playing them twice. I mean, that's the easiest way to jump back in. Quite frankly, I actually expect that the Packers win to night, and I expect that what's going to happen is Philly's going to find a point to season where they can get their footing and they're gonna start winning some games, and it's gonna be interesting that this is not gonna be is not gonna be one of those things where the Eagles

are completely out of it. Even if the Cowboys win the division handily, which I still would question whether that would happen. I still think Philly's gonna be right there in position to be in a wild card. And don't think you might not face them in the playoffs, Like they're one of those teams that just kind of keep coming. They traded away their best quarterback and you know, wow, and you know the guy that's really helped them. Okay, so if the Eagles lose, okay, what happens with the

Cowboys win this game? All right tomorrow. I'm just saying, like I just I do have a thing for statistics and how things look on score where I just don't see it happening. It's even but every every year we do this where we try to write the storylines before Halloween. I mean, we fired everybody and said buy to the playoffs last year in Week eight, let alone week four. So it's I mean, you can only react to what

you've seen. I get that but if the Eagles could fall to one in four, forget one in three, and I'd be like, they still have to run and still still got run, and we'll see. All right, guys, appreciate you. Join us for back tomorrow eleven thirty till then lub forty five, Sorry till then. Nick Eatman for Nick Eatman, Dave Helm and Amber Garcia on Derek Eagleton. This has been The Break live on Dallas Cowboys dot Com Radio.

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