Cowboys Break: Excited or Concerned?

to the latest edition of The Break. We are live from the s WBC Mortgage Studios at the Star, presented by mill of Ltte, the only beer of the Dallas Cowboys. We're coming off a big win. Cowboys win forty to thirty four. They stay in contention for the NFC East title. Lots of things to talk about there because Philadelphia looks like they may have lost their their right tackle there. They're one of their cornerbacks is now out. I don't

know if the quarterback's gonna play. There's a lot of things going on with Philadelphia, so Cowboys still in it. We'll see how this thing goes over the last two weeks. And I just read this morning that Tennessee actually their game all, their final game of the season, really is what counts for them. This game might not matter at all for them. Again, lots of things think about. We'll get into some of that other stuff later, but today we're going to focus on the game and a rehash

what happened on Saturday afternoon. Let's start the stories of the game. Nick, what did you think was the big overall storyline coming out of this game? Dak? I thought Dak Prescott showed the mental toughness that he always preaches, and that that that you want your quarterback to have.

He threw another interception and it's tend to nothing before anyone's even settled down, and he comes back, gets booed, comes back and has a great finish to that game, and he just basically willed the offense to scoring that many points. And so you know, I mean, he's got his flaws, but the stuff you love about Dak was on display there after that pick. Yeah. I mean, there are a lot of different guys that stood out in that game in general, but I think that Dak absolutely

takes to win overall because of that. I mean, as soon as that interception happened, and that one was absolutely all on him. There's no discussion in that. It's not like, oh it was somebody, No, this was all Dak. But the fact that he has that mental toughness and to keep like stay focused and come back and play the way that he did, I think he shows the reason why he's here and why so many other people back him up. And he was able to finish that game.

In that game, I mean, the defense got a lot of takeaways later on, but I think the way that the offense was able to carry the game was really good. And this is a part of the year right now where it seems that the offense is going to have to keep stepping up their game to kind of be able to win games with kind of some of the defensive struggles that they've had so far. It's a resilient football team. It's very resilient, and they got down a

couple of different times look kind of bad. Even the final drive of the game was just you know, you're holding on to everything you got, and you know they were able to take advantage as you mentioned, Derek, of the right tackle Lane Johnson being out, they put our guy Nick Driscoll in there and Driscoll, like Fowler, says not today, not on fourth down. You're not going to block me today. And so now he's back in Gardner Mitchiw's lap and he's you know, basically making him throw

the ball away. But the way this team is able to create turnovers, the way they're able to keep playing, they keep shuffling guys in and out of the lineup. They're trying to figure out I from McKinsey, Alexander's any good. You know it's not his fault. Oh wait, the ball goes inside to catch. Okay, get right on the field. We're gonna show of Bland back into the inside. I mean,

they are doing everything in their power. They're taking a guy they've had for what ten days and throwing him out their receiver on third and thirty and saying, listen, bro, you go down there as fast as you can. You're gonna have to probably beat an all pro corner to get there. And by the way, the safety is going to turn the wrong way, so just keep running as fast as you can until he turns back around, and then the balls down the field. You guys were talking

about Dak, You're absolutely right about that. It's just a very resilient football team to win that game the other day. It's interesting they've been talking about resilience as kind of the theme throughout the season. He goes back to training camp when the coach have been talking to him about this term and saying this over and over, and literally

Week one they lose their quarterback. And so when you look at this team and what they've been able to do this year, I think resilient is about the best way you can put it for them. Let's talk about a couple of moments, because I do think Brian, you mentioned that last drive, but I think there were the two final drives that the Cowboys had where my opinion, well, they made some really questionable decisions and some of those decisions could have cost them. But I wanted to get

your opinions. Let's start first. It was following the interception by darn Bland, roughly three or six left in the fourth quarter. Games tied thirty four, thirty four, first and ten to Philadelphia thirty four. It's an incomplete pass. They decided to throw the ball second and ten. They get a five yard pass to Brown, so it gets third and five at the Philadelphia twenty nine with two twenty eight left in the game, again they opt to pass

in completion. They end up having to kick a forty eight yard field though they do take the lead thirty seven thirty four, but they leave two twenty four on the clock. Nick, and you and I were talking about it in the press box. What were your thoughts in that moment, because going back to last week, the coach said we were trying to be aggressive, we wanted to go ahead and win the game. Seems like that was the same mantra this week. What do you think. I

don't agree with it. I think that you gotta either burn some timeouts for the Eagles or get it to the two minute warning or both. And I think that the next drive show you just that they have abilities to run the football without running it right up the middle. Either it's Dak, it could be Tony Pollard on the outside, could be different things. But do something that you can still run. Be somewhat aggressive, but at the same time

you're forcing the Eagles to make a decision. Yeah, he's I mean, four minute football is not great for this team at times, especially the last two weeks. I think you got away with one this week. To me again, it's about the condition of your team. It's about the condition of your defense. It's like I even Gardner Minshew, they're they're really not without Jalen Hurts. You could kind of see they're a different running team. They's it was

three yards to carry without Jalen Hurts. I mean, Dallas is so now it turns into all this playing past defense. You're trying to figure out the secondary. They've got guys at Smith making leaping catches over the head catches Dallas Goddard. I mean, you just don't want to put your defense back through that. And so I mean that that drive and the last two h seven of the game, you know where Dak runs out of bounce and you're like, god, why, and you know they still got timeouts and there's still

time left. And I got to the point where we were talking about myself and Zach Woolchuk, do you go for it on fourth down to just try and kill it here? You just try and get to call your maybe your best two point play and try and score

touchdown here and in the game. But kicking the field goal was, you know, it was the right thing considering how fast Philadelphia moved down the field, you know, so that those are the things that give you that pause of man, you've got game in hand, you've got the turnovers, and now you're putting your team back in harm's way. That was tough. I think they got really fortunate the way that game ended there. What's confusing to me is, I mean, we know the team. They know the team.

We don't. We don't know them as well as they do, but we we got a pretty good hand of the team. And to me, when we're watching the game, any game and it comes home too like a questionable decision, it seems clear to us as we're watching it, all they should have done this or they shouldn't have done that. I like, why do they not have this? Like why do they not see the game as we see them see it as as well? You know? Yeah, Well, to me, I think it's Coach talked about it last week and

it is completely different lenses. And by the way, one's not necessarily right over the other. It's just how you prefer it. He I think, is opting to say we're going to be aggressive and and we're gonna say that even if it doesn't work out our way, we're going for the win. And by the way, sometimes the analytics tells you be aggressive. I don't know that I agree with that in this situation. I didn't agree with it last week either, but but at the end of the day,

it worked out for him this week. Right, Well, he told you all you needed to know. He went for it on fourth and seven, you know, And you're fortunate that t Y Hilton draws a passing or a defensive holding penalty there, because that's one of those things you're kind of like in a game like this, just punt it, punt it and see if see if you can hold him, see if you can get a stop. But him staying aggressive and all that, I mean, it's it. I really thought he was going to go for him fourth down.

I really thought him, like, man, he's calls it, No Moss. I thought he was in that no Moss moment where it's like, call play, let's see if we can if we pin him, we pin him, and we'll see if we can play. But that, man, that's a that's a rough that's a rough, rough way to operate right there. For sure. Ironically, Nick, you were kind of having that same kind of back and forth. Should they go for it? Here because you were thinking the same thing. What were

we thought? Well, I was trying to, you know, do math, which is never a good thing. But I was like, you know, you you kick a field goal, and you put him to the twenty five and they've got to score seventy They got seventy five yards to beat you. If you go for it, you could put them away, and if not, you put them at the one. Yeah,

so now one or two. So now you've got to go sixty five yards for them to begin a field goal, you know, And and they're pinned back, and their play calling is not going to be the same play calling. It just can't. I mean, especially when you right tackle the white. That's safety if you if you hold in the end zone. So it's gonna be quick, quick, quick, and I think that it'll take them a little longer

to get there. So yeah, I was I was thinking, maybe just just try to put it, put it away, if you if you would have penned, if you think about penning them if they have no timeouts. Yeah, right, that's that's the thing that that that's when I was going through it in my mind and I try and play these games like, Okay, how would like, to me, the best that ever was was the Bill Parcels. Parcels had a guy named Ray Hanley that was responsible, you know, the Giants days, the Super Bowl days where he Ray

click over, Ray, how many No, I need? How many first down I need? You need one coach and need won first down and you could carry it, you know. And so you're talking through all this stuff. But when they have timeouts left, I'm thinking, like, man, you probably have to kick the field goal here because you can't. You can't just you know, you can't. Just if you made them burn them all, then you pin them. Now you're it's a little bit different. They've got they can't

throw the ball in the middle of the field. The stuff's going up the sidelines and things like that. So that's that's part of not getting all those timeouts off the board. Yeah, and you look at that that you've that that following drive there where it was after the fumble recovery. So they've gotten the field goal, they've taken the lead, they get a fumble, Yeah, they get a fumble. Two h seven's left, they got a three point lead. And then on first and nineteen, great run by Dak Yeah,

Jack runs out of bound. Yeah, gives them the time out, basically basically stopping the clock there. And then you get to a situation where's first and goal in Dallas, opts to throw instead of run, they get a negative nine yards on a sack, and and it just kind of to me. I'm looking at that and I'm thinking, that's first and goal at the five. Why are you not

running the ball? Yeah? I mean, do you guys think that in some of these instances, maybe they're just not im okay with throwing it because it's one second to go. It doesn't matter. It doesn't matter if it's inca because it's close. But but don't take a nine yard sack. I mean, I felt like Dak was getting was thinking about last week and being like, oh I should have taken a sack or whatever. No, just throw it. Don't give nine yards because they probably score a touchdown if

the second down or third down, maybe fourth down. At that point, it was hard to get back through there. So I think he just had a mental lapse there those two plays. Two plays. Yeah, that's also my thought. Though I agree with you it didn't matter to throw or passing that instance, But the way I look at it, is your running game with Zeke Elliott, you can pick up those short yards if even if even if on that run he picks up two, and now you're second and goal at the three. I think at that point,

I'm just continuing to pound the ball. I already have a three point lead. My goal at that point is to take all the timeouts and to leave the clock as much as I can. And if I got to kick a field goal, great, but I'm gonna leave them in those worst a position as possible, right, you know? Yeah, they these officials though with Alex Alex kemp and I don't want to make it, but the whole game, you know, they let him play. Oh yeah, they really let him play.

Because on the third and seven call with minute fifty, Dalton Schultz gets called, they hold him, they tackle him in the end zone, and they don't call it. So you're thinking, like, you know, they're probably looking at They're gonna watch the tape and see that they're gonna go, well, okay, that's part for the course. But Parsons got held. You know, Tyrant Smith was holding in the game. It was they

were letting him play. That was letting him play. And so if you're thinking you're gonna get a call him third and seven in the end zone that could maybe give me the first down to kill that game. No, these officials were going to let the players decide it. Let's go ahead, and oh, real quick before we go to break though, I did want to ask this a

bigger picture question about game management. Are you concerned these last two games there have been some bad decisions or I shouldn't say that, there have been some different decisions and what we would have made that being said, how concerned are you about it? Oh? I'm concerned, just because but I'm a media guy. I was once involved with all if never was a coach. I mean I was a coach in college, but not in the NFL level. But I've been around enough games to where I know

how you're supposed to like keep clock moving. The clock can be your ally in this way, and you know, if you can make them burn timeouts and put them in a different situation, then you can maybe dictate the game in your direction. I'm absolutely concerned because I've seen it back to back weeks. One week they got away with it, the other week they didn't get away with it.

And I think that's the thing that you know, these games they play, they play the games like this, these games, these playoff games are going to be We saw basically Tampa last night and their situation and how they needed the clock and stuff like that. So yeah, I'm I'm a little bit concerned. I understand their mentality, but it does scare me because they haven't shown consistency in it, and when it comes it's just you're cutting it close. Now,

we're about to end the season and that's it. When you get to the playoffs, that it's gonna come down to that. And it scares me that it comes out to a moment like that, the last few minutes of a game, and they tend to play games are pretty close, so you know, those are crucial moments there and some of those decisions that seemed clear to us while we're

watching it. But I get their aggressiveness. I just it does scare me, and I hope I don't know, because then if they're too conservative too, then you criticize that as well. So it's just like it's not a win win situation here, so it's just either way you're gonna get criticized. So I'd rather them be aggressive. But I don't know. It's just well, one week they're aggressive and then next week they're not. That's kind of it's you know,

I mean they went the third and ten. I mean, like I say, I'm surprised he didn't go for it on fourth down. I think the only reason he didn't go for a fourth down because they had that time out left. But you could have gotten rid of that by the way you sequenced your place. You could have made them burn their time. There's a way to be aggressive, but also will be a little smarter about it. Nick. Now,

I'm not really concerned. I think they're you know, they've I think a lot of times we look at clock management when it's when it's bad, and I think there's a lot of times that just when it goes, you know, like a Houston game, you go down, you go down, you score twenty five seconds to go whatever. Like, you know, I think a lot of times it's pretty good. I'm not too worried about it. But yeah, like the Amber said, it is a balance of being like I want to

be aggressive, when do I pull back when? And it's not the easiest thing in the world to have a mentality that that does kind of go back and forth. So, I mean, these games are gonna be close. We know it. For the playoff game, it's going to come down to the end. It's going if it's in Tampa Bay's definitely going to come down to me, no doubt about it.

And so that's just you better not leave. And I think you have to be super aggressive there because if you don't, if you just give them chances, then you're not gonna win. Yeah, you're playing that kind of team. Yeah, I think you're right. Yeah. To your point though, is if you're Mike McCarthy and you lose that game to Tom Brady, say in the last and you're like, your argument is, or if the media asked, well, why did you do this? We're playing against Tom Brady, history will

tell you that man is going to do it. You know, fifty percent of his career has been played in Super Bowls. To think about that, Okay, let's not act like that. You know that we're playing like you know, you're you're playing somebody different, you know. But anyway, yeah, you can get away. You have to coach games differently against Brady, Aaron Rodgers, Patrick Mahomes. You have to coach game you have to play outside the box because your argument is like, hey,

look who we're playing against. You think do you think I want to give them any any time? No, I'm not. So you're rooting for the Packers, Yes, I am to. Yeah, I would love I would love for there to be teams below us in the seating who are good teams or teams that can knock bigger teams off. I mean, like could go to Minnesota, love San Francisco and be somebody. Well. The thing about it is, though, too to me, I think the Commanders are that team. The Commanders, what's happening.

But with their quarterback situation, Now, if they got they got they got worked, they got worked in that Giants game on a call and San Francisco nobody wants to play. You know that situation, you will see you get the win against the Giants. Put yourself in with the position the Giants are in right now. You know they lost last week. So you know, if you're the if you're the Commanders, you're got the eight wins, you're probably gonna go lose to San Francisco. You're probably gonna lose. They

just did. But but that's the thing about it is now to me the commanders of the team that could beat Philadelphia. They did it. They went to Philadelphia and won a game. So I'm thinking, beat Minnesota, Go go be the lower seed, go win the game at Philadelphia. I think that's what I was thinking. If Wins isn't the quarterback. But it looks like they're going back to Wins. I don't think they are. You know, they don't think.

I don't think they're going back to Wind in this last game, I know, but it made they made it seem like or at least what I mean, very It was like very like. I don't don't read this like he was. If they go back to him, I have no they won't go back to the way. They won't go back to Wins. They absolutely will not. The other guys are better. He's a better quarterback. For whatever reason. He they they've been responded. He's a responsive team. But

but you're right the way the Packers. The thing about Packers, I don't trust them on defense. And even though they played well against Miami, Yester Miami was this, It's two, Miami's two. It was just what was he doing yesterday? I don't know what that was about there that least two. Yeah, we're gonna take that final break, I mean the second first break. When we come back, we're gonna talk a little bit about the offense, dive into the running game,

and I'm talking a little about t Y Hilton. He provided something for this team that maybe they haven't had to this point. We'll talk about that when we come back. Dallas Cowboys dot com Radio. Todd thought it would be secure to jog and the Cheetah Savanta. Todd believed the big Cat repellent he bought online was reliable, and now Todd is trying to be faster than this cheetah that

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accessories and more. There you go. Welcome back to the second segment of the break claf in SWBC Mortgage Studios at the Star. The second brought to you by blockchain dot com. Let's talk about the offense, the running game, in particular Yesterday, I mean, I'm sorry Saturday, Zeke Elliott ran sixteen times for fifty five yards or three point four average and a touchdown. Tony Pollard had nine carries

for nineteen yards two point one average. After the game, when we were talking to Zeke, he made mention the fact that the running game just wasn't there on Saturday that had forty one. He did, and I didn't bring that up specifically because that's a whole different conversation for me. A good thing about the running game. Okay, I'm how do you guys feel about what happened with the running

backs and what was the issue? Was it a situation where literally it was just Philadelphia was just stopping them. I just couldn't get these these tackles and linebackers and ends. If you don't hold blocks with these guys, they will make every single tackle. There will be times when they were getting pushed and guys were fallen off and then you know, it's like a chance to cut the ball. And then this was not one of the better games for mcconnor McGovern. It just wasn't. I mean it, But

he wasn't alone, Tyrn Smith, Martin. They all had those one or two plays where it's blocking, blocking, blocking, and then you just these guys are so powerful on the other side that they get off their block and then they make a tackle for a game of two or a gain of three. So a lot of lack of sustain in this game, and they couldn't get guys up sometimes on the linebackers, which really was a problem. That's

why that they're they're linebacker. Edwards had so many tackles in this game, and he had fourteen of them where he just they could not get a guy to him quick enough. This is why they're thirteen and two. I mean, like they're really good because they always have an athletic, healthy, fresh defensive linemen out there. I mean there's not just four guys that play there for them at seven eight guys, it's a really good rotation. It doesn't ever seem to

drop off. I mean you throw in, you know, some really talented Pro Bowl type guys that are backing up. So yeah, that they've they've stacked their D line. Well, you know, they have a problem with the cow was struggling in the running game per se, because it showed me that they can get it done with the passing game. And sometimes I feel that when they struggle in the running game, they tend to play bad, like when they don't have that kind of balance, they struggle on offense.

So the fact that they came out with what was a forty points total, that makes me very happy to see that they can keep it going and make it work with just relying mainly on the passing game and Dak Prescott. I'm glad they kept trying. I was. I wasn't against it, and like you say, if the big difference in this game too was you know, when you watch the Eagles play, Jalen Hurts gets fifty sixty eighty one hundred yards running and then all of a sudden,

it supplements what they're doing in the running game. Well, running game looks terrible with your running backs, but then your quarterback is escaping, he's scrambling, he's getting eleven yards, he's getting ten. You know, he's getting yardage. You know, on the on the final drive, he's getting yardage on that play. You know, I'm fine with that. You know

it just keep after it, just don't complete. I think there was an administration before that might have just abandoned this thing and said, okay, we got to throw it every down now, and then you might have been fine. But you also might have been in a situation where your quarterbacks getting hit like he did and the balls flying up in the air and luckily Beotis just rips it out of the guy's hands on the ground. So you don't have a turnover at midfield. Yeah, play at

the game. Yeah you don't get that you did not win. Yeah, I mean that's I mean literally Tyrn Smith, I mean they both tackles get beat and the ball's flying in the air and you're like, going, this is not good and Tyler Beyodist on the ground just rips it out of the guy's hands. But you keep putting Dak back there passing against this this a defensive line. I would rather just keep trying to run two, three four yards a shot. That fourth and one play was really creative too.

But but what they did with the you know, putting the putting the tight end right there like they were going to run it off tackle, run it inside, because you get collapsed and then all of a sudden, now you got four guys blocking two and now the ball's out the sideline. So it's creative ways of running the football when you have to and it's not going. Yeah. I really liked that play because a lot of times

they bring these tight ends. They're like all right, jumbo, you know, r beef against yours and it's not it's not good enough. But those tight ends. But Queen Hendershot Ferguson. They're leaping over into the kettles. I mean they they they're athletic, they can move like that, and that is a good play for them because they got them on the move. Yeah, touchdown would seek? How they block would even beautiful? That was so clean. They moved over the Eagles.

They opened that hole perfectly for seek. So it knows where only play a job there, Jason Peter, Yes, is only play of the game comes in and they kind of gotten for a legal motion. Oh he was. He was kind of kind of laned a little bit. He was kind of got down in a four point stance and he lost his balance and he went forward as the ball was basically being snap. Billy Bob did that in varsity. He did. Yeah, that could be a problem. He had a concussion, so that a little different, a

little different. Yeah, all right, let's let's talk about t Y Hilton fifty two yr reception on third and thirty. Everything about that is ridiculous. Defensive holding on fourth and seven two Yeah, yeah, I will say this, and I looked at the game. I went back and watched that play after the game because there was a lot of talk from the Eagles fans about that play, and Darius Slaven said something about it, basically saying, if you don't

know football, don't don't comment. He blamed Jasie. What he was saying was that basic Scott he was in he was in zone coverage, yeah, and it looked like he did have his zone coverage there and didn't necess It wasn't a Cover four. It looked like it was kind of covered two and he just kind of was gonna, you know, be there a little closer in and then the safety was supposed to get over. If that's the case,

it was just a great play. That mean, just a great call because in cover two, that is a part in the zone where you can actually if you can hit them before that safety can get over there, you can get a big play on the outside. I don't know if Darius Slay was necessarily the culprit. Either way, great play for the Dallas Cowboys. Big play and to me, and the question for you guys is is that what t Y Hilton can do for you on a consistent

basis that adds something this offense doesn't really have. But if I told you guys, on that play, your wide receivers were gallop Turpin, Hilton Schultz and then Zeke No no, no, Lamb on the field at that play. Okay, No, that was that was okay. So you're trying to get it. I mean you're you're by putting Hilton and Turpin on the field. You're trying to get sometimes get there. Sometimes

it's the checkdown, Charlie. It's a seven yards and you punt. Yeah, that particular play, and it was a really good pick up to by Zeke, you know, being in there and helping pick up. But yeah, the inside, the safety to the inside was Scott number thirty three, and he initially looks like he's good, like he's gonna help, and then he flips the other way and he was completely lost.

And that's where that's where he tries to adjust. By him looking the other way, it got Hilt and far enough down the field to where he couldn't come over and make the play. So sometimes Slay was blaming Scott. I'll give you the name. He's blaming the guy. He was blaming the guy. And hey, if you know football, yeah, but he was the original Shaggy. It wasn't me, you know. So that's that's that's sometimes you have to catch breaks, you know, third and thirty. I mean two percent chance.

It was a better percent chance of throwing an interception there. Yeah, thinner is completing that ball, and it's a better it's a really bad percentage to say, hey, gold catch this ball fifty two yards down the field and don't use your hands. Yeah, that's it, right off your wrists. Yeah, I know. And I get this every game, every time Dak throws a deep ball. I get this because I have made the statement that I don't believe that Dak is a great deep ball thrower. That might have been

his best deep throw he's ever had. I mean, he chunked that thing something bad. He really did. He threw it, and I mean he was like, I'm throwing this as far as I can and as hard as I can. And that's what That's what makes that catch even more impressive, because he stood in there and chunk. To your point, he kept him in bounce too. We've seen Dak makelong sidelines throws where the guys it's too why it's too near, you know. So, And let's also be clear about this.

I think for a when you have a guy like t Y Hilton, it makes the deep ball throw an easier throw for the quarterback because it's like Randy Moss. It's those kind of receivers where basically the receiver's like, just chunk it, I'll go get it. And t w I talked about it after the game. He was like, he just threw it out there to me, Yeah, and

then I gotta go get it. And so when you got a guy that has that kind of crazy speed, he can go get it, and so it makes it looked like it's a great throw when really the quarterback just has to literally back up, take your drop. Well, just sling it and let the receiver run. I guarantee you that's the only deep ball that Dak has thrown to t Y Hilton since he's been here. You think in practice they ever aired one out like that. You know, to me, that doesn't seem like one of those that

you would like. Okay, it just run as fast as you can and we're gonna throw it down there. Well, the players has said in practice that, yeah, he's he's definitely showed he still had to speed. I don't know if he was throwing it yeah, okay, but somehow he showed the play. Maybe I just the players are like, yeah, we got something here, yet I don't know if it was dak On it to him. Yeah, I just wonder about that sometimes. You know, it's crazy that you but

they set the play up. They put personnel on the field that could all run see And so I love Turpin in the slot like that because then that's that's what you can play in the safety all you want to. But that guy knows number nine's coming up, he's got to pay attention to him a little bit, so that even if it's just a second late getting over, it's

because you put in the slot. And I love about that, and you start thinking about what you can do with stuff like that when you got you know, the guy on the outside, it's t Y and he's going on a nine route and then you you run basically a post route with the guy in the slot with Turpin.

And let's assume for a second you put CD on the field and you got him over on the other side of the field, what are you gonna do defense like, because somebody's gonna get open here and you can make some you can get some big hits at some players like that. I think that's where t Y Hilton adds a new dimension to this offense that we really haven't been able to see this point. Yeah, it's like Bakham, who, no, just get it. I'm still salty about the whole situation.

But no, that's exactly what the Cowboys were missing and they got it. And it's impressive. Now, he said, the bar very very high, and I expect nothing less than

catches like those. So keep it up. And it's exciting to have a guy like him with the speed that he has, because that is the one number, like Nick mentioned, that is the one thing that all of these guys have commented about him, is how fast this guy is and the fact that he showed the ability that he still has without playing all year basically right, Yeah, he's being out of recovery and so that just shows. Imagine

him getting a few more weeks of work in. I bet he's a lot better once the playoffs get here, and he's gonna be making those plays I think I always were lacking. I think you have to use him stuff in the underneath too. I think he's so capable of making those plays. Third and four, third and five, you get in those kind of those what we gonna call run pass kind of things. And you play action it and you hit him out of a bunch formation someone's trying to chase him. He's he's really good at

those kinds of plays as well. And the thing about that is at fifty two yard pass that's gonna defensive will be watching that and they're thinking I'm playing off like I'm not necessarily going up tight. So that's going to create those openings for some of those underneath throws. So yeah, he's got I think he adds a new dimension to your offense and gives you just one more playmaker that you get the ball in his hand in space, he can do something with it. Um. This is always

funny because it brought us. Was like, hey, you know who's gonna make a play on third and four for you? And I was just like, well, third and thirty, you

know who's gonna do it? Third and thirty. I mean, I sit next to Todd Archer from the ESPN and he charts every play and the guy had announced third and thirty and he goes, the Cowboys are seven and fifteen on third downs and he goes, I'm just gonna write seven and sixteen right now because they're not they're not getting this and it's usually checked down Charlie, like I said for eight Yeah, you know, no or draw topic, I mean, not completely off topic. But I kind of

feel bad for James Washington. I mean why, yeah, poor guy, what do you mean why? I mean, I mean, because it's it's the crazy party. Well I shouldn't say crazy part. We all know that. No, No, it is what it is. It is what it is. But I'm saying I feel I feel bad because he's been since training camp well something but out of sight, out of mind though. Yeah, yeah, they got to the point where they were been thinking

about if he was available. Maybe they don't talk about going to get t Y Hilton or maybe they don't talk about Odell Beckham, but they kind of realized that, man, we need something here. And you know, it's it's really out of sight, out of mind, I mean, you know, you mean, it's unfortunate he breaks his foot and they and they were to the point where, well, he's ready, he's ready, but they were not interested. I mean they

were thinking something completely different from him. Well that's the thing, is I they've held onto him this long, he's been healthy for a while, and then they used him two weeks ago. What was it for like one player he's only played. I'm just saying, I'm listen, I haven't He's not my type of receiver. But the thing is, it's just I do feel bad in the way that it's the business. Well you wonder now if he's the fifty

third player. Yeah, if they if they have to go, if they have to elevate somebody, or they have to go in position now with Hilton, I mean everybody, it's oh, hey look at this shiny new toy we have over here, and hey, look at this guy. We've only given three games too, or two games too. You know, we know what he is. Now we need to move back over here. I wouldn't be surprised if they needed a player. I'm

not saying. I'm just saying he's probably the guy that they would look at first if they had to bring on somebody off the roster or on the roster and they needed a spot. That's just my opinion. It makes me think that something they saw at some point, whether it's camp before he got hurt or since he's been healthy and not playing, something they saw made them say like, he ain't really the guy that we need, right now because they still were out there and they were looking

for other options. So to me, it just kind of says they weren't they weren't impressed enough, and this is just the result of what happened. We were all watching those OTA and mini camp practice him and Tolbert, they just weren't available. They just never were availing. And you see, you never got to feel for like, well, could he be that guy? Could he be the guy? And then all of a sudden you don't see him all of OTAs in mini camps. We get out to Oxnard. The

first practice, we're all settling in. He breaks his foot and now we're all like, well, what do you have in this guy? You know? And everybody was asking Stephen Jones and them at the at the at the at the party meet to party, Hey you have to go get a guy, if you get a guy, and they're like, no, we're cool, No, we're cool. Well, they eventually have to do. They went and got a guy. Yeah, they went and they were talking about Odell Beckham and then they went

and got this guy. All right, we're gonna take our final break, we'll come back. Let's flip to the defensive side of ball. Talk a little bit about that. We'll do that and come back when we come back. Dallas Cowboys dot com Radio. The season is finally here. For months, we've been gearing up to win. Now it's time for

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United Welcome Back. Final segment of the Break Life from s WBC Mortgage Studios at the Starless Stock defense Saturday. This defense gave up or they allowed and I'm sorry. They actually had four turnovers that they forced, but they had zero sacks. Should have had five turnovers. Bar dropped a ball he should have had. Yeah, Oh, no doubt about that. They had five, zero sacks, zero quarterback hits and allowed three hundred and fifty five passing yards against

Gardner Minshew. So give me your thoughts on this defense. After watching that game, I'll tell you what. That ball they would get into their twist stunts and the ball was gone. That's how fast it was going to in this game. And teams to figure that out. Don't let this team pass rush you and it doesn't matter. You can move Parsons around and stuff like that. Uh, you know, there was some pressure Minshew was having to move around. He made some incredible throws playing backwards, you know, he

made some of the throws that final drive. They kind of got to him. You started to see when when Lane Johnson came out of the game, you started to see, Okay, now some problems are happening for this. But yeah, I mean it's a it's a it's an excellent offensive line. The skill players are tremendous, you know, the way with brown Smith the tight end. Any ball in their direction they're gonna catch. But as you watch, I'm trying to think, why why is no pass rush? Why no pass rush?

Their line is good, but the ball is getting out so quick. I swear I was watching it there and I'm like, I kind of maybe four or five times where Cowboys are running a twist stunt and the stunt didn't even have a chance to get completed. I mean, it was like, in the infancy of it, just move, move ball out and you're like, ohing, Okay, I'm getting what's going on here, especially and you're you're compromised on

the back end. I think the combination of right, you know and Bland, I think that's the one they need to stick with because they covered better when those two were playing in the in the game. But yeah, it's tough when the ball's coming out that quick. It really

really is. And there were times now that you mentioned that, maybe that was it what I was watching, because there were times where I was looking at it and I'm like, man, they look slow the defense, the defensive black when they're rushing or like going Even Mica Parsons, there were a time where he was he just looked slow coming up, you know, with the snap. But uh, maybe that's the reason why, because of the quarterback getting rid of the ball. So it is it's it's it's not the it's not

it's it's it's my best reasoning right now. It's my best reasoning. If you get up and play press coverage and make guys have to win. They're not. Teams are not. The receivers are in routes and the ball is out. I mean it is like whether it's out a slant,

you know, curls. I mean, they're getting the ball out so far and that Gardner Minshew and the times when he was, like I said, he was going backwards, he's throwing its side arm and he's you know, he's on back foot he's throwing it over the middle and Smith makes a great catch. Or I'll tell you something about Mica. He wore Dallas Goddard out in the Running game, though Dallas Goddard in ball block him one time. In the

Running game. There are several times where he was just you know, slant slant slant coming in working around him. But you know, I mean that's the pass rush. Yeah, it's something you have to get. But if you can't hold up, it's hand in hand. If your guys in the back aren't holding up, then it's a problem because your rush can't get home to effect the pass. Yeah. I mean, I think that it does come down to

these corners as well. When you're facing these receivers that are playmakers, I mean DeVante Smith, A J. Brown, they're playmakers, will get the ball to them quickly, and that's where the advantage is. Not everybody obviously has the those two guys, but Jacksonville had some enough to throw it quickly. And I think it just comes down to the cornerbacks playing. You know, it's got to be the scheme, but the

cornerbacks playing close to the line script and making the tackle. Yeah, because if you could do that and then you you know, even that is going to be a minimal two three yard game, it's still going to put them in third and long some of the time. So I think it still comes down to the cornerbacks, to the cornerbacks making tackles on the outside. Well, the Cowboys aren't getting any penalties either too. They're not getting any like holding calls,

and they got some calls earlier. You got some holdings and you set teams back. They're just not getting those calls that they were earlier in the year. To say, somebody Nishan Wright, he to me is very impressive with the fact that he's a smart player. Like you can tell he did some things the last two games. You just you can just see a guy that's a young player that knows the rules, understands he knows if I hit him, if I just make contact before he goes

out of bounds, that clucks. That clock's gonna keep going. He may he's making the move. Last week against Jacksonville, the guy makes a catch on the ground, he lets him get up and then tackle him more seconds more time. YEA not saying about anybody else. I'm just saying he is a smart, young football player Scott size. He's he might be they're tall to play the position, but he handles it pretty well. I will say this, and I

mentioned this to you in the game as well. It was a similar thing from the standpoint of him providing run support. He's a really good tackler out there on the outside. They're better with with Wilson and Bland and those guys playing in the second you got curse. Heck, they put four they put four safeties out there in the field one time. You know, I'm trying to just trying to mix some things up and and and try

and help. But you've got you've got corners that that can make up if if seven is not always interested in tackling, the other dudes in that secondary are and I think that helps you. Would you would you in the off season? Would you entertain the thought about Israel mcquama as a corner You've been saying that since camp.

I wouldn't. I wouldn't be against it because I think they gotta they gotta think about their cornerback position because after next year, they may not have Brown, they may not have Lewis, So I think they gotta start thinking about, like where's his best and you've got enough safeties. I mean, yeah, you got enough safeties. Maybe it is a thought. Well, you know, Donovan Wilson is a free agent, so that's I'm thinking they're resigning him, right well, I mean I

don't know, I don't know. I don't know. Well, I think you do bring back Joseph. That's just me. I tweeted this out earlier. I think he's your special teams guy now, but I think you give him one more run. I don't. I mean people saying he's a bust and all that, I know, but to me, to me, it's just that's where he drew the most penalties. Just special teams. Just give it a go. Give it. I mean, like and at this at this point, I will say this, Brian, you give it a go and he busts again in

the preseason and you could just move on. Or maybe he's a better Maybe he becomes your your your Godwin or a Goodwin whatever, like a Goodwin as the you know, the special team c J Goodwin guy. Maybe he becomes that guy. Is this about the fact that, oh, I'll put it to you like this, if he was not a second round pick, would you be thinking that or is this one those things that you're like, hey, that's I just gotta give it one more trot because at

some point somebody thought he could play. I don't think if we all trust Dan quinn and Will McClay, those are the two guys that they didn't go down to San Antonio. Ut San Antonio and look at the Woolen kid who's doing it great things up there. He's the same. He's a long, tall corner that they would have probably absolutely loved. Woolen is a Pro Bowl player at Seattle.

They went to a workout in Lexington, Kentucky. I'm gonna be willing to give them the benefit of the doubt in this way that if you think that this guy could play, we'll give him an We'll give him one more year and go from there. If it doesn't work, we'll move on. There's Nick will remind you of every second round pick that never ever played here, you know, and he'll just be on the list. If that's exactly

Tony Dixon. How about that tackle we drafted that Parcels drafted from a USC J. Jacob Rogers never played that. Every time we think about moving from left tackle to right tackle, I think about him because it took him an entire year. Ye, like he wasn't going to do it in a whole year. It took him, and it was just like like he couldn't play. Parcels was told he's everything you hated an offensive lineman, and he still drafted him. I never played, never played. All right, appreciate

you guys, Johns. We'll be back tomorrow. We're gonna actually dive into Tennessee tomorrow. We'll do offense and defense tomorrow for Tennessee because it's gonna be our last show of the week before we head after for Thursday night game till then for Nick Even Brian brought us Amber Garcia. I'm Derek Eagleton. This has been The Break live on Dallas Cowboys dot Com Radio. This has been a production of Dallas Cowboys dot Com and the Dallas Cowboys Football Club.