Holiday Special: Ready to Rock & Roll?

We've got ourselves an all star crew. We've got Nate Newton, Barry Church, and we've got a special guest, Jesse Holly. It's the first time I've gotten to work with Jesse Holly on a podcast before. So an all star crew. Three guys out of the four have played significant time for the Dallas Cowboys, and I let all of you guys at home decipher who is the odd man out in that scenario. Just driving the bus today and and

just happy to be along with you guys. I mean, I love working with Barry and Nate on pregame Live and on everything that we've been on through Dallas Cowboys dot Com. And you know, Jesse, it's been a it's been a long time coming, you and I getting to be on a podcast together. But I know you're you're ready to rock and roll with your I've been good Santa Hat rolling in that that bottom left hand corner. How you been. I'm good man, I'm excited to be

You're right. Like I played with Barry, I work with Nate. I've never worked with two. So I think this is finally, you know, the stars aligning for us to work together. Now we got to make it a good one or you know, the bosses will see this and go Jesse, you and Kyle no longer will be a part of that. Yeah, Nate knows how that goes. He we worked together one time and he went back up to the boss. He's like, I don't think I should work with Kyle anymore. I

heard anyway. Anyways, name you never said that they will throw you under the bus, though, be careful. Maybe he will throw you under a big eighteen wheel of bus. Is this true? The most Yeah? I tell you like this here man, Uh, I know now that it's been a pleasure working with you, Jesse, because we had the big church to get on with us. Man's that's that's going down out here. Huh Look church, boom boom boom. He throw you under that bus early in the morning. Bad.

I'm just all under the tire tread right now. It's all good, that's awesome. I'm upset because I'm the only one on the entire show that one hasn't played for the Cowboys and two doesn't have a nice hat to go along with it. So I'm kind of here. But that's okay. Everybody's looking great and we're ready. Cowboys. You played for the Cowboys, because all you gotta do is say I believe the Cowboys. They're doing nothing. You're doing nothing. So so so that's the earlier gonna get into early

in this show. I like. I like that, oh man. So let's let's get started talking about a storyline that kind of popped up yesterday. And this is something that we didn't really anticipate popping up, and it happened early in the morning. And I know you guys would probably hit on it at least a little bit throughout your

shows yesterday. But Kellen Moore, offensive coordinator and of course the young boy genius, I know it's like you guys like to call it on hanging with the Boys previously, but of course, in his second year as the Cowboys offensive coordinator now being considered or at least rumored around the Boise State job. So my question to you is, if Kellen Moore, who of course is a Boise State graduate and a legend from the Broncos program up there in Idaho, if he were to go, would you be

okay with that? Jesse? Do you think that you would rather see Kellen Moore stay and grow as an offensive coordinator? Because I don't really think there's any question he would be back in twenty twenty one if if as long as he didn't get another job elsewhere. But would you like to see him back or has he done enough to say, okay, go off and take that Boise Stage job. Well, I maybe in the minority because I was never one who was on the Kellen Moore boy genius bandwagon when

he first got here as the Cowboys OC. So with that being said, I would be more than elated. In fact, I have a prayer group that I'm gathering so that we can get this up to the football guy, so that Boise offers him the head coaching job, so he can go back to his ALBUMA Mata, his historic program where he's like the all time leading everything at Boise State and take the head coaching job and just kind of just go do his thing up there. And now we can have Freaky Mike do what we called him

to do. We called Freaky Mike to come in here and be a offensive genius, an offensive play caller. I for one, have never I've never been on board with the Kellen Moore as the OC. So I wish him nothing but the best. I pray for his success, but I hope that his success takes him to Boise, Idaho, especially being this this is actually the last year that he has on his contract, doesn't He doesn't have a contract for twenty twenty one, So it's kind of like maybe things are lining up for him to go take

that job at Boise State. So and I think that's why the rumors are so grounded, Like that's why it's something that is significant in the fact that it is the last year of his contract. I think that plays a big throws a big wrench into this because if it wasn't the last year of his contract, I feel like it might get a little bit more tricky. But Barry, do you feel the same way as there an ounce of view that says Kella Moore can go ahead and

leave in this Cowboys organization may actually be better for it. Yeah, I'm one hundred percent behind Holly on this one. I was never I was never a great like you know, Kella Moore, He's just boy genius. When you said boy genius, I was like, whoa hold on, I wait a second. But I didn't done in that urn, I promise. But I've never been like a huge fan. I mean, there was just too many instances this year where it was

just head scratch head scratching calls. I mean, we can go back to the fourth and inches when we decided to throw a hitch to Cede Lamb instead of giving the ball to our ninety million dollars running back. I mean, it's just a plethora of things that this season hass has caused me to scratch my head. So for me, I would love to see Kella Moore get an opportunity to be to hit the head guy and boys stay. I'm hoping that Jerry doesn't throw the bag at him and say, hey, come on back down here. We need

your your offenses pedigree down here with our offense. But I hope he goes to Boise State, not for myself, but mostly for him. I mean, look, this is this is a stepping stool for him. He can go to Boise State. I mean this college, that college program is Taylor made for his offense. Everybody likes to throw the ball all over the place. They don't play great defense in the Mountain West. So I think he would thrive there and then eventually, if he wanted to, he might

be able to get back to the league. But overall, for me, I hope we don't throw him the bag. Go ahead and go to Boise State and get a cracking down there, a big dog. What do you think you know? When Jason Garrett was in his final year, Jesse'll tell you all that ever scream was, it's smart, it's Jason supposed to be. And all the degrees that he had, why would he go into his final year letting a puppy call his plays? And he went through that whole year letting this puppy call his plays, and

it cost him a job. Now we have coach McCarthy who said I would never give up my play calling duties, duties, and with one and with one week of putting his name on the dotted line, he came back and say, I'll be glad to get Kellen Moore my play calling duties. And I asked that question then, and I asked that question now, why did we hire coach McCarthy. Why didn't we go get a defensive, defensive minded coach if we wasn't gonna let coach McCarthy call the plays. And I'll

just leave it right there now. And that's a valid point because whenever Mike McCarthy came in, the first thought was, oh, I guess Kellen Moore is not calling the plays, right, I mean, that was what we thought. We thought Mike McCarthy would call the plays. But I don't know. I'm kind of interested to see that all three of the guys are quote unquote in the minority, which I don't think is really that much of the minority, and the fact that people would be okay with with Kellen Moore

leaving and taking this Boise State job. The only thing that I have paused about is the potential change with so much talent on this offense. I mean, you talk about the guys that they have in terms of Zeke and Anamari and Michael and CD that have had some success under Kellen Moore. I don't know about Zeke. Zeke might be the one that might benefit from a change, that offensive coordinator more than anybody. But why would you make a change like this whenever there has been success

in the past. Do you feel strongly, Isaiah or excuse me, Barry, that there is an offensive coordinator out there, a veteran offensive coordinator that could come in and make an immediate impact. Yes, Mike McCarthy, but you said, Mike McCarthy, Yeah, I mean ate they had. Yeah, yes, Mike, see, I don't understand you directed that, Barry, but some things, Kyle. Yes, it is a veteran offensive coordinator called Mike McCarthy that helped

a young Aaron Rodgers blossom. And then when when, when the when the when the student became equal or better than the master they sign him packing. Well, we don't have nobody's equal to Mike right now. So let's let's get Dak or whoever they're gonna sign at quarterback. Let's see he equal the mass, and then we'll get We'll call kell him back in four years. Are we sure Mike's this genius? Though? Are we sure Mike's this offensive? Same? Mike McCarthy right. I think you know, I think he is.

I think, if I said this and I repeat it, if he can run this team himself, if if if it wasn't, if it ain't no joint deal, if it's just like Mike, what do you want and let him run it? I think he can be. I think when the players know that everything stops and starts with your head, coach, I think he can. Because here's my thing, Fellas, what

did we bring Mike McCarthy here for. If we didn't bring him him here for his offensive mindset and his offensive quote unquote genius and his ability to develop quarterbacks and his ability to get prolific offenses on the football field, why is he here? If we wanted a stand around coach, we could have extend. We could have extended Jason Garrett and brought in another offensive coordinator. You brought him here simply because of his pedigree as a quarterback developer and

an offensive play caller. That's why you brought him here. Don't don't That's like don't don't don't bring a chef in to cook, to cook this five star meal, and all of a sudden, you say, you know what I want? Oodles and noodles. Don't don't do that. We're not. We're not. We're not. We're not trying to make oodles and noodles anymore. We're trying to let this guy go ahead and do what he do. And if it's not, if what we think he's supposed to be doing is it what he's doing,

then we failed. But don't handicap him. I had a conversation with with James Slater about, you know, Mike McCarthy and being on the sideline, and I said, you know, I said, you know why some of the things happen for guys like Mike McCarthy this year with some of the game management stuff, because Mike is looking for stuff to do. His whole career, he's been so engaged in the play calling of a game and being that aspect of it that he's engaged. But now he's just a

stand around head coach. You start trying to find stuff to do because it's like, what do I do with my hands? I have to find something to do. He has nothing to do on game day because I'm not calling plays. I'm not defensive minded, I'm not special teams minded. So if you take the one thing that makes me whole, and the one thing that makes me who I am, how I cut my teeth in this league. If you take that away from me, now I'm just another guy

who has a pair of headsets on the sideline. Let him do what he does, and if that's not what he's good at anymore, then we failed and we move on to the next guy. But all this whole, you know, let this guy do this, Let this guy do this. No, you signed Mike McCarthy simply because of his past history of being a quarterback developer and an offensive play caller.

Let the man do what he do well, and he was forced to call plays Kellen Moore being right, I mean this is a front office thing from the get go, correct, Jesse. I mean, there's really no other way around it, because with everything you're saying, Mike McCarthy has the opportunity to veto that unless it's a free front office thing. So why why is Kellen Moore still calling the plays? If Mike McCarthy, if that was specifically what he was called in to be. I said this yesterday on the show,

and listen. I could be far fetched sometimes I get way out there with some of my theories, but coming into the last year of Kellen Moore's contract, and there could have been a competition between between Jerry and Mike McCarthy, and if you fire Mike, if you fire Kellen Moore, now whatever he's making, you got to pay that, right. You don't get a chance to that doesn't go to the post, you know, post Jude one cuts where you can kind of get this kind on that you gotta

pay him that. So I thought maybe Jerry was like listening, He's in his last year of his contract. Let's see if you guys can work this thing out by letting him call players this first year. If it doesn't work out, we won't renew his contract, will give you the responsibilities back next year, and we'll continue to move forward. I do think that Kelly Moore is a Jerry Jones kind of uh. It's he's trying to build this. This is a continuation of what he tried to build with Jason Garrett.

When Jason Garrett back in two thousand and seven, eight and nine was like supposed to be the new genius, hot shot offensive play caller, and he paid him five million dollars equal to what he paid Wade Phillips to be the OC so that he wouldn't go to Baltimore, or that he wouldn't go to, uh, you know, other places. I think Jerry's still trying to still trying to put his hand on I created something. If I can't create a super Bowl winning team, I wouldn't be able to

say I created the next Cow Shanahan. I created the next uh, you know, the next hot shot across the league, and he came from my tree. And again, I think, like like Jason Garrett, Jerry might be striking out again on this one. Barry, what do you think about that? I just, you know, I just don't go understan. If we're going by that premise that you know who, we wanted to give Kellyn one more shot to try to try to make this offense complete and try to make

the next Kellyn or Kyle Shanahan. I go back to Nate's premise. And I just don't understand why we even hired Mike in the first place. If we're gonna give you know, Keller Morti this shot to be this OC, this great, this great game caller, we should have went and got a defensive coach, because I mean, we know how bad our defenses has been struggling. So yeah, I

still don't understand why we kept Kelly Moore along. If we hired Mike specifically to be this offensive guru and let him call the plays, why is Kelly Moore still here? I don't understand that one. That's the question I'd like to pose to you guys. And the thing that the thing that gets me fellas in and Jesse's always rolled me hard because I've always said, sooner or later, y'all, we're gonna have to play defense. Sooner or later, y'all. We're gonna have to have somebody to turn the ball

over sooner or later. And just think, we had a shot at at the defensive player this year last year, and we pick Ceedee Lamb and it's for great as Ceedee Lamb has been and for the potential that we see him being the top bulldog in the year. So that's how bad our defense is. Just think, and this year's draft it's totally against us because there's no top ten defensive players out there. So we're gonna wind up

again getting another offensive player. And listen, if we don't have the right coordinator to Kyle, what up, Let's go Kyle, right coordinator to try to help control the game if we would have started out this season trying to control clock along with scores, which we couldn't because my mate to the ball. So there you have it, ladies and gentlemen,

we've we've solved everything. The Cowboys are gonna draft an offensive tight end uh in the first round in Kyle Pitts, and then we're gonna turn The reason for the five and nine start is fumbles early in the season from Zeke. So that's the kind of content you came here for on Dallas Cowboys dot Com. On Christmas Eve, you're well, it's called Christmas Eve. It's called keeping the Real Christmas Eve.

When we come back, we're gonna talk about Mike McCarthy, some of that play calling, and how things could get better the last couple of weeks of the year heading into twenty twenty one, you're listening to Hanging with the Talking Players lounge right here on Dallas Cowboys dot Com.

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or at Stetson dot com. I'm j Novachek, former tight end for the Dallas Cowboys. Back in the day, I was the guy who always got the tough yards and that's why I run with John Deer today. In fact, I have a John Deer three zero twenty five E tractor that can handle any yard work I need to do, even the tough yards way out back. So if you have one acre or a thousand, John Deer has the equipment that's just right for you. Visit a John Deer dealer today and run with us. We are the official

tractor provider of your Dallas Cowboys. Here it's nineteen oh eight. Don't you think we should get electricity and stop using candles to see it night? It's just electricity lights up the room fast, It's more reliable than candles blowing out, and people seem to love it nationwide. Well, candles, dear, did you just run into the wall? I have a new candle please. Historically, switching to new technology is a no brainer. Today it's AT and T five G fast, reliable,

secure and nationwide. Switch to AT and T five G. It's not complicated. Five get requires compatible plant may not be in your area. See att dot com slash five G for you for details. To talk in Cowboys, Hey Lily, back here on Hanging with the Talking Cowboys. Break our way Mountain. There's no break. There's a player's lounge in here though, unfortunately, so back here on Dallas Cowboys dot com. Glad you're with us, everybody. Kyle Yoma's Jesse Holly, Nate

Newton and Barry Church. Chris being back at his home office running things at the point today. But whenever you guys look at this week in the Dallas Cowboys going up against the Philadelphia Eagles, they're two completely different teams, gentlemen. I mean, that's pretty out there, pretty obvious for either one of these teams. Whatever you talk about. The Cowboys no Benda Duci back at quarterback going up against the

Eagles like they had back in Week eight. Then you turn around and you've got Andy Dalton and going up against Jalen Hurts, which is something that we didn't necessarily

see going into Week sixteen happening either. But Jesse, whenever it comes to Jalen Hurts, what does he bring that's gonna be tough against this Cowboys defense because it's not gonna be an easy task for a defense that has struggled against mobile quarterbacks who can somehow find a way to throw the football like Jalen Hurts is done over the last couple of weeks. Yeah, he brings a headache,

that's what he brings. He brings you a significant headache, especially for a team that will probably be without You're starting defensive tackle and Antoine Woods, you're starting little linebacker, and Layton Vanderish and you're starting safety Xavier Woods will all probably be out of his game and his team has already had issues with the run game up the

middle and being able to corral athletic quarterbacks. And the way Jalen Hurts plays is yes, he wants to deliver the ball from the pocket, but make no mistakes about it. When that's not there and the play breaks down, you and this is a team who Tech Cowboys defense who have not been alignment assignment sound all year long. When that play breaks down and that pocket begins to collap, Jalen Hurts now becomes a threat as a runner, and not a runner who's looking to slide or who's looking

to kind of tiptoe. No, he's looking to run with

ni with some force. He has some wiggle. So not only is he looking to deliver the ball down the field, which he can, but when it breaks down on third and seven and third and eight, now all the linebackers have dropped back in coverage, and linebackers who may not have played a lot this season will play a lot more snaps because of the appsence of Laton vander Esh and those guys have dropped deep, and all that open field is there a guy like Jalen Hurts will be

able to break containment, get in the open field and convert those third downs, and you just you hope that aren't those critical ones late in the game or when you really need to get off the field. But he brings a headache to you. And I know that Barrier will be able to explain this a little bit better than I am from the defensive perspective, but he brings a headache to you because he's a guy that you have to account for as a weapon in the offensive game,

not only as a runner. I'm not only as a thrower, but as a bona fide runner. Barry, Yeah, Jesse, percent right. This guy is a headache waiting to happen. And I'm not on team Tank. I'm on team Let's make this NFC's playoffs. And I was hoping, a matter of fact, I was praying that Carson Wentz was going to be in the lineup. I was hoping that mister Turnover himself was going to be in the lineup and we were gonna go out there and pick him apart. But but

he's not. They got Hurts in there, and this guy is diagnamic the way he's able to he's faster than you want them to be, and he's more accurate than you want them to be. And like Jesse said, when the pocket breaks down and everything around him is going crazy, he has that innate ability to escape. Somehow, some way. He finds a sliver, a crack in a hole somewhere and he escapes out there. And then he becomes kind

of like Russell Wilson ESK. I'm not saying he's as good as Russell Wilson, but he becomes Russell Wilson X looking there's no way, not even close, not even close. But the way he's able to look down the field as he's trying to escape, he's not always trying to escape and run the ball and get down field to use his legs. He's looking to extend the play and

get the ball down the field. And as a defender, that is one of the hardest things you can defend, because when he starts doing that, it's already hard enough to cover these receivers, you know, as a play is developing, but as the play breaks down and it becomes backyard football, and the receivers are running all the way over just trying to get open for their quarterback. It becomes extremely

hard as a defender to defend that. And when you got a guy like Hurts who's able to run around by time and still has the arm strength to get the ball down the field, it's a hard, hard thing to defend. And this Cowboys team with missing starters, like you said, on all three levels, the defensive line, linebacker, and the secondary, it's going to be hard to defend this guy. For somehow, some way, we have got to take the ball away from him, get our offense in

short fields, and hopefully come away with a dog. Nate Wow, Man, I got buried church. Who brings his own segment on our pregame show, the church he preaches. When we got what we call on our show, we got Jesse, we call him the gospel. So I got the gospel in the pastor let's bringing the church. You know what I'm saying. And so all I can say to what y'all said is glory, glory, to glory, glory, because that man were runing,

because you were running. If the Cowboys do not line off right and do not tackle tonight, this early day game will be a disaster. I said on our show, and I meant this. We could be rolling along at a good clip. The Eagles can have a worse team than us, like they did last year, and we will find a way to lose the game because one of the coordinators get wacky and do something weird. Now we supposed to beat the Eagles Sunday s I don't care who were missing. We're supposed to beat them. That's just

wait and see what happened. I'm hoping what Church and I mean, what the what the uh said? Don't get the gospels? Hope it don't work? Well, don't work. I'm not necessarily convinced that the Cowboys have the majority of the momentum. I know that the Eagles lost against Arizona, but the fact that they played Arizona as well as they did, I feel like gave them confidence. And it hurts by himself is given a shot in the arm to everybody on that Eagle sideline, Nate, are you surely

confident that the Cowboys are one thing? What the line is? As good as this kid has been for the Eagles, and he's been that shot in um Okay, he's that double head of express. So I understand that this kid will put the ball on the ground. I have a guy who church is name the striker. His name is Donovan Wilson. When everybody else missed the tackles, he don't. He not only makes the tackle, but he knocks balls loose. And if he cannot miss this kid in the open field,

he can bring the pain. And all I needed is for one of those cornerbacks who's been standing around to pick the ball up. Do you see another turnover for Donovan Wilson, Jesse, do you think he could continue the hot streak. I mean he had to turnover against the Eagles the first time around. Yeah. I like Donovan Wilson, and people will think I don't like Donovan Wilson. The thing the thing that I struggle with when it comes

to Donovan Wilson. And I know this is coming from an offensive guy, but you know they label him as the hitman, and that's great, and that's fine. Striker, the striker, whatever they want to call him, trying to make it more consistent in coverage I need. I needed to be more consistent. He plays a little bit too erratic for me, and sometimes this was the nineteen nineties. Great bring the striker all day long, but we don't play in the

nineteen nineties. Anymore we play in the year of twenty twenty, and that type of physicality from that position, they don't welcome that really well in the National Football League. And example, he had a fifteen yard penalty when the defense should have got off the field last week because he came downhill ready to be a striker. I just want him to have to know he has to be almost Chris

Chris Kyle with his striking. You gotta be accurate. You have to be an assassin when you do this, because it comes a point in time of the game if you're coming downhill and you're trying to be that striking force. I don't need a fifteen yard targeting penalty. I don't need a unncessary roughness penalty. I don't I don't need it. I don't need to hit a defensive receiver penalty. And it extends to drive for the team. So be a striker, be aggressive, be physical, but understand how to do it

and win to do it. Because if it's third down and we need to get off the field because they've had the ball for the last four or five minutes and they're on an eight, nine, ten, eleven play, drive and we got him. We got him. It's third or whatever, and you come downhill all crazy and now it's a targeting penalty, and now we give them a free first down in fifteen yards. That's my only that's my only gright. What I have with him is be physical, be the enforcer,

be aggressive, just have it under control. Just don't be all over the place, and don't let your aggressiveness lead to somebody, you know, getting over top of you and behind your head. I like that a lot. I do. I think that's a key for Donovan Wilson, especially since I mean he's not the big time prospect that you normally would want as a guy who's going to come in and be a game changer. I mean, it was a sixth round pick, but Barry, how tough is that

for a safety to do? To come down and be the hammer, come down, be the enforcer, be the strike or as you want to call him, but also be under control at the same time, because I feel like those things don't come hand in hand quite easily. Oh they don't. And it's something that you know, you learn over time. And this guy is still young. He's still young. He's in his first season. Of really getting a lot of playing time. And I mean he's called the striker,

and that's what I can see. I can live with that as a as a defender, I can live with that guy being aggressive, being downhill, striking everything that moves. Yeah, you might catch a penalty here and there, but I can go in the foxhil I can go with an into war with someone knowing that he's gonna go one hundred miles an hour no matter what the situation is. So I can live with that. But he does have to develop a little bit more. Well, you need you

need the safety. You mean the safety going one hundred miles an hour all the time I thought, I thought Stafey weren't supposed to do that in cowboy uniformstry to believe, to believe. I'm sorry, your boy, your boy, who's who's gonna miss this game? He doesn't believe in going one hundred miles an hour each and every play, And that's probably why he won't be back here next year. But that,

you know, that's another point for another day. But for me overall, he kind of for me overall, Wilson kind of reminds me of Wilcox right now, he's very aggressive, and that's JJ Wilcox reminds me of him a lot because he's very aggressive. He's very downhill, but he can miss. He has the ability to miss out there. So he has to get that control part of his game. And he comes downhill as far as his breaks too, when he's breaking on the ball, So he has to get

that control part of the game. Like Jesse has has said, has mentioned that he has to get that under control. But if he's able to do that, I think the future is bright for this kid. J And like JJ Willcox, all you gotta decide, is he that thirty play or less player? Yes, put him in situations where he can be that guy. That's where great coaching come in at I like what both of you guys have said. But we got to have that type of player because take him off the field and guess what. Guys are running

behind us, Guys are catching balls all over us. This guy's in timor data. So you have to take a live bit of risk, you know, and turn on the lights. As mister Jones you say so. I love how much shade is thrown in this show. I feel like every couple of seconds it's a sprinkle here, it's a splash there. It's just things in the mix that normally shouldn't really be in the mix. But I love it at the same time because there's a lot of shade to be

thrown around. But when we come back here on Hanging with the Talking Players lounge, well, we're gonna talk about Tony Pollard and Ezekiel Elliott and how they could work together in that backfield to produce a little bit more of the ground game that the Cowboys have definitely been missing here in twenty twenty. Right after the break, we're back in a tasty treat that's sweeping air waves and taste buds. It's new Doctor Peppery creep Soda. Let's take

a listen, Doctor Batman and cream soda. Is he a new combone? That's music to my ears? Okay, doctor time, music to my ears and mouth. New Doctor pepper and cream Soda A delicious There's nothing as unique as our eyes, which is why SLOR pioneers ways to make lenses as unique as you. Varilux were super sharp vision, Essential Blue for protection, and Crisol for freedom from glare, three cutting

edge solutions in a single unique lens. So whatever your needs, insist on selor visit your local slor experts and find a perfect lens for you. Seymour do Moore Slor. The Cowboys Way, where sixteen Hall of Famers and five championships shows us what success looks like. Where Turkey is always the second best part of Thanksgiving Day, Where we are all defined by one single thing, the Star, where we as fans know it's our job to keep the tradition

and going. Bank of America is proud to be the official bank of the Dallas Cowboys and to support the quest of living life. The Cowboys Way Copyright twenty twenty Bank of America Corporation. Dear, it's nineteen oh eight. Don't you think we should get electricity and stop using candles to see it night? It's just electricity lights up the room fast, It's more reliable than candles blowing out, and people seem to love it nationwide. Candles, Dear, did you

just run into the wall. We have a new candle. Please. Historically, switching to new technology is a no brainer. Today it's AT and T five G, fast, reliable, secure and nationwide. Switch to AT and T five G. It's not complicated. Five G requires compatible plant may not be in your area. See att dot com slash five G for you for details. To talk in Cowboys, It's the final segment here of a special Christmas Eve edition of Dallas Cowboys dot com podcast.

So glad you're with us. We're having a ton of fun leading you into Week sixteen of the the NFL season. We've got Jesse Holly Berry Church and Nate Newton of trio of former Dallas Cowboys. I'm just trying to lead the way here on Dallas Cowboys dot Com, but i think I'm losing internet connection, so I'm going to pass things off to Jesse really quickly here and Jesse whenever it comes to the offense, and Tony Pollard and Ezekiel Elliott. Tony Pollard had his first start of his career. What

did you think about what you saw from Tony? Is that something he can continue the rest of the season. Yeah. I think Tony did what they wanted him to do. He wasn't bad, he wasn't spectacular. He was good. He rushed the ball for sixty nine yards. He caught the ball for sixty yards. That's what he's supposed to do.

It wasn't any like, that's the thing. I found it amazing, And I think Cowboy fans, we're looking for something and we're we're, we're, we're, we're hypocondracts, and we over exaggerated everything. So any little thing, it's like, oh my god, he shouldn't be starting to go with zee. He had one run for forty yards. Other than that, he would have literally rushed for twelve carries for twenty two yards or twenty nine yards in an entire football game that he

was the lead back in. So I don't want to I don't want to sound like I'm throwing shade at Tony Pollock. But I am the voice of reason. I am the voice of reason around here. And he wasn't bad. He wasn't spectacular. He did what he was supposed to do in the game that in the road they gave him. But you know, it's it's it's easy. Here's a couple thing that you have to remember. One it's easy to say, you know, oh, well he did and needs that and

he did it in the one game. When those yards and those carries and those miles begin to get on your back, I don't know how explosive he will be. I played with a guy named Felix Jones. And when Felix was the complimentary back to Marry and Barber, he was lights out. He would come in out to Marry and didn't tend to ride the defense up and he would break one for sixty seventy yards or screenplayers, some

thing like that. And then they decided, you know what, well, we're gonna make Felix our every down back and we're gonna let Marion Barbara go. And then they gave the ball to Felix twenty to twenty five times the games, and he couldn't cut it. They beginning to wear on him, his body beginning to wear it down. He didn't have the burst, He didn't have the elusionment that he once had.

Because when you gotta be a blitz pick up in the first down back and the second down back, and you gotta hit the three hundred and thirty pound those tackle and the linebacker is constantly hitting you, and you gotta pick up those blitzing safeties over time through a sixteen seventeen week season, that begins to wear on you. And so I know that Zeke may not have the burst that he once had, but you try giving Tony Poller two hundred and fifty three hundred carries a season,

and see it, see it. See how elusive and how a fast and burst he he is after a couple of years of that, so you know, we gotta kind of almost pump out brakes a little bit again. Tony Pollard is a nice change of pace back. He's a nice compliment to a lead back. But he did nothing

in that game that wiled me. He did exactly what you thought he would be able to catch the ball cleanly, make some plays in space, protect a football and run it you know where he can, and pick up some decent yards and break a big play after you've worn down a defense a little bit. I mean, that's exactly what you brought him into to do, and that's what he did on Sunday, and sure it looked good. I mean it was fun and everybody saw, Hey, forty yards

on a touchdown run. We haven't seen that in a while from Zeke, So I see where fans are coming from. But once again, I'm right there with you, Jesse. I think he's a good complimentary back. But Tony Pollard also said this week that that Zeke is his number one fan and you hear that every now and again from different teammates or players in the league, and even even outside of football. These complimentary basketball players, these second tier basketball players that are playing under a big guy and

they have a big game. It's you know, you know, James Harden's my number one fan, says Russell Westbrook. Not so much. But there are different things that you look at from these players perspective. Dud said, I want to hear from you guys started with Nate. But do you think that's that's real? Do you think that there is legitimate support there or is that just something that players say to say to the media, or is there maybe even a little bit of competition and discontent that locker room.

I think Zeke is confident in who he is and what he makes to be able to say that true. That's good point. I'm making twelve million dollars a year. You're making fifteen hundred dollars a week. Hey brought me a biggest fan by Yeah, you know, I gotta agree with Nat on that one. I mean, look, he could say that. He could say that because, like they said, I mean, he's the lead dog, he's making the most.

He he knows for a fact that his job is not under any type of scrutiny or under any type of you know, billingness to give it up at any type of at any chance. I mean, look, Zeke, he can say that, but at the end of the day, like if Tony Poler started cutting into his carries, or if we've seen the head coach saying, hey man, PTP, this is your job. Now, Zeke a saying none of that. He's going straight to Jerry. Hey, what the heck is going on here? This dude ain't nowhere near as good

as me? Why is he splitting carries with me? What is going on here? I'm making the most money, I'm your investment. Why is he getting these carries? It would change the script so fast it wouldn't even be funny. So now he can say that because he's in a position where he's at right now, and it's it's always

funny because and Nayton Barry knows this. There's this, there's this healthy friendship slash competition and in position groups, right, it's like, hey, listen, we're all safeties, we're all receivers, we're all lynman, and we all like each other. We

genuinely like each other. But there's this quiet, spoken, unspoken language of you, my guy, but I'm coming for your job, especially if you're playing in front of me, and and and and Yes we are in a brotherhood, and I get it, but I promise you as a as as a backup receiver. I never want to see anyone get hurt. But I'm like, oh, that's gonna be a four week ankle injury. Oh and my lion fellas, I don't want to see. I never want to see anyone get hurt. But I'm not upset if the ankle injury is four

to five weeks, I'm not upset. I'm not conteers understand this. Anybody that's a fifth rounder or down to free agency like all three of us is. I don't care what happened to you. If I get that opportunity to get your job and the coaches being sad, you would not get it back. M That's the bottom line. That's that's

how I feel. Every time Barry hosts a church segment on Sunday on Pregame Live, I just know there's some friendly competition between the Pregame Live crew and I know Barry look at a cross kind of giving me the side eye every time he hosts a really nice segment now. But no, I've always been interested about that because there has to be that friendship, there has to be that brotherhood, but there also has to be the competition and a healthy competition. It's what you want in locker room, and

you need to have that balance of both. And I think that's a better competition in your locker room, that better your team. When you have a team that is truly complacent, you have a losing team that is part of the culture. You can go to Kansas City right now and you can talk to Anthony Hitchins or Wilson, and I asked them like, hey man, how do you feel you feel comfortable? And they're gonna tell you know ah, because when you're winning, when you're winning, and you you

want more. When I started winning, I wanted more Pro Bowls. I wanted more All Pros. I would look at the next guy. I used to want to look at the next offensive guard or the next offensive time. I was looking at what they were doing during the week, not on my team, because I felt I was better than what was on my team. I'm talking on other teams. You want to be the best, the more you win. But when you got this so losing attitude, yeah we're okay,

Yeah yeah, these moral victories everybody won. Losing brains, complacency and brains. Friendships, competitiveness, brains, a bond that will never be broken. I love Troy forever, Mike Irvan forever because they would not let me fail and I would not let them fail. That's competitiveness. And this is why you'll never hear players be team tankers. We're never gonna be team tankers one because it's just not who we are. We understand the sacrifice that it takes to go to

put it into be a professional player. Into quitters. Those are quitters, they quit. But we also understand, right, we also understand if if you tank and we're really bad on defense, and I'm Barry Church and they're gonna go get a defensive player and they're gonna focus on defense.

Wait a second, my job may be in My job may be in trouble if if we're tanking and our job and we're back quickensive and I'm and I'm an offensive player, you know, And I've told this story one of the reasons a lot of people were upset that Jason Garrett. The year we drafted Dez Bryant was because when we left our team meeting, Jason Garrett told the offense, oh, no, we're gonna we're good. We're gonna look defensively. And so with me, Patrick Craton, Roy Williams, Miles Austin, Sam Hurd,

Kevin Ogtree, we're chilling. We're like, okay, good, you know, we're gonna get our little vacation on. And I'm in Mexico and I'm watching the draft and it's I'm in I'm in can Con, and I'm the television, the telecaster in Spanish, and all our is no Dez Bryant. And I said, lady that I was with. She said, the

Cowboys took dazz Brant. And I ran in there and I looked at my phone and before I can even before I can even unlock my phone, I had missed calls from Patrick Craig, and I miss I had missed calls because now I was like, wait a second, was it you add another first round receiver into this room? Somebody gotta go. So yeah, that's that's always in the back of my mother. Man. I tell you, man, I was here and went through the same thing. Yes, same thing.

I had two second round picks coming straight for my job. One of us, a kid out of the University of Florida, played with my brother second round pick. I mean, it's just in the newspaper. I mean, I'm mean, you used to be ruth it's not a soft they used to be ruthless. They knew would no longer be here because they got this guy, and they got this guy and

they will not be here. This guy will be starting doing training camp and I'm like, wow, I mean, and so people are like, you know, young ladys me is like, how you feel about that. I'm like, man, I gotta go to work. I gotta go to work. And thank god, this dude like to eating more and I didn't. He never made wait, he never I stopped eating for a while.

He can d so I may thank you. See I tell people, man, when I look at a dude and I can't have a little fear of him taking my job, I mean, I get up that morning out, man, I work out tomorrow to do behind. Really, but boy, it's a little healthy fear there that you may walk to your locker and it's two guys sitting in there and both of y'all and all of y'all four hundred pounds

trying to get around each other. That little lockers used to be like, hey, it's my lineup, But I understand he brought y'all on him doing the off day, so it's y'all locker two. Come on, man, that's that's some fear. Bro. You pick out that window on that Tuesday, and they got they work when they work out today. Yeah, and everything got the clock and every man. And the thing

about it Saray cap makes it wear certain guys. But I tell people, I say, even before it was a sary cap, it was still certain guys that were gonna make your team. First round picks, Guys like that, guys they gave the money to. So this has always been around, but I've never seen the complacency that I see now. And it doesn't breathe winning. Yeah, no, it doesn't. And that's why you see a season like this, even with

all the injuries. It's easy to make an excuse for twenty twenty, but hopefully the Cowboys can keep some of this momentum. Hopefully it does breed winning into twenty twenty one. When you get your guys back and you get healthy. And I think that's where a lot of fans are, and they're split between making the playoffs or at least making a push for the playoffs. You still need a lot of help to get there. But winning and quote

unquote tanking. I mean, there's fans split both ways, but I think winning is going to help you out a lot more as you head into the final couple of weeks of the season. But that's going to do it for us here on this question before we leave, I try, is tanking quitting? That's quitting? It is quitn Okay, Okay, thank you glad. I'm sorry. I got a little emotional. Yeah, I could tell. I could tell. Now. I wanted to wish everybody listening a Marry Christmas, Mary, Christmas to you three.

It was a ton of fun hanging out with you here over the last forty five minutes. We'll be sure to do it again. Along the way, you can catch Nate Newton and Jesse Holly on hanging with the boys every week day. They bring the heat. It's an awesome show hosted by Shannon Gross. If you haven't go check it out already, It's fantastic. And then Barry Church is on the Players Lounge with Neui Scrugs and Danny McCray. That's an awesome show as well, but that's gonna do

it for us. It's been a oh goodness, oh you guys have fun, Marry Christmas. Everybody days safe, yea Christmas Trees. I'm bringing the word quitted instead of tank. Do it, do it, love it when we We'll be back on Monday to break things down here on Dallas Cowboys dot Com. But for Nate Newton, for Bury Church and Jesse Holly and Chris Beam holding down the fordm Kyle yeomens will

see you next time. Cowboys winning the East. This has been a production of Dallas Cowboys dot Com and the Dallas Cowboys Football Club.