Talkin' Cowboys: Fan Call Tuesday

thinks I've already watched tape on him. What about you, Mick, I don't think so Uh. There's no twenty four hour rule when it comes to a week like this week. Brian does have that rule, though he was grinding on tape this morning before the show. Yeah, yeah, I think all right. Let me I got a question right off the top, because we will dwell a lot on what happened Sunday as well. It puts in prospective Lions week and which team in the league has the number one

pass defense in this National Football League? Number one past number one pass defense in the National Football League. It isn't one of those teams that played last night pittsburgher Tampa Bay No give you that where they were throwing it all over the lot. Let's go back to your theory last show about how the numbers are skewed a little bit. They can be skewed a little bit. But number one pass defense in the league. We're talking passing yards given up in the first three games of this season.

It's a really bad team, right, Maybe not, maybe this is this football team. They only gave up one hundred sixty. Yeah, we've got a vote for Dallas, got it that vote for Dallas. Vote for Dallas, Okay, because their number three overall, one of the Cowboys offensively. What's their pass offense ranking in the league thirty one. I believe there's a lot of their second to last in passing yards. There's a lot of thirty first rankings with the offense right now,

points per game, third down conversions, it's not okay. So the number one pass defense and the National Football League is the Detroit Lions. Okay, coming in here this week. So we got the number the second to last pass offense versus the number one pass defense, which limited Tom Brady and the Patriots to one hundred twenty total net yards passing Sunday night. So there you have it. That sets the tone for Lions weight who calls their plays?

Patricia that Patricia's no Paul pascalon for New England. It's Detroit has the number. Well, where are you going to, Josh m Josh what would they beat? Josh McDaniel, McDaniel, Josh mcdonwal, I think it Josh McCown. Who did Who did Detroit beat? Yeah? New England? Yeah? Okay? And how many yards passing? They had? One hundred and twenty net yards plus thirteen yards? Who's calling the place for the Patriots? He's questioning New England's ability to move a lee. I

got you. We're not canny, we're not talking. We're talking to Brians here. Yeah, all right, And by the way, over the course of the next hour, we'll get into play calling too, which was the topic djure yesterday at the press conference. Well, I thought I got into it right away, right off the bat, right there. All right, let me okay, Brian's got some questions. He's gonna pose in the next hour. We're gonna take your phone calls as well. Eight eight eight eight five five two two

ninety seven. I got a tweet from someone yesterday saying we need to take more phone calls. Well, we need to have better phone calls. And what we had yesterday that was that Okay, bring it all right, See Bill, you're gonna get in trouble there when you're talking about Joe and flower Mound and Dick's all right, Bill set the standard. All right. So here's a question that I

have for you. Okay, what kind of because I think a lot of this play calling stuff has to do is with we need to get the ball to Zeke more sure? Right? Okay? Zeke averaged over eight yards of carry in the game Sunday, right, and they were okay with that? Seattle was yeah, they were yep. And because they won the game, they won the game, that's right, That's right. You never forced them to change what they what they had to do right to win the game, right,

all right? So what kind of distribution do are we looking for? How many times does Zeke need to touch the ball? What's what's the percentage of total plays? And we want to see Zeke touching the ball, whether it's running the ball or catching the ball out of the backfield. Well, we talked about this pre show I went to journalism school and A and M, so my math is terror okay, But if you got sixty plays in a football game, whatever percentage of twenty five touches by Zeke is what

I want. So a little less than fifty percent. Yeah, and preferably, you know, up fifty or above if it's sixty plays, But that that probably means you're winning the game and you're trying to salt away the game in the fourth quarter. But I want Zeke in the twenties. And I think I don't think he's had twenty carries in a game yet this season. Right, He's been in the teams every time. I think that's right. So do you trust this offensive line to run block consistently enough

to run it as much as you want? I was encouraged by what they did two days to stand with Seattle, But I mean you understand, I mean consistently. See, that's the problem I think that everybody has that this team runs the ball too much, and there's a there's not a passing game. Do you feel like Seattle kind of try to give them that a little bit? Seattle said, yeah,

run the ball. Didn't see as many loaded boxes. Yeah, So It's funny because I hear they need to give the ball Zeke more, and then I also hear they need to be more creative. Yeah, to see, that's the that's the problem you run into, is that. And I don't disagree with you, guys, I really don't. I mean, I'm just trying to say that what's going to happen is that the the the fan out there is going to say, will you run the ball too much? First

down runs, second down runs? You know that you're you're you're you're too committed to running the football, I guess. And that's where you know, and you see it the other day where yeah, he has fifteen carries averages seven yards to carry, but are they going to be able to consistently do that? That's that's where if you run the football, you're gonna not score points. That's where that's

just the way this league is. Well, they've run it in the past, and I'm and I said, this last show can't really go back on the past too much because it's a different offensive line right now. Sure, but their formula has been and I think you know they're trying to do it this last game, getting these manageable situations might be short passing game to try to get Dack in this third and manageable stuff. And that was

the problem. And Garrett spoke to it yesterday three to thirteen on third down and it wasn't like they were in third and ten all the time. No, they weren't. So they ideally, I think you got to be able to use Zeke to stay ahead of the chains. But I'm with you, they haven't run it with as much efficiency overall this season as they'd like to. Basically basically until to answer my question to until they got into fourth quarter where they're having to throw at every play, Yeah,

basically or down. Well, they were down twenty four six at one point, but in the fourth quarter, fifty percent of the time Zeke the play was designed to go to Zeke. Now, I got twenty one out of forty two plays Zeke was involved in the play. Now, some of those don't show up on the stat sheet because he stepped out of bounds on a thirty one yard touchdown catch, he dropped a ball on a third down, so that includes drops and whatever. But fifty percent of

the time Zeke was getting the football. See, they had they had a toe of fifty eight place. He touched the ball nineteen times, So if Mike kelts right here, that's thirty three percent. Probably not much. In the last he also dropped one and stepped out of bounds, so that would have been twenty. He had another play where when he won, he was stunning out of bounds when

the ball was thrown to him. Yeah yeah, so so again, so he's touching it almost thirty five six that's including the fourth quarter though, But then and then in the fourth and think about this, at the end of the half they were in two minute, they threw two passes, and then at the five twenty five mark when they were behind, they ended up throwing ten passes because they're in hurry up off right, So that's twelve touches, twelve

passes out of thirty four. If you were in the lead, you wouldn't be doing that, right and a great and so flip it over to Seattle and what they did with Chris Carson, he winds up. You look at the final stat sheet and whoa, this is a great discrepancy here. Chris Carson carried the ball thirty two times and Zeke carried it seventeen times or whatever. It was, how can you have that imbalance like that? Well, that's because Chris Carson in the last quarter and change of the game

carried the ball fifteen times for forty eight yards. He had fifteen of his thirty two carries after they got up twenty four because they didn't mind going punt, punt, punt, never try. Yeah, right, they were. They saw what Dallas was doing offensively. Right, they went into the game knowing what Dallas or incapable of doing offensive People say it dates how they played. The people have been saying for the last few weeks, you stopped Zeke. You stopped this offense.

They didn't. Seattle didn't stop Zeke. Cowboys stopped themselves. Well, okay, let me ask you this, guys, and I'll answer the question for you too. Mickey Good, which does this team run the ball better or pass protect better? At this current state? Do they run the ball better or pass protect better? That's pretty easy. They run the ball better, Yeah, I'd say that overall. Yeah, from what we've seen in three games. I put the ball in z cans over I mean, but we're okay, great example, but were and

I don't disagree with what you're saying. I think you think they run the ball better. Yeah. But the thing about it is, though, is running the football going to put them in you know, are they going to be in debt bad down and distance situation? Are we going to get the consistency run blocking? I think I think they do run block better, yeah, but are you going to have the consistency doing it? And is and now are you going to put yourself in those bad down

and distance situations trying to be efficient? Trying to be efficient? That's faires. What happened in Carolina They had minus runs and that that hurt there down in distance as much as penalties and sacks did. Um. It's a good question. I mean, the flip side is you do I don't think you want to put the ball in Dak's hands and make him throw forty times a game. That's not That's not the way you want to play offense, Eve, No, you know you want to How is this offense going

to score points? That's the biggest question. What's there? What's their avenue for scorn points? Is it running the ball? Is it throwing the ball? Are they just are they just do that? Then the whole thing the argument of hey, we don't need a number one receiver here is that now? Coming back to bite them, what I was gonna say is you need more explosive plays here and there like you got from Tavon in WEEKDA. I would I would get the ball to Tavon Austin. I would get him

more involved. You talk about Zeke, I would get Tavon Austin involved more in what's going on here? Right about that today when he gets the ball or he's involved in a play design, good things seem to happen. But he hasn't you know, he hasn't been on the field a ton, you know. But but you better find a way to score points. That's the team's biggest problem. Protection has been poor consistency and running the football. Yeah, it was good against Seattle, you know, and you knew you

were gonna have some problems against the the Giants. They doubled his snaps this last game, Austin. They did. He had twenty twenty twenty snaps thirty three percent. That's good. It needs to be more. Yeah, maybe he needs to be the receiver that's out there more often, not just a toy receiver. They need to do Brian, They you make a great point. I mean they need to do what Seattle was able to do on Sunday, and that's

hit a big play here and there. They had one expense lead like they did against the Giants that too. How do they do that? Well? Four yard touchdown? Well they hit it. They host to play down the field. They got to be able to do this. This offense doesn't make any big plays. Is he the most experienced receiver? They have? Tavon Yes twenty and then Williams And then I'm gonna tell you that I'm gonna get to a question where I'm gonna do something with Williams, you know,

because I mean that's you know, what's he doing? He's been involved in running plays? Really not? Or is he not? Is he not a suddenly not capable? That's what I want. That's fifty pass exactly? Are they are? They? Are they moving on from Terrence Williams just because of trying to get some other things. You're gonna try and get Bryce Butler dressed this week? Who are you gonna sit? I think it's him, That's what I'm saying. Is that the right guy to sit. He's the one guy that has

the most experience, you know, of making plays. I'm sure the fan out there is losing their mind right now with me saying that. But I mean, who are you gonna sit? You gonna I mean they're gonna sit Herns. I don't think you're sallup. You're not gonna sit Gallup or Thompson. No, all right here, here's I was driving in thinking about this. They need Do they need to hone in on who their top receivers are and not go with you know, by committee or yeah, well with

in in practice, in games, whatever. Do they need to hone in on these are the four receivers that we're going with. I've been saying, I think it's a couple of weeks and I think it's something that they needed to do starting about mid training camp and we had this discussion about with this this committee approach work. And I'm not saying that the guys haven't made some plays, but where are the big plays? Where's the run after catch? The only run after catch you get it seems to

be from Beasley a little bit cross round. Yeah, this team, this team doesn't are the intermediate plays. Yeah, and maybe that's on the quarterback too, and maybe that's on the offensive line. But I think I think to Rob's point, which he has been talking about this for a couple of weeks, is at least a couple of weeks is all right? Even with a Michael Gallup, this is a rookie receiver, Okay, right, we saw him drop a past the other day that it resulted an interception. All right.

Maybe with Michael Gallup, you gotta just pull back on him. And you have to win games right now, okay, And so you have to I believe you have to settle on these are the guys we're going with right now. Yeah. And if Michael Gallup, if you can trust him, if he's you're one of those four, go with him. But if not, it doesn't mean you don't have great plans for Michael Gallup on down the road or even the second half of the season. Let him grow into this.

It's it's a very tough league to get into. You've got experienced receivers. You mentioned Terrence Williams, Cole Beasley, Okay, Tavon Austin, Alan Hearns, you've got Thompson has shown some things, but you just got to figure out who are your guys. Maybe the one advantage I have over you guys right now is the fact that I've seen Michael Gallup make plays in college at Colorado State, And maybe that's why I would I would say, Bill, I'm gonna live with

him right now. It's it's like living with Conor Williams. But if you feel that strongly about him, then go with it. And then but if he's the one guy that can make plays, I'm gonna keep him on the field. I know we had the drop, I mean, I know, and that's great that it also saw the touchdown against San Francisco in the preseason. You know, sure he's free.

If he's who you have confidence, the guys that you have confidence in and can try make a great point, you make a go with them right now and then things are gonna But who do you have? That's what they got to figure. They should point three games, right, That's the point. I don't know if they know yet exactly. Maybe they have confidence. Well that's a shame if they. I mean, I'm not I'm just saying, don't forget some guys. Seven guys and we and we have no we have confidence.

They eventually have confidence in Beasley. Hey, well no, I mean down the line, I know Beasley. I know Tavan and some of these guys miss time in preseason. Maybe that factors in the the eye tests evaluation. I don't know, but yeah, I think it helps your quarterback out if you can trim pair this thing down a little bit and he knows who he's got and who he's rolling with. It may be a fifty fifty decision on who it is. There may not be, but you, I think you need

to make the decision. Jerry was talking about it on the radio, not in regards to UH this morning, not in regards to the receivers, but so often there are fifty fifty decisions that a decision maker has to make, and he, as he said, the key on it is if it's a good decision, go with it as long as you can as it continues to be a good decision, if it's got playing over Romo. If you say, if it's a bad decision, then you gotta get it. You reverse the decision as soon as you see that it's

a bad decision. That makes the key to it. So in this case, if it may be fifty fifty on these six or seven wide receivers, who plays will make your decision and then it will sort itself out. How many catches as Hearns have had to the last game he had one or two? The four four? Yeah, four. See that's a problem. What's he what's he got you? What's he giving you? Yeah, that's a fair, fair point. They didn't pay him enough. That says he's got a play or he's got a stick. So that's a good analysis.

And I've been with Brian on this since camp. I think Gallop, aside from Tavon Austin, he's rare in terms of speed. Gallops maybe your most explosive receiver. I mean, he's got a lot of potential to help you down the field. So yeah, the question is do you give him the snaps and live with some of the growing pains. You can't. But when he makes a drop that leads to an it's a huge side. It kills you. It does it's a huge play in the game. But you know what, I drafted this kid to play. I drafted him.

He's He's different than what Mickey's talking about with Alan Hearns. It's a different player, Alan Hearns. I love you're running inside and catching the slant and maybe getting in behind, you know, kind of fitting in behind the linebackers. But I need some explosive plays. I need some downfield plays. I need my line, like Micky's talking about again, to protect ye. I mean we've seen Hearns catch a pass

and run. Yeah, I've seen Gallup do it. See that's I mean, Gallup would have made that play in the Carolina game. You just seeing a guy go and finish. You've just seen that. They just don't have anybody on the outside that's doing that. It seems like it's a catch a three yard game and a fall down, you know, or get down, unless it's unless you're throwing the ball to number ten and then all of a sudden you're like,

well this could go, this could go, you know. And even when he was running backwards and I thought, man, if he just got the corner, yeah, he was gonna get six seven yards After all that stuff going on, He's one guy that you're kind of okay with him doing that because it's he might have a chance. It wasn't on the defensive made the stuff on that play. Um, I can't remember. He was moving right trying to catch the right I can't think there was a free safety

that was it that Yeah, that's right. He did get him. Yeah, the other free safety was it McDougall. Actually, their safeties played really well other than just other than just you know or McDougall. The other they played well, right they did. Okay, we have a phone call, but we're right up against it. But we're gonna go ahead and go with the phone call anyway. Richie in Arizona first up on Talking Cowboys.

Good morning, gentlemen. I've got a lifelong Cowboy friend over forty years, and I've had the highs and the lows, the heartbreak and the ecstasy watching this team. But I'm wondering now I'm beginning to lose respect for what I would call the management side of the Cowboys, and I think many of the fans are as well. There needs to be greater concern about the state Right now. We're

not a competitive team. We're almost a laughing stock. And what happens if we start losing people coming to the games, buying the various things, joining the websites, following the news, getting the TV commercials, the support for a team that seems to be going nowhere. I would like to see this team take seriously the fact that we're not a very good team. We need to do something. I've always had great respect for Jason Garrett. I'm beginning to lose that.

I think he has his head in the sand. Those are my comments. Can we ask you a question or say they need to do something? What would you like to do? Thank you very much. For example, every game, the very first play always is Elliot up the middle. One year, we get that every single game. Why not in one game have a screen pass or something to open up the game. When it's a third and two, we always go to a pass once in a while. Why don't we run the ball and didn't get it

and get it? Yeah, I know, but that's a rarity. But you would think you would get that. That was one of your reasons, sir. But you know what, the first play of the game was Elliott and he gained five yards didn't Yeah, but that's not good to open up in a pass against the fatal plays we don't see very We don't see much dynamics in our play calling. We just simply don't, sir. If you want to tell me you have a problem with the owner general manager, I'll you know, I'll listen to you. I mean, that's

how you started your argument or your your points. Is that your biggest concern? No, My point is I think we're going to lose our huge fan base because our product is not particularly good right now. Okay, there doesn't seem to be a pressing need. Okay, make it better. So you're trying to say you're telling me then you don't agree with what the owner and general managers doing with this football team. No, okay, don't. Did you did you like the first plays of the games two years

ago in twenty sixteen? I thought Da was one of the greatest quarterbacks every two years ago and then what Change Seek was pretty good too. Yeah. Well, I think the fact is that he's not particularly actor pastor, and I think he's lost confidence and he gets sacked a way too much and he doesn't have the lying to give him time. Well you think it goes as the leading rusher in the league and had fifteen touchdowns. Yeah, very exciting. That was a wonderful year. Yea. There's a

lot of zeke up the middle too. Yeah. You know, if if you want to come on and talk about the owner of the general managers is you know, and and he'll he'll listen to your discussion. He will. He's a good listener. But you know, I mean, yeah, and I think that if you you know, if you want to go with that, by all means, you know, But he's got big shoulders, you know. You know everybody acts like that. He doesn't care, like this is not bothering him, right,

That is the furthest thing from the truth. Trust me, I spent six years with this man in that room. This kills him. And we were bad. We were bad for three straight years, and that killed him. It got to the point where he went out and said, you know, I got to do something different. Way do you go out and got parcels? And Parcels comes in and takes the crap that we drafted and brought here and goes to a playoff game with that. So don't let's not

act like that. He doesn't care. This bothers him, you know, And whatever he has to do to fix it, he will because he understands that you're right, there's things about this team that aren't right. But but to sit there and you know, if you have, if you have all these things, you want to say, oh well, I don't like him running on third down. I don't like him doing this on you know. Okay, but if you want to if his main point I believe was he was

he was critical of the front office, he lost confidence. Yeah, if that's the case, trust me on this, Trust me on this. He cares a lot more than you even ever will believe about. You know. I think one thing that's being lost a little bit is they have made a lot of changes in the last few months, a lot on the coaching staff. Now, you can argue that they've done the right thing, unless unless you're changing at the very top. Maybe it's not a lot of change

in reality, but yeah, and you can question that. You can question and they've changed out this roster. God, it's the youngest team in the league right now. Yeah, don't worry about that. But the question, yes, now you can ask did they make the right decisions? But don't tell me they haven't tried to do things in the offseason to change things if you'm a culture standpoint from it on the field. And I think the other problem out there is don't interpret their public stances Jerry's Jason from

what goes on behind the scenes. Yeah, because I guarantee you they're not happy. Sure, right, They're just trying to what they what they tell the media, what they say on talk show is not what they're saying behind these closed doors. Iry is you know he's in there. He's in all the meetings. You know, when you go on the radio, you're going to present a united front. That doesn't mean yeah, behind closed doors, they're not saying how how do we fix this right now? Because we're in

a one and two hole? Right we continue on talking Cowboys, take more your phone calls. That was much better, Yeah, bullet. SLOR has been helping Cowboys fans seed better since nineteen seventy two. Said they don't miss a moment on the field. Get classes with slor's best vision, clarity and protection with the Ultimate Lens Package, three innovative technologies in one lens for a limited time. You can double your lenses for free when you purchase the Ultimate Lens Package and get

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That is it, Doctor Pepper. Craving Doctor Pepper? When you crave back to talk in Cowboys here in Cowboys Country, no matter the early season record, we always ride with our boys. But when it comes to your underwear, you definitely don't want him riding up on your boys. That's why we always wear Tommy John, the revolutionary brand of underwear with stay put waistbands Mickey to keep everything in

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Understand its be both. Actually, it's got to be inside and bigger acts will be inside is the stadium acts and then they'll have the stages outside and all around and everywhere. Kn't you guys performing in this thing? Hey if they want to? Yeah, yeah, Kent's band legendary Dallas acts stage. Maybe. Yeah, well you guys would bad a you know that the toys. Yeah, there we go some local influence. All right, very good? Okay, give Kent a call and you are good enough, he will patch you

through to talking cowboys. How's that that sounds good? Okay? Eight eight eight eight five five two two nine seven. Brian, you have another question, I will, I will, has the turnover at offensive line coaching coaches on the offensive line

affected this unit? M as the turnover? If you look at how this this is the one position that if you go through Bill Callahan and then Frank Pollock and now Paul alexample, not just this coaching change this year, but when you go if you go out, if you go through, because these guys have all they started with Bill is young and then they grew with with Pollock. But has it affected him a little bit? You know?

We asked that same question after Callahan left. Yeah, now Pollock was here running game Moses, but it was like, oh, are we in a transition now? It was like Pollock was kind of taking some heat, right, and now he's gone, and now you got a new guy, and it's starting to sound like he might be taking some heat, is it? Personnel? I love Joe Looney. See that's what I'm saying, And

that's a great answer. Mickey. By the way, did we make enough of a deal about Travis Frederick not being in there as the focal point for this offense line? I think we've tried, you know, but but it's but it's not you know, it's it's hard to sit there and really blame Joe Looney. I'm not blaming it. No, No,

I know that blames terrible, terrible. I'm sorry about that. No, No, he's a solid player, but we're talking about an all Pro guy that's kind of the quarterback there pre snap, you know, and especially with a rookie next to you, right, I look at that first, and I don't think Joe's been bad. I just think how about the right tackle though, because it affected away the right scaring the right tackle.

Yes see, thank you, Mickey, because that, to me, that's that's where I want to focus, is you know, the young guy is going to struggle. We we we all talked about that. We've talked about that since Oxnard, Yes, but we didn't How has it affected the right tackle? You know, the right tackle looked like he was coming along and then all of a sudden, and this is nothing against Paul Alexander, but he's been a line coach a long time in his league. He coaches a certain way.

He says, Okay, high hand, low hand, or footwork this, or put your head here, you know, and all of a sudden you get a guy like Wow Collins who's like, Okay, I'm finally getting this, and now you're asking him, okay, think about this. And maybe the argument is, well, if he's good enough, he should be able to just do whatever Paul Alexander asked him to ask him to do. See, I I thought the second half of last year, I not thought I saw it. LC came around, no question,

no question. Now it's almost like he's back to where he was to start last year. Yeah, he's struggling. He's struggling in pass coverage. Um. And and that's the that's kind of to me, the scary part that you know, he's I mean, he was improving, improving, and now I don't see the next step. But you know, it's been it's been kind of everywhere on the line they had that's what I'm saying, had trouble there. I mean there's

been leaks up the middle. Uh, Frank Clark getting past Hyrn Smith, who, by the way, you know he left briefly and came back with a chess deal when the locker room came back played, I think didn't miss a snap. Yeah, but you know it's it's as there hasn't been one spot in the line where it's been perfect. See the thing at center, and maybe we didn't express it well enough. Is it's not like Travis Frederick was just a guy and anybody that's why should probably see me explain this.

If it's a guy, his levels here and the backups here talking for those two are not watching. Mickey put his right hand up above his head and his left hand was about chin levels. Yeah, yeah, so about a foot apart. Okay, Now you've got Travis Frederick who's way up. Now he's reaching way above his head, the backup off the ground, and the backup still at that same level.

So the gap between the two is huge. Yeah. I think you're right, and I think that's what causes you know, I mean, Travis Fredericks, how many five time pro bowler, four time Pro bowler every year he's been here not just and one of the best centers in the league, and you could probably make an argument for the best. And now you're replacing them with just a guy. Yeah, and you're not replacing just the guy. What's what's funny

is the guy. And Mickey's right about this. The guy that you're you put in there, as we've said, has have been bad. The problem is the guy, like Mickey said, is two feet above the guy you have in there, and that and that makes it hard. That's the that's the thing. But I just was curious if, if, if turnover has affected this group more than any of the other groups on the staff. Yeah, more so than this personnel,

then more so than personnel. And then taking consideration tied in and I'm talking Witton and Hannah from two years ago, sure compared to what you have from now Swam and Jarwin. See now this leads me, This leads me to my question. If you don't mind I spill you got a call, I don't want to we do have a call. I will take call first. I'll take the next question. I want to get to him. Peyton and Minnesota next up

on talking Cowboys. Hello Peyton, Hey, guys, um I thought that first caller started off pretty well, Yeah, pretty poor. Happens to all of us. I can't I can't completely blame this offensive staff. I think the players are failing to execute a lot of time. Okay. But at the same time, though, um, this is the coaching staff in front office who brought in the personnel itself. True, So I think that this team just really miss evaluated the

players on it, like what they have, like overvalued them. Yeah, I mean, like, I just think they're so stubborn that they go in every single year is thinking, oh, we don't need to sign free agents, we can just draft, and it just it bites them in the butt. Is starting to show. I mean they tried to get Sammy Watkins though, didn't they. Yeah, that's the word. I'm not beating you up here, sir. Really not happen. Yeah, no,

that's what I'm saying. I mean, you we kind of go one way, we say, boy, they need to go get free agents, Boy, they need to do this, and then you get a Sammy Watkins and you're kind of like going, well, what were they thinking there? Yeah, Brian know this isn't as big of a point, but I mean Will McClay like he's done great drafting, but to me, his pro player, per Snelsie, has been awful. I mean he trades for jahab Ward. Well that didn't really work out. No,

it don't work out for the Raiders either. But the best player he's brought in is David Irving, who can't go a season without being suspended. How about what they brought in Joe Thomas, you know, at the linebacker spot. And I think you're gonna say, I think you're in preseason. We saw some good things from Joe Thomas, right right, and I agree, But then again, I mean, okay, don't get me wrong. La Van Reestie's been good so far.

It looks like Antoine Woods Woods miss evaluate Joe Thomas and Jalen Smith where they were at, and then we have to go to spend a first round ticking off all linebacker. Well no, I mean yeah, okay, well then let's focus on he's gonna miss some time. Yeah, this is where you're gonna see. Yeah, I agree. How about Antoine Woods. Yeah, yeah, there you go. See. And I've

been in pro personnel. I appreciate you back and forth with this man, I really do, But this is where you get into you know a little bit of like you say, well, I don't want to draft, and I need to sign free agents. And then when you miss on free agents like he used to do in the early two thousands, and Mickey would you know, lose his mind because of it, and I don't blame him for doing that, then you say, well, you need to draft better.

So we're I don't know, man, I just don't know where we you know, I think, no, no, sure, go ahead, go ahead. But um, I think this is realistic. I've done research. I'm not just throwing this out like it's maddened. Okay, I think you can trade a third, maybe a second. I don't know. The second might be too much. I think you can go out and get Amari Cooper. I don't know we have the pro I don't know we have the quarterback to give him the ball consistently. That's fair,

that's a fair point. I think the Raiders are really bad. They want draft takes. Johnker is a long term contract. Amary Cooper's he has a fifth year option that's not fully guaranteed. So the Raiders would say ten million dollars next year. I think I think there's just someone that you have to go get You can't be throwing the Blake Jarwin on third down in a critical play in a game like that, just can't be Dak Prescott's like option. He needs this better talent around him. So okay, so

what receiver you're getting rid of him? Uh? Terence Wi Williams. I know, like the Fali doesn't really help you, but right, I mean, I think the writings on the wall at him. So, yeah, I got another question. You're in Minnesota. You pay attention to the Vikings. Oh God, my friends a hard time. Trust me, they they tried. You rather have the Neil Hunter or Randy Gregory. Oh, Neil Hunter for sure. I see there's that. Yeah, there's your there's your question right

there about drafting. Yeah, drafting, I mean you took Grandy Gregory last pick. Appreciate the appreciate Vikings took d Neil Hunter, and you're very familiar. He was not productive at Las, not at all at all. But you saw the Mike zimmer good eye for those defensive players in twenty years and he got his second contract. So I appreciate the caller thinking, you know, he's trying to think about offensive. So are we passed, thinking, oh, they got to trade

picks for safety help. After watching this offense through three games and saying, well, that's that's what we need to go do. Yeah, I mean to me, Jeff, he stays healthy, I know, and they're they're fin there. But when I watch watching this offense, it's like, Okay, where where are we really having problems? Next question? Yeah, here we go. If I can just roll into it again, thank you for the call. That was well done. Tell me this is the most confusing area of this team. This is

the most confusing area of this team. Okay, I've been saying wide receiver for a while because I think they need to figure out what they have, who's best in certain situations and maybe roll with a slightly trimmed down rotation. And I don't know what that is because I don't, like Mickey said, there's not a lot of differentiation between them. I think, you know, Tavon has unique traits and Beasley's going to be your guy. But I think that's got it somehow. That's got to resolve itself in the next

couple of games. I think that'll help dac out. I think it needs to resolve itself in the next couple of practices, Well maybe that too, be that toolan, But but I want to I want to let's go and I want them on the practice field working with the court. But you see the discussion that we had, Like I love Michael gallis potential too, but in the short term, are you better off going with a veteran guy? And like,

would you make arguments? It's my point, like you can go anywhere with this really no, I mean, what mean veteran guy instead of Gallop? A Hearns who's been around the league more. But does he give you as much juice? I mean, that's why, that's why it's kind of maddening to me as these conversations because I don't really know the end. And if he fails, then you go back, I mean, you go to get there. So you're going

to be playing Gallop all the time anymore. If you were gonna pick your top three receivers, would your two Munchkin receivers be in that? There's no question they would be. Yes, the four receivers I want. Okay, you got a four receiver rotation. It's what I'm good with. Okay, and you got so you got Beasley and you got Austin, You got Thompson and then neither Gallup or Herns. That's kind

of where I'm at right now. You got Rice Butler in the man and maybe and maybe maybe we were wrong, but when we were watching training camp, were we not enamored with Beasley and Tavon Austin being on the field at the same time. Can glad you remember that that can have And I don't think we've seen that, have we? Yeah? Maybe not much, not much. So you go, you go four wide. See that's I'm seeing that Ben kind of

doing that. And so you got the two slot guys in Cole and Tavon, and then there's a lot of four wide in this game. Now some of it was swam, but they've done it. They tried to spread them out. I think the most confusing thing to this about this area, about this team to me is that offensive line. Okay, because I maybe confusing why? Yeah, confusing why they haven't

played with the consistency that I thought differently. Yeah, we're all right, we're all right about we're all right about the loss of Frederick, But man, I mean, if you tell me, and another question I'm gonna ask you guys too, is offensively, What can you hang your hat on? You know, I thought I could hang my hat on this offensive line, and I don't. And Mickey's brought this point up for the last three weeks, you know, protect his quarterback. He's

got no shot, right, And they haven't been. And I think the thing it's confusing to me is I haven't seen the consistency from the group. They're on pace to give up fifty nine sacks right now. Fifty nine. Yeah, the most the Cowboys have ever given up in a sixteen game season is sixty Dak was sack when they had that great year or two years ago, twenty three times. Boy, we keep reliving that revisionist history. There don't not revisionists.

I'm just saying back and back when this line was he lead, no, no, and that's that's that's that's free playing right tackle and Ron Learry playing left guard. Yeah, and Travis Frederick Blaine say and then exactly, and I'm with you. But I guess my point is I think they entered the season before Travis is deal was dealing with this illness, right, that we can still hang our hat on this line being yeah, that's potentially elite again, that's what I'm saying offensively. I wanted to believe that

I can hang my hat on this group. Yeah, and I don't know if I can. Well, you can running the ball, it seems like. And then we just get down because but maybe that's what it's going to take. I didn't grab the stats. I got here late. I hit how many times do you get stopped by like a train? Like? How about how about how about the train tracks the lights down, the gate down, and there's no train for like almost fifteen minutes? Yeah, before you decide, I got a bail. Yeah, so I don't have the stats.

But where's where's Zeke? So? Is he likes a fine for Mickey? Is this like? Is he a top five rusher right now? In the way? I don't know. He gave me all the rankings on the other stuff. So what he's got one twenty and then he got eighty seven last week? I mean, he want to tell you what. I'm going to look it up and back that. More of talking cowboys with that point when we think back in just a moment. If you're like me and you love I mean, if you have a thing, then cutting

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about two weeks behind. Well, she texted me yesterday and she's caught up. She heard yesterday's show. She worried, you don't bathe. Well, she texted me at oh Man thirty yesterday afternoon. It said, it's called an exfoliator, you old farts. We were talking about the scrub. Yeah, the scrub, we call it an exfoliator. We call it butterface or right, it's Jordan, your daughter, Jordan. Yeah, well, Jordan, thank you very much for listening. And yes we need to We

need all the help we can get with that. Your youngest, youngest daughter. Wait, I see her again exactly. She also said thanks for the shout out. Now she'll be thanking me again. Now she won't. She doesn't listen live. I'm sure so it's on her commute. She's still on Giants week, right, she's the one. No, no, no, no, she said she's caught up now, okay, good, yeah she's so. She is in tune now, all right. And the Star District offers over thirty restaurants and retail spaces at the Dallas Cowboys

themed campus. It is the perfect place to shop, dine, bring the whole family. For more information and all that the Star has to offer, visit the Star in Frisco dot com and at the Star in Frisco tonight. Yes, it's happy hour at Greek Cowboys six to seven at night, So come on out. I love the fact that we got Nate Newton in the in the crowd getting the questions and stuff. So yeah, if you're in the area,

come on out. If we'll have it up to on the podcast as well for so if you want to give it a listen, always some really good back and forth with the fans and stuff like that. I like that a lot. And if you have a question, Nate will find you, So come out and ask one. Yeah, six to seven, all right, now, who is the leading rusher in the National Football League through three weeks? I have a guest, there is and when have a guess it's not Leveon Bell, not Levion Bell, Nope, and it's oh,

it's a guy in the rams. Yeah. Yeah, Todd Gurley is fourth. Oh geez, two hundred and fifty five yards every week, four point one yards per carrie. Kareem Hunt, Kareem Hunt. No, no, no, no no, I'm a comar castrick. My homes just going nuts. Good teams. Yeah, Albert Kamara catches a bunch of balls, yes he does, but I don't think he's leading the league in rushing. So there is a tie for the league lead two hundred and the tie for the league lead. A tie for the

league lead with two hundred and seventy four yards. Ezekiel Elliott and Matt Brita of San Franco, San Francisco. Yeah, he got hurt in the game that we played preseason. He's averaging eight point six yards per carry. Yeah. Of course they lost Jerry McKinnon, right, who may have got hurt in that same Yeah, that's right, that's right. Yeah.

How many carries does zekecalf? Yes, forty eight carries for two hundred and seventy four yards, averaging five points seven yards a tote, while Barrita has thirty two carries for two seventy four eight point six yards a carry. How many is Girly have car Gurley has sixty two carries, Elliott has forty eight. The differences is the Rams are three? You oh, yeah. A lot of offense out there in La yep, yeah, a lot of these though. They have a pretty good running back Christian McCaffrey coming off a

huge out and eighty four last week. He's at two seventy one, so he's just three yards behind the leaders. Yeah, and of course he catches the ball a lot. And Adrian Peterson is number five in the league behind Gurley at two hundred and thirty six yards. Sequon Barkley is six, and then James Conner. Nice pick up by the but with Adrian Peterson out there in Washington. Yeah, didn't see that one. Did not see that one. All right, you

have another question. Forgot what was your point? I know I forgot why I brought it up because what we were talking about the offensive line? Yeah, because I was like, they're running the ball, well yeah, and that see that's the thing. It's like, it's encouraging that they're doing what they're kind of the formula says has success for them. But when they're in third and one, in third and two like they were the other day, they're not converting

those manageable downs. And that's what's discouraging about this offense right now. It's one thing to say against Carolina, oh, well you're behind the chains, And what's discouraging about this offense is passing game. But see, the narrative was they'll never be able to run the ball because they can't pass it. Right, Well, they're running the ball. Yeah, They're putting themselves in position to be efficient in the passing game, and they're not being a fan. It's not like they've

overly emphasized the run either. And the only reason that they don't rank up there, and I don't know where they are probably their six or seventh in the league and rushing offense right now. I'll have to look it up, but the only reason they're not in the top three is because they aren't winning games, yeah, right, and not patting those stats in the fourth quarters, right, I think their quarterback has about seventy one yards rushing himself, Am

I right about that? Fifty and twenty one something like that. I'm six point one to carry. Yeah, there you go. Do you have another question to pose, Brian? Yeah, I will ask you guys. This is going to go now to the defensive side of the ball, and I'm gonna say it was Sean Lee, you know, likely out for a few games. Who do you need more from Layton Vanderesh or Jalen Smith to make up for that? But I'll put that on the fan pulse right now. Yeah, question,

Layton Vanderesh or Jalen Smith? Who do you need more in that absence of Seawan Lee Jalen Smith? Yeah, because I say that because I just can't count on, you know, the rookie. It's a lot of tackles that you Yeah, it's great what he's doing right now, but I'm just not going to hang my head on the rookie right off the bat. But see, I need somebody not only to make tackles, but to take charge. Get everybody a line there up organized. That's a bigger point right there,

making because that's what you miss from Seawan Lee. I think from a physical standpoint, you know, vander esh Hey had eleven tackles in thirty three snaps. That's one every three snaps. Is it a coincidence though, that he take nothing away from Vanderesh? Was it a coincidence that's he had had their big drive when Lee went out of the game the other day. I mean the drive that basically put the game out of out of reach, the last drive that made it. Yeah, twenty four made it

twenty four. Yeah, it is a little bit of a concern there. That was when Lee went out and they went seventy two yards in ten plays, and that because it was seventeen to six. Cowboys had just kicked a field goal to make it seventeen to six. If they get a stop there, then they can have a chance. But they didn't win seventy two yards in ten plays.

I would say Jayalen too, who you got, Jalen? Yeah, I think it's got to be jail and the and the reasons everybody's given is I think, absolutely right, you're gonna need this scene to get held together. I think Jalen Smith is becoming that leader that you need. Um. I think that you're gonna need him to make some of those whether it's the sacks, you know, that's something you know, he had a chance get a sack the other day just kind of let Russell Wilson, but it

was an incomplete pass. I think that you're going to really really have to lean on on Jalen in this football game. And and I think that Layton Vanderesh will come along, but you're gonna have some guys who are gonna have to step up as well. I mentioned we talked about Joe Thomas stuff. You know, does this mean now that you know Chris Covington is going to be active, how much is he gonna play Damian Wilson? How much does he you know, can you get from him as well?

So as a whole, this linebacking corps has got to has got to find a way to make things right. They constructed this roster with the with this, with this in my mind, yeah, you know, everybody wants you to to draft you should have drafted the kid Calvin Ridley or DJ Moore one of those guys. But was as much about the future as it was it was this year. But it was about this year and and this this is just this is the sad reality of Sean Lee

that we I hate. And we have conversations about Sean Lee as being a great football player with eleven tackles in a game. But we don't even touch on that. We talk about him be injured for another time, however, But just with Sean Lee at the age that he's at, even without an injury history, it was prudent on their

part to get a young linebacker. They're gonna have to make a decision and this is you know, hopefully this is not too much for shattering, but I think they're gonna have to make a decision depending on that at the end of the year. All right, let's go to Scott in Houston. We got a few minutes left here on Talking Cowboys. Hello Scott, how are you doing, guys? Great? Okay, Hello guys. That's got a question about the turnover margin. Um,

what the turnover margin is? And if you're going to play the silent football that Jason Garrett wants to play, running the ball join o'clock, you gotta be positive on that to win game. So it's minus two turnover margins minus two. Right now, they've turned it over four times and they've gotten two fumble recoveries. No picks. See, that's the thing. I thought that with this this secondary that would have more picks. I know, Jeff Heath had a chance in the Carolina game for one, and he dove

and it fell in between his arms. But I thought that we would probably see a little bit more of that from what we were gathering in the preseason with the way they were playing. Ball was on the turf a couple of different times too in the in the Seattle game and just bounced right back up into their hands. While in that drive we were just talking about it started off with Penny fumbling, right, Yeah, it could have been huge play. They haven't had the sack fumble yet

and well, I'd take I take that back. They had it with Damian Wilson and the Giants game. But we had as much pressure as they've been able to generate, they haven't been able to kind of get one or two more of those. And you know that will help that offense out immensely. Well, I'll tell you another thing, and and and maybe it's a hidden yards play, but think about what happened. And we were mentioning Tavon Austin as well, and Tavon had that punt return that got

him all the way out to the forty two. He fields the ball to twenty one on the other side of the field Byron Jones gets a holding call totally away from the play. So instead of the ball on their own forty two with a chance they get, they get the ball on their own nine, they get they get a motion penalty, and then we go with a false start. We go with a false start. Next thing, you know where they're fighting out of their own end.

So six yard line, Yeah, those are those are just you know, this offense with the way it's going right now, that they need all the short fields that they can get until they get some confidence that they can do some things. I think I have special teams. You ought to just take a touchback and a fair catch on punchs and don't risk a penalty. Yes, every play is a penalty, not just the Cowboys. Every game you watch, Yeah, there's a penalty. That was a thirty three yard penalty.

They just just stand at the line of scrimmage on the punt and let the guy catch a fair catch. Don't get called for blocking the back or hole. If college football, you can take a fair catch at the five yard line now on the kickoff. On the kickoff, yeah, you might as well just do that. Well, there's a college game. Yeah, yeah different, Maybe run a college offense. Oh all right, thanks for joining us for talking Cowboys.

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