Talkin' Cowboys: Is Dak Getting a Fair Shot?

Oh now, we're in the three quarters house. Mickey, you might want to get that door as you come in here. Mickey Spagnola, after doing local radio, it brought us is missing. Brought us is missing an act to start the show today. That's serious. If he is, it's exactly right, because there's no one as committed to this show as Brian brought us. Wouldn't you say no, I'd say, Mickey's pretty close. Yeah.

But when you're doing when you're writing scoutside, you gotta make sure your eyes are good and checked and the vision is good. And that's where he's at right now. Okay, the eye doctor. He couldn't change it and hopefully he's back by the end of the show. We'll see. Okay, he plans to be here, So we turned the halfway house into the three quarters House for now. Was he having trouble with his eyes or I just think it's a regular checkup, nothing, nothing to be armed about. Yeah.

I think he's fine. We're all healthy. You're healthy. I am healthy. People questioning his eyesight when it comes to some players or watching tape, right, where's out exactly? Yeah, that's that could be a problem. You can understand that part of the gig. Yeah, that's right. This is my eye appointment. I guess I can miss talking cowboys if I have an eye important. Oh boy, I'm just joking. Oh god, all right, No, I have one coming up. Okay, Yeah,

I've put off mine. I'm I've been getting I've getting text messages from my IDA. Well, you know, here's the deal. I mean, I wear glasses to read, right, So I go in every year and I know what they're gonna tell me, Well, yeah, your eyes aren't getting any better. It's like, I don't need you to tell me that they told you cataract surgery. No, they have not told me that you've told me that. Really, Yeah, it's a cataractor glaucoma. Cataract glaucoma surgery. You guys aren't that old.

It happened because, yeah, you start not seeing well at night. I haven't really noticed that. I just wait for a regular check up. And he said, you know what, we probably you'd probably need to have cataract surgery because I've always wanted to do the laser. I'll wark contacts, right, And Ninny tells me it's just I mean, I wouldn't even need contacts anymore, so why not get it done. Then I talked to all these other people. They've have had it done. It's no problem, you know, But I

just haven't done it, you know. Yeah, he said that at some point it'll be You'll just wake up one day and it's you'll be I don't know if it's is it cloud over? Yeah? Exactly how how it works. And then I'm told that when you're driving, like at night, the I drive at night a lot, the lights, the lights coming at you, it starts glaring like it's not clear, and that's kind of an idea that it's coming out like driving drunk. Well, I don't know about that, not

that I do that. It's the same effect. Yeah, maybe we're not all that healthy on this show. I mean, you know what, you know what, young Rob over there, this is what you have to look forward to, you know what. The trainers, The trainers have all He's told

me that. You you know, when they check somebody's back and they got a little something wrong, he goes, you know what, if I checked your back, I probably find you know, nine out of ten people have something wrong that they don't know, and you just kind of live with it. Yeah, it's like you're you're you're spine, you know, the curvage, you know, not right, And if you don't know about it, that's that's because you don't think about it. Then that's so it makes it worse when you think

about it. Like I haven't thought about cataract surgery in a year and I've been just fine. So if I just quit thinking about it, that I won't need it. Yes, yeah, but you don't want the glock coma Okay, yeah, okay, Yeah, my grandmother hadad Yeah, okay, And so we await the arrival of Brian brought us at a full report on his I docked your appointment coming up shortly. Here, I'm talking cowboys. I hope it's better than his finger report.

What was that? Well, he's had trouble with his fingers, right, I think we're okay, We're okay, We're okay, we're okay. At least we don't have any It was your foot infectious disease visit to the infectious disease doctor. I was cleared, okay, told me that everything was fine on Sunday or yes, I'm ready to go. I I'm not even listed on

the injury report. All right, I gotta all right. I've got a second daughter now that listens to talking cowboys, and she's learning so much about football, and so we'll get eventually get to football. Here. What was her text yesterday? Let me see here you find it. You know it's somewhere on a group text. Let me go back to the group text. You guys are in a little He played that one yesterday. I heard it. I heard it. I listened to the show yesterday. Aren't you proud of me? Yes? Yet?

That that's why I figured we didn't need football football talk today? Um? What did she say? I'm learning so much about football thanks to Dad's podcast. Where you go. All right, So we've got Jordan and Jessica board. Just need to get Jennifer aboard now. But but Jordan said something, it's it's so fun when y'all pick on Mickey. Oh, thanks, I appreciate that. It's my favorite thing. Okay, all right, all right, who's got a report from practice yesterday? Rob Phillips,

does you want to pass it over to me? And then that information? Uh, there were a couple guys limited in the game and the practice. Jeff Heath, why don't you pass it to me and I'll do it Beasley, I'll just go ahead and do it here since I wrote the update. MALIEK. Collins, Travis Frederick, of course, Shawn Lee not practicing. Don't expect Sean to play in this game. Not sure about Malik uh Cole Beasley limited, Jeff Heath limited, Antoine Woods has a groin injury. Their new defensive tackle.

He was limited, DeMarcus Lawrence Xavier Woods full. So I think and I think they feel pretty good about Jeff Heath playing this game too. Um, he's just trying to be He's a football player. He's a football players playing football. I think he's trying to up his workload as the week goes on. I think that's right. That's what he said, that Wednesday is not a good day, but by Sunday it becomes good. He said he got his ankles stepped on, so it's more of a bruise than a sprain, it

sounds like. And he came back and finished the game, so he said, yesterday, yeah, I mean he was limited. I saw him when they were doing drills and he was just kind of watching. But he'll be there, don't you worry about that. Layton Vanderesh had about forty media members around his locker yesterday, which happens to be right next to Sean Lee's. He's not sure if that was by design, that was no, let's assured. There's a reason

that you're next to Shawn Lee. He must not have read my mix shot last week when I pointed that out, and it's like, this didn't just have Yeah, that's not coincident. Now there's a locker in between him, right, Yeah, But that's Sean's benefit. You know, if you're one of the captains, are the big vets on this team, you kind of get a break. You get an extra locker because you can have a big group around you for interviews. There you go. That's the sole reason they do that. Yeah, right,

the only reason. Yeah, I don't know. I think, uh, I don't have a feel for Sean right now, but I don't this week. I don't think looks good. And well, I can tell you rather definitively that it's not looking good for this week. Yeah. I've been missus at least two games, he asked Jason Garrett during the Well, you'll see it on the Jason Garrett Show, and normally we don't discuss injuries whatever, but I mean everybody's day to day.

He basically said that, yeah, we'll be without Sean this week. Yeah. Yeah, what you can hear that Saturday night is Saturday Night eleven. It gets posted on Dallas Cowboys dot com as well, so it's no secret. And and the gist of the question was, you're better fortified at that position now. They feel better about it knowing that if they probably were going to face this at some point during this season,

because it's happened every year. Well, and I think that was the impetus for using that first round draft choice on LVE. You know, it's like, Okay, we need a more depth at this linebacker spot, and I think they acquired it, but not only with him, but Joe Thomas too, And of course they were also filling the loss of Anthony Hitchenses. Yeah, absolutely, you know, and they you know. And and the other good thing is is I think

Jalen Smith's more qualified now. And that's the first thing that Jason said is he talked about Jaylen Smith being more qualified to be able to fill those shoes. Now it's a matter of who's going to fill his leadership shoes. Who's going to fill the shoes that says, Okay, we're in zone coverage here, Cavan, you know, make sure you're deep here when the guy gets past you not have a fifty two yard coverage bust like they did against Seattle. And those are the things I think Sean, you know,

brings to the table more than anything else. Now, drive or whatever it was. After the Cowboys pulled within striking distance in the late third quarter of that game and Lee was not on the feet, Yeah, exactly, somebody's got to take charge. And I don't expect it to be

vander Esh. Yeah you think so, and and you probably we talked about this yesterday the difference without Sean and there, I mean, Anthony Hitchens is a guy that got paid a lot of money to go somewhere else and be a starter, And there was a difference when he was the point man instead of Sean Lee. So it just shows you kind of he's a rare guy in terms of his instincts and his preparation. But I was impressed listening to vander Esh in terms of just kind of

tell you can tell he's a serious guy. And his teammates talk about it too. He sounded confident. Yeah, you know, if I'm out there and that's my job, I'm speaking up. You know. You can you can see it the way they play on the field too, how quickly they react. And I've see that with Layton vander Esh. His instincts out there. He's reading things, uh, you know, getting better

and better all the time. But for a rookie just watching him and even to be in position to make eleven tackles in a game, you've got to be reading and reacting, especially when it's one out of three snow apps you're in, I mean, thirty three snaps and he makes eleven stops. It's pretty darn good average of course, Sean Lee had about eleven on that first time he tied, he had eleven two and he basically they bought played the same amount of snaps. I think it was the

other thing. Vanderesh was out there the second series of the game. Sean was not out there the second series, and it was it was vander Esh and Jalen Smith out there, and so they were. And I don't know if if it was by design just because of the hamstring that he was already dealing with the right hamstring right that they were planning on having Vanderesh out there the second series of the game, or something cropped up.

But yeah, um but anyway, I um boy, there's one play if you go back and look at the coaches film with a Lee and we see it, We've seen it throughout his career. He it was a it was a play fake to the left offenses left side. He goes over there and basically was in position to make the tackle there, and then they tossed it right and he got all the way back over to the other side of the field and made the tackle over there. He basically made two He tackled two running backs or

on one play. I mean it was amazing. Sean. Yeah. Yeah, he tackled the fake guy, fake guy, and he got over about twenty five yards over and made the other tackle. And there was a player vanderes for about one yard game. I mean, yeah, yeah, vander Esh can show you that too, his ability to go across the field. He did that in the game against Seattle. He did another. He just

he does have all the tools. I mean, Will Disley, there's their young tight end trying to block him, just tossing him aside, shedding that block, getting a tackle behind the line of scrimmage. Plus look at his frame and you can see you can just see how he's gonna fill out in an NFL weight room. Just got to

make sure he stays healthy. Yeah. Absolutely, And that's kind of the other impressive thing about it, um And I asked him about it, just the fact, I mean, the guy missed two two and a half weeks a training camp at the end for a rookie not in there, and then out out there doing a lot of the offseasons. Man, did he play in a preseason game. He played in the first one, the first one, I don't know if he played in the last. He certainly didn't play in the last one. He didn't play in the last Yeah,

he might have only played in the opener. So yeah, he you know, give him credit for staying ready and staying on his keys. And now, I mean he might play fifty snaps in this game. We'll just have to see. I think he's a serious football player. Ye. He's got a good mentor right next to him, and Sean Lee stays invested in it even when he is injured, and which he pointed out too, It's like Sean might not be there, but he's there with us and he's grind.

And that's one of the things, you know, because I was the president of the Shan Lee fan club, but before he was drafted, here were you and he was in the he was in the greenbinder. It's very highly I discovered him. I got two linebackers that year and twenty ten, about two weeks before the draft, and I discovered him. And back the way I'd do it a lot of times. It's just I try to find out

as much information about the player as I can. And Penn State had a great video out there on Sean Lee when he was hurt, and it would showed him he basically was an extra coacher coach on their staff. Yes, yes, And so I'm reading all this stuff about it, and then I see visual evidence of how and how he cared about the team and he's he's like a coach on the field. And then his measurables measured up and then you look at it come by workout and you're

going wow. I mean, this was a first round talent, but he had the injury issue and that's why he slid to the to the second round. But it was that video of him coaching up the Penn State players where I said, that's the right kind of guy right there, and this is the guy. In fact, I was in favor of taking him in. Of course, they took Dez in the first round, and I didn't think Dez would fall all the way to twenty five or whatever it was. I was in favor of taking shin Lee in the

first round. I was so much on him at that time. But that is what he's all about, and so when he when he has been hurt in his career, he is invested in teaching. Whoever is backup is everything and the people he plays alongside. You know, it was interesting last night we had walk Garrison on the Cowboys Legend Show, and he was talking about Don Perkins, who of course is in the Ring of Honor, and uh, you know,

back then, the fullback carried the football. He was a primary running back as well, but he also had to block and everything. And Walt was talking about perk um and couldn't catch a cold called in a blizzard. That's why Walk got an opportunity to play on third downs. But his point was Perk taught him how to play

fullback in the National Football League. He said he learned a lot more from Don Perkins than he did Tom Landry about playing in the in the National Football League, and he said in Walt said, he asked Perk one time, he said, why are I'm your backup? I'm trying to take your job. Why are you teaching me? I said, well, because it's for the good of the team. I want to win and I want you to be as prepared as possible if I go down. Yeah, also says a

lot about Don Perkins confidence in his own ability. Then no, rookie's going to come in here and take my spot. But he wants to, and so Walk. When Robert Newhouse came along in the seventies. Walk Garrison was the guy that he could because he had learned from Perkins, this is what you do. This is the Cowboys way, so to speak. Yeah, to teach your underling, you know, how to do this job, kind of pay it forward and try. Yeah. And it was always He's told that story so many

times about like why are you doing this? I want to beat you out, you know, and yeah, and and and it's kind of interesting because he was pointing out when you come out of college in those days, he didn't know anything about blocking schemes or different you know, things that they had to do. And it's like Perk would tell them, you know, and uh, yeah, it's kind of a great life lesson, you know. Mickey Spagnola did the same to a young Robin fill Ye about fourteen

years ago. When did you first start working here? The first time around? I interned um Sells first hand with you on that little computer on topic Cowboys had. That was the next year, right, I had the kindergarten table in two thousand and four, and I think that's when we start with This was a TV show, yeah, and it is again now, right, but it was. It was the television network that's right, Cowboys channel. It's off in

a corner over there. That two thousand and four was yeah, I was fourteen years ago cast TV right, yeah, six four and my knees are above the table emails for you guys. We had six viewers and my mom and dad were two of them. It's about right. Everybodyed me a Thanksgiving dinner when everybody in the family couldn't fit at the big table, and then there was this little side table, and you guys had me wear like a Scott Purcell, had me wear like a sport coat to

kind of dress me up a little bit. But I might as well have had a box of crayons, you know what I mean. But things have changed. But the point is Mickey mentored Rob into the man he is today and now, and now he's at the big table. All right. We've taken care of eyes and Thanksgiving dinner, huh. That's right, And we want you to join the party eight eight five five two two nine seven. How about we take a break or wait on the arrival of Brian brought us, save us. Take your phone calls in

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That's Tommy John dot com board slash Cowboys. And we should thank Tommy John for sending us a couple of extra ones so I can wear more during the week instead of just once. I need a couple more. You know, I am got five, you'd be set. I'm actually I was.

I apologize for not being able to make a Wednesday appearance on Talking Cowboys yesterday because I was taping a TV show and I'm wearing the exact same clothes I wore yes because they getting finished taping because the segment of the Jason Garrett Show couldn't be taped yesterday, so I had to wake up at six am, take a shower, immediately head dress, shower, and get all dressed up and everything. But I will say this, I'm not wearing the same

Tommy John underwear today that I wore Yesterdow. We're glad to hear that. God how about when we when we did the uh, the Draft Show, and it was over three days. We would take and we had to wear the same shirt and tie. That's the intro. That's the intro to the Draft Show right there. That's production the TV Draft Show. Well, there you go. Draft Show. That's good.

It's very good. You know. Um that old Cowboys channel and we had an hour long Cowboys show every night from six to seven o'clock live on Comcast every night. And I had the same blue sport coat every day. I just I didn't even take it home with me. I just left it up there. You still have it. I think it's in the back of the clock. Yeah, no one ever throws away their old sport coach. You never know when you need to be. Cowboys channels kind of back. I don't know if the listener knows that.

But we have an app on connected TV that you download and we've got a twenty four seven channel there that's basically all the time. Yes, a lot better content too than we had back in two thousand. Specify which device. But if you have a device on your TV that has an app store, search Cowboys Now and you can watch us live on there every day and on demand every matter of fact. Yeah, check that out. It's live twenty four seven now. So I don't have an answer on my TV. I guess I need a new TV. Huh.

And the you know what caused the demise of the original Cowboys channel US NFL network NFL Network. That's true. Jerry was ahead of the ballgame, had had his own channel, and then NFL Network came along and slapped his hands yep and said, nope, local the the individual teams could not have their own channel. I think what he because I think US Atlanta and maybe one other team had done the same thing and they told them, you know, why would you have create competition for your own channel?

Because they were saying the owners owned NFL network. Because we have figured out since then on the college level that it does not work to have a one of the individual institutions have their own networks instead of the league having a network. Has it even helped the individual institution in order to no comment comment? Okay, I've got are you concerned about the injuries the defensive tackle at all?

And with Dayton Jones going on injured reserve, of course, the Cowboys signed Karan Read as you pointed out, he better be ready to go because if even if Woods is limited on Antoine Woods, uh, you know they're gonna need him be good to go when you hope he's in good enough shaped at least give you twenty some snaps. And of course the Cowboys had him in the preseason late in the preseason, right, and this is a guy that a lot of people probably haven't heard of that much. Oh,

let's have a drum roll. But there you come on, Ken, I need a drum roll right now, walk out of my drops machine. Oh all right, Well, Brian brought us and he could see well enough to fight this big he dilated still, yeah, because he's squinting winning right there? You are squinting? Did they dilate him? Do you need sunglasses? They're dilated folks. Oh no, it's got to be a lot of fun. Did you Did they give you the big sunglasses to wear when you left? Yeah, it was

kind of ridiculous. Where are the sunglasses? I left him in the car? Oh no, I kind of looked like hanging out with Mickey at the Old Man Rest Home. I'm gonna say they're they're ricky. Hang walking along Lakeshore drive together. We're going to Gibsons to have us a prime rib sandwich. Why has the show been this bad that you guys are talking about me and dilated eyes? Right now? What's going on? Talking a lot of guys.

You did a good job on your program. I listened to you one, one oh five three, good stuff about Romo and stuff. You're you're struggling right now. We condemn these lights. If you know, I'm good, Let's go. Okay, Squinny, I get right now, Squinny, All right, sure, we getting up close. Let's just keep the keep the camera. Can see my eyes look dilated, folks, you should have kept the sunglasses. I can see the problems with this team. Trust me, scouts good, what's going on? Are you? Are

you good? Yeah? Where were we? We're talking defensive tackles and our defensive tackles with their defensive defensive tackles and the health of them, the health of them. It's a scary guys. It's not good right now. I don't think well, you lose jones and woods is limited. But Karan Reed should be healthy and and fresh and fresh legs and ready to go. And one of the reasons I bring

it up. Tom Pellacero has a report that the Browns increase defensive tackle Brian Prices practice squad salary from the minimum seventy six hundred dollars to thirty seven thousand dollars a week, which is like six hundred and ninety thousand dollars a year after the Cowboys and Packers tried to poach him. Her sources, Price played for both teams, of course previously, as well as the Raiders, So Browns have

come a long way. Huh. Yeah, Brown's holding players. They're keeping guys in their practice squad rather than an active roster somewhere else. Somebody brought that up. Why didn't the guy Cowboys go after Price? And it's like they did? Yeh. Price wasn't right. Yeah for him, it was. He got some and he was just let go by the Raiders. Last week. He was signed to Cleveland's practice squad, So the opportunity was there last week, but the Cowboys didn't have as much of a need until Daytone Jones got

hurt on Sunday. Cleveland keeps getting in the way. Yeah. You know, some people may say, Okay, Darius Jackson, they coach Yeah last year, Yeah, some might say, okay, well, why even though they increased his pay, and the increased it a lot. I mean that six hundred ninety thousand dollars, it's like a veteran minimum, the veteran minimum down and so but people may say, okay, yeah, but he's still

on their practice squad. Why would he not take the opportunity to be on the active roster for the Cowboys or the Packers. And this is a guy who's now bounced around from the Packers. He was a waiver claimed by the Cowboys. Cowboys are lazing. He goes to the Raiders, now Brown's practice squad and even not from Okay, they've they've not only matched what he would make for the Cowboys on the active roster, they've exceeded it to some extent.

And for him, you know, since he's been a nomad, you know, bouncing around the league, and he feel like that they are investing in him. It from his perspective, and a lot of players might have the same thinking that, Okay, they are committed to me. If I go to the Cowboys, I've got to be on their active roster for four weeks, three weeks, three weeks, but then three weeks from now, I may be out on the street a game, especially when they've got well, I don't know if they would

get rid of him. But you know, okay, if I could circle back all the things you're saying, Bill, why would he not take the accrude season? You know, why would you not take the opportunity of the party if you're thinking about free agency in the future and benefits to me, I would go weeks? Do you have to be he gets six to be a crude season? So, like you said, he's not guaranteed even if he's signed to an active roster to get in a crude season here. Yeah, but you have a chance to have a shot at it.

But on the practice. But he probably already acquired three weeks because he was let go. Well maybe they were at least two weeks. Maybe his agent was worried that when David Irving became eligible next week. Part of the part of the guarantee from the Browns is probably that by a certain point of the season, we are going to put you on the active roster or he's going to figure out that he needs to go get that

accrude season somewhere else. Right, you know, if they at a certain point whatever that whatever cut off a weeks that he needs then Yeah, so that makes a lot of sense to me. I mean, I just couldn't imagine giving up a year just so you could beat now the travel and all that. I get that, and then good for John Dorsey to hold the player there. I really liked Karan Reid. I don't know if you how

you guys got into some conversations. I thought the last couple of games that he played, he was pretty good. I mean, especially in that Houston game. I know Brad Sham and I called his name quite a bit, and he's going to have to play that one technique because that's that seems to be where they're having the bit of the struggle right now. Even the guy Christian Ringo is who they signed yesterday. I heard some whispers that Christian Christian Ringo got some work with the Seconds yesterday.

So that just shows you that they're kind of in a little bit of a dire straits as far as the depth in there at that one technique. Well, Collins is not playing, Yeah, Collins is, Yeah, Collins is Collins. Yeah, Collins doesn't miss games, but he did he missed a game last week. And you know they're trying to get him healthy, get him back. But you know, David Irving returns next week. But what is David Irving? He's your three right, right, So you know they they've got it.

They've got some issues that they're having to deal with right now. As far as you know, they have to figure out. I don't trying to figure out here. Who might you know you have to let somebody go for Irving? Do you do it? Defense is Daniel Ross? You know? Maybe? I don't know. We got seventeen receivers, which now we can figure that asked, no questions, No, I'm I'm making

a joke about that. That's but but you're right, Mackey, you're you're you're thinking, you know, you're thinking defensive tackles, and you know you're gonna get one back next week. But it just doesn't help you at the one technique right now because you don't. It's really it's if MALIEK. Collins was healthy, you know, then maybe you could kind of get by and stuff with Reid. Reid's a veteran player. I think he'll do just fine. That was all I

was gonna say. I think when he walked in people don't know much about him, but he has started games in this league. He has, so he's a guy I think you could plug in. And the thing about the Houston game, Jason Garrett never says specifically this player stood out in the game. To me, he never does that, like to compare players, and he doesn't usually give praise to players. But he did that. Should say the praise of with the the preseason game. Did that after he game? Well,

he was super active in that game. Yea. And I mean if you can get you know, you know, last week was really the opportunity I felt like to kind of take advantage of some inside players. This week will be a little bit different challenge because you know, I wrote about this for Day Today for dallascatways dot com. The matchups. Keep an eye on Crawford playing the three or the undertackle playing against Frank Ragnoll, who is the

rookie from Arkansas. Bill. I don't know. You might have seen him play in some games in college and stuff, a center by trade playing guard, but he's one of those belly to belly blockers I like to talk about that gets real close. Crawford's quickness will give this guy

some problems. So if they can attack, if you want a little bit of an area, you know, and now you have a little defensive line concern, but if you want some positivity, Crawford inside against Frank Ragnow I think would be one of those things to keep an eye on because if he could be disruptive, you gotta do

something about this. This Lions. And it's hard for me to say it's their running game with with with carry On Johnson now run their ability that looks like for one week they kind of said, Okay, we need to run the ball, we need to be better at it. You know, you're gonna need some guys to get up the field and be a little bit disruptive. And maybe

that's where you're doing right, you know her first round pick. Correct, he was, and he was credited up there with a couple key blocks that sprung carry On Johnson runs And maybe it was because they're playing Tom Brady and said, look, we gotta keep him off the field. But all of a sudden, yeah, they've they've found something with the running game, which they have not had a running game in years up there, and well this kid maybe the answer rushing

game in five years. Yeah, exactly the right Cowboys have had thirty three. Yeah, and there there's the there's the flip side of this. I'm all for Seattle game plan this week, being Seattle what they did to the Cowboys. If it until Detroit proves to me that they can

stop the run, I'm gonna run this football. I'm gonna try and i'm gonna I'm gonna make this if you know, it's a noon game, if it's over at one oh five, I'm okay with that, you know, you know, uh Jason Jason pointed out yesterday about Karan Reid that he can play either spot. He's not just a one that he could play them three. So they need him as a one, but if you need somebody else to help Crawford at three. Although in the game against Seattle, we did see them

in some instances moving de Marcus Lawrence inside. Yeah, uh, in in pass rush situations, so gave up a huge play that nineteen side. Yeah, they flipped. They flipped because we were trying. We we kind of pointed out last week that Seattle inside was not gonna be good. So what they tried to do was create some matchups inside, and I think it got him it bit him on that play that went to c J. Prosis that went to the outside. We couldn't really fear out. Okay, is

that Taco drop in? Is that linebacker? But the linebacker was blitzing through the a gap that was Taco. Yeah, I supposed to peel off. There we go, Mickey. Mickey lives here, he knows. All right, Let's go to Michael in New York. You're up on talking Cowboys, Mike. I elation sucks. Michael. Hi, everyone, how are you goood? Thanks? Yeah? Good? Good? All right? So, um, you know, we hear a lot,

we talk a lot. I know you guys probably get sick of hearing about where health, complaints about the coaching, the play calling, etc. But that, in my opinion, will sort itself out at the end of the season based on the results of these last thirteen games. Ye, so I agree. Instead of right, so instead of you know, wasting breath about that one thing is a fan that

concerns me. You know, I was around, you know during the days when maybe I wish that Stephen would have taken the reins from Jerry Sure and showing a little bit more restraint when it came to spending and things like that, and now I think we've kind of gone too far the other way, and I would just like us to have been more aggressive over this last year or two at times to help surround this quarterback with the weapons that he needs so that you can really

get a good evaluation of the player going forward. And last year there were enough problems around him, with the bad situation on the offensive line in the Atlanta game, the Burning of Atlanta as Jerry called it, the decline of receivers like Dez and so forth. There were some external reasons that you could use to attribute to Dak's

decline in the second half of the year. But now we're in a point where we've lost some of those reasons, and you know, Dez was shipped away and went and retired and so forth, and now we're in a situation where I think that we have probably one of the worst groups in terms of wide receiver and tight end to support the quarterback in the league. And now we're in a position where they're kind of getting close to the point where they have to make a decision on

what to do with the quarterback going forward. And while I very much have my doubts about the quarterback and his unwillingness to throw the ball down the field. I greatly wonder if we shot ourselves in the foot with making a clean evaluation of him in that respect, in terms of surrounding them with weapons. So I just wanted to know what you all thought of. Hey, I can I ask you a question, sir? Yes, sir, you know they were thinking about that Sammy Watkins thing. They were

trying to spend money there. Is that the right thing to do? Or is that you know the wrong thing? And I'll ask you another question too, about what's your theory about them signing their own? Does that not constitute trying to do stuff in free agency when you're signing your own. Yeah. As far as Whykins, I almost threw up in my mouth when I heard that they wanted Waltkins, and probably near the rate. I don't think they were far off from what he got with Kansas City, from

what I was able to gather. Sure, So, yeah, believe me when I say I'd like them to be You're in New York, right, I don't. I don't want them, you know, to be like a drunken sailor and throw their money all over the place. Sure, as far as the other part of your question there, I very much believe, like I you know, to my friends and so forth,

and to my son who was very much a fan. Um, you know, I always consider when they extend to Zach Martin, extended, Travis Frederick, etc. To me, that is like buying yourself a premium player. That counts very much, very much believe that could be Lawrence next year. I mean, that's kind

of where this thing's going, right, That's right. And what I'm talking about is when you only get so many draft picks, right, so, and especially premium picks, anything past the third round, maybe the fourth round is kind of a lottery ticket. So to me, we've become too reliant

on being perfect there in the draft. Okay, okay, which no matter what you do as a crapshoot to some extent, and I love the draft, but to me, when we rely on you know, will to hit it out of the park there every time, and then to also find us a gem as a street free agent, like an Antwoine Woods type. And I give a lot of credit to them for some of their fines, but it just hasn't been enough. And so really that's just my concern, now you're the bottom line is real quick, and thank

you for the call. It's an excellent call, well thought out. His concern is the evaluation of the quarterback, and I think he's on that point, because how do you do it if you're sitting there going well, I'm not sure about these tight ends. I'm not sure about the wide receiver. Boy, Mickey, you're right. They put a lot on this quarterback that they can go with no bell our wide receiver and say, okay, we'll play with the group. And he's right about the

tight ends. I feel I feel sorry I said this yesterday. I feel sorry for Jeff Swain because Jeff Swain is having to play James Hannah's role, right and he's not equipped to play James James Hannah's role, you know, And that's and that's the problem with this right now. And he's absolutely right there, you know, I will say this, and I appreciate him going with the approach of let's evaluate at the end of the year, let's evaluate the

coaching staff, let's evaluate the players. I just have a feeling that this evaluation of the coaching staff will be tied into with the quarterback. I think I think from a front office perspective, this might work out okay for Dak either way, whether it goes new coach comes in and says, Okay, this is what I can do with him. Well,

I think I have a new coach comes in. From a front office perspective, I think if if this continues on where they struggle offensively, I could see the front office saying, well, we need to surround him with better talent. If we do that, I think, well, he'll be a

better quarterback. I don't know what the future holds for him for from a contract standpoint, where year after this, right, but if he's able to turn this around, have a good season with a cast that, yes is largely unproven and new that he gets a lot of credit for that too. Absolutely so I think either way there he earns his money there. Maybe it's possible, um, but he

made he made some valid points. I think it just goes back to the front office felt like we spend a second round pick on a top tier guard prospect and they weren't counting on Travis Frederick to be in the condition he's in right now. If you have that badass pick on Gallup, yeah, well who the draft show

absolutely loved that too. Yeah, but I think they were counting on again the running game, this dominant offensive line, and they can fit some pieces around that with Zeke and and right now, I mean, I think not having Travis and some some transition on the line, it's not

the offense maybe that we expected so far. Can ask the question, if, given Travis Frederick's health or a number one wide receiver or I shouldn't say, hell, Travis Frederick's availability or a number one wide receiver, if you had to take one right now to help, which one you go with? I want a healthy Travis. I want that line stable the way because we've seen what they can do when they're at full strength. We've seen it, and it's just full strength, right yeah, and it just hasn't

been saying so. And then with regards to the number one right receiver. Yeah, so what I said yesterday about kind of squeezing down rotation. So I'm looking out the list and Beasley's got twelve catches, yeah, all right, and then Deonte Thompson has nine, yeah, and I'm not counting a Zeke and I'm not counting Austin Swain, Okay, and then it's five for Tavon Austin, Yeah, three for Gallup, Yeah, two for Terrence Williams and Hearns has four. So you can say you spread it out, but you've spread it

out where there's been no productivity. Yeah. And I'm not talking targets because no, I know that, I'm not. We don't have that here. But just catches. Yeah, you know, Michael Gallop one catch each game, Now, you should have had two, right, We can can argue about that, but still, what about three or four? Michael? Give him those opportunities Michael Gallup for four for fifty eight yards every game would have been really nice right now, right or something

like that. I mean maybe, well maybe you know that opportunity had coming across the field in Carolina would have kind of got him going. So let me let me ask. Okay, we've got two for the offensive line. Are you saying Mickey wide receiver would help more? No, I'm still stuck on the offensive line, but we don't know if somebody here can be I'm I'll go the other. I'll take your receiver, you'll take the receipt. I'll take the receiver because I think Joe Looney has been good enough. But

I need somebody. That's why I'm asking for Tavon Austin or Cole Beasley. Somebody. Just get the ball on somebody's hands that can make plays. Give me a little juice. But I don't you, guys. I think my point is maybe that guy's there but hasn't had the opportunity. You guys are right about the line. Though, you're right about the line. And and but I would, I would. I would sacrifice having Travis Frederick right now if I knew I had somebody on the outside that can get me

eight for eighty nine. So you're just touched down. So what you're saying is okay, Frederick, Fine, we can withstand that. If we had Sammy Watkins on the other well, I don't know if it's Sammy, was just saying as a name, if it's somebody somebody Michael brought up, you know, and I asked him to Sammy Watkins question. Because they tried to spend money on a wide receiver to get him. They tried to get him a weapon. They tried to spend a lot of money on a guy. Yeah they tried,

Yeah they didn't. It didn't work. Yeah, it didn't work. So I do appreciate your guy's answer because I don't think it's wrong. But man, if you just give me somebody that can help this quarterback a little bit. And I'm not saying that these other guys haven't tried to help that. Maybe that's what they are. Maybe that's why I hope that Michael Gallup is better than one catch a game. I hope that that's my that's my. You know,

Thompson has been a nice surprise. Get Austin involved. You know, Hearns is the one that I kind of thought, Remember we were all discussing Hearns. It was if we had if he had the same number as death sixty eight for how are many yards and how many you know, we would be touched down. Yeah, we'd be happy, we'd be lated. We can't even get that right now, right, so I'm sorry. I look at dilated eyes coming well take over your show. I um, you know you're talking

about targets and how many receptions whatever. Look at how many snaps to the snap percentage? You look at the Lions and Marvin Jones is on the field ninety four percent of the snaps, right, Kenny Golladay nine one percent and Golden Tate eight percent. To look at plays right into Mickey's Ye, that plays right. I'm switching over to the cowboys now and snap counts just a second. No, no, you guys are I got it right here. You guys

are right wrong about this here not wrong. Colebe Easley sixty five percent has the most percentage, okay, one hundred and fifteen snaps eleven perconnel right, Alan Hearns fifty nine percent. Play some slot too, okay, Deonte Thompson forty five percent, Michael Gallop forty five percent, Terrence Williams twenty two percent, and Tavon Austin twenty seven percent. So Babon Austin percentage needs to go up. It just it needs to go. So what we hand the ball to Zeke and get

Tavon Austin involved. What we have here is socialized white Oh no, you're right about that. There you go, everybody social a little bit. Becky has pinpointed it. It's socialist, all right, We continue on talking cowboys in just a moment. If you're like me and you love I mean, if you have a thing, then cutting the chord is scary. But then I found out I could switch to DirecTV now and still get the live sports I love. No satellite needed, no poky hardware, no annual contract, just that

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conditions apply. Better to talk in cowboys. Want to use what the pros use or what each one of us uses. Jack Black is the official men's skincare brand of the Dallas Cowboys. Get your Jack Black Playmaker for JB Phase plus full size lip bomb for just ten bucks. Would free shipping at get Jack Black dot com. Use code Cowboys. As anybody use the lip bomb, yet I have not anybody I have. I enjoyed not as much as you have. You growing for like a month straight on that bed,

but I didn't have their lip bomb. That was probably the reason why I couldn't get rid of what I was trying to get rid of. I was about you try to get rid of it? Was it was those globs whoa what? Yeah, he kept pointing out Mickey Mickey was Mickey had this? It was Mickey had this thing going, And I'm like, should I tell him about it? Maybe? Was it spread in enough? It was just kind of bobs sitting there on the edge. I was, you know, that was kind of the same time my foot was

having problems. I wonder if I had two problems yet you had foot and mouth diseasecky like that. I think, Yes, Hey, Cabo, Texas is coming to at a stadium. This is not your festivals rockbo Texas offers an adult escape bicky uniquely curated to appeal to all five of your senses. Curated with world class music, hilarious comedy, incredible cuisine, craft libations,

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flying out to the game Sunday morning. Um, so that'd be great. And uh I'm my predictions Cowboys by eight. Um yeah. Thanks. One thing I found interesting yesterday listened to listening to Zeke um well, and when he was asked about two thousand and sixteen, because that seems to come up a lot, is yes, he said, he says, he said they're running a different scheme. Um, then in keep two thousand and sixteen, and so I was wondering if that change was last season. I haven't heard you

guys talk about it. He was referring to Detroit's defense. The question was, can you take anything from last time you played Detroit? And he pointed out that they have a different defensive coordinator. He wasn't talking about the Cowboys Paul Pasqualoni. Oh sure, I think he mentioned it twice, but I'll go back and look. But I just found

that that pretty interesting. Yeah, he was talking about Detroit at that point, and he said, there's no sense going back to twenty sixteen, and he pointed out that we have changed, we have new personnel, we're not the same team,

and Detroit has a different defensive coordinator. Thank god, Mickey listens. Yeah, oh yeah, yeah, you're a better listener than me, because I think as the Cowboys are running a different scheme, and I was wondering, and actually that was and answered to Rob's question the other day when I said I listened to not only talk radio, but I've been listening to things on the app on my in the car, and that I listened to Zeke again this morning. There you get the way. Nice. What do you think that

he paid off? Thank you? Very much. Bran, Yeah, it's great. What do you think of Zeke's interview yesterday with the media. I thought he was pretty good. I thought he was too. He's been crazy all year, insightful. Yes, I still enjoyed. Last night we ran a sound bite from him on Channel eleven. I came out of it. I said, I don't know that I've heard Zeke talk with that kind of passion before, and he was more forthcoming. He wasn't guarded. It wasn't and it made me think, you know, last year,

everything was so guarded. It was tough for him right year. I don't think he really wanted to talk about that stuff. And I mean even when he wasn't talking, asked about that stuff, even talking football stuff, he was very It was closer to his rookie year, but a little bit more informative than because his rookie year. I think he I don't know if he was so distrusting of the media.

I don't know what happened at it. I think Cowboy fans should like what they heard from him yesterday because I thought so too pissed off, and he also sounded like we gotta do something about and he also kind of made a joke in the middle of the whole thing too, which you know he's usually just kind of flat lines. You know. I thought he was good. It was good and he and he answered the questions the way he should have. It's like, well, yeah, you should

you carry the ball more? Well, yeah, but you know, let's look at what happened. He goes, we we were down seventeen points. We can't be wasting time with a We gotta play better early in the game and take a lead in the game, and then we can give me the ball in the second half, kind of like what Seattle did the other day and brought us that game plan. And he put himself as part of that too. Yeah. I mean he made some key mistakes that cost them points, and um, it was almost like he was school in

the media, like hey, this is what you should know. Yeah. I mean, he's not going to be easy to figure out, really right, Yeah yeah yeah, well you know what voice that can't people figure this out? I taught Archer vsp and Dallas did a great Gi tweeted out he's getting Zeke is getting the same percentage of time watches per game as he's gotten throughout his career. It's just a matter of the situation and the number of plays they're getting.

They're getting they're getting about I think the two losses they've had forty four plays and fifty plays on offense. That is just not a lot, no, not enough, not enough. So you know, and where he's gotten a lot of bill I think you said this, where he's gotten a lot of his carries in wins have been just salting away games in the fourth quarter. Yeah, that's where's Chris Carson did the other day with like fifteen carries after the three minute mark of the third quarter. About this,

fifty seven plays, fifty plays in fifty eight. They haven't had a sixty play game yet. They used to just used to maul you with that. Well, Dak Prescott has I've got the snap counts in front of me. He has one hundred and seventy six snaps. So divide that by three. That's less than sixties snaps a game for the offense. And then and the defense has played sixty one, sixty seven and sixty six. And let's see, like Cheeto and Byron Jones, who have the snaps two hundred two

snaps for each of them. You know, it's going to sound crazy. As much as we want offense to do what they need to do, this game might come down to the defense in a way of and I mean I think offense will find a way to get some some traction. Can the defense hold up with those three wide receivers you're talking about? And then Matthew Stafford throwing the quarterback which we talked about early in the week when I said, is this the best offense they've played

or at least the best quarterback? This absolutely, this is gonna be a last quarterback with the best weapons. Yeah, this is gonna be a lot of bunch and chase. You know, get ready. I mean this, they they they will, they will find a way to get receivers all grouped up. And then and Tony Roman. We've been talked about this with Ben in Skin the other day. Is that, you know, to make up for some of your deficiencies, how do

you get people open and routes. You could have the same concepts, the same schemes, but you bunch them up. You've scattered them, you know, but you run the same routes out of that. We we all rob's not all enough for this? Maybe is Joe Gibbs ran you know, the counter tray. He ran the counter tray over and over and over again. But he did it out of different formations. So you know, that's you get good at something, but you run it out of different formations. And this

is really what the Lions will do. And just especially now that they've got a little bit of a running game with Carrie on Johnson, I think Dallas has to be worried about that. But how well can the secondary play. They can't afford safety busts, you know, they can't afford depth problems. They can't afford letting guys run across the field because then this guy starts scoring points. Now you're

really in trouble, you know. I mean, you know, Dallas is going to probably play in a lot of tough, tight games, but you can't let them get up a lead like Seattle did. That's just it's just it's hard on this offense to do. Even though I think that they're going to have some success, because I don't think Detroit really can play the run all that well. I really don't. So one thing that New England had going for him. Yeah, and they just but they couldn't, you know.

But Detroit got a little bit of a lead, and all of a sudden, Brady started missing pass right. So I think that's just going to be I think the Dallas secondary is going to have a big, big hand in this one this week just because of what you know. They don't really have a tight end. Detroit didn't have a tight end. You have to do it, but they got three receivers you gotta deal with. So they wrote about a guy Yesterday, Gall Day, who's a big target

into its own absolutely so Nickel defense the whole game. Yeah, get ready, get ready. A lot of a lot of chase, a lot of chasing going on. It's like hitting the ant pile. Yeah, and then everybody kick kick can't pile and watch the ants go there you go. There's no holiday when you go up against Kenny Day. Galday Talking Cowboys returns tomorrow. We think I could see We hope we'll see you tomorrow. This has been a production of Dallas Cowboys dot Com and the Dallas Cowboys Football Club.