Talkin' Cowboys: Key Matchup In Philly Rematch?

for your Dallas Cowboys. They're back to practice today. The next biggest game of the season is this Sunday at at and T Stadium. They're all must win, Brian brought us. They're all must when you know that, you should have known that in week two, especially now. Yeah, first place on the line one. Eventually people will come around to my thinking. I admit I'm an idiot, I admit it. Don't say that, failed scout. You know everything you want to say. You can call me on where you want.

I don't care. But everybody's gonna come around to this. And Jason Garrett said it before. You only play sixteen of these, you know, might as well try and win them all because then you don't put yourself in a situation where you're having to say, is this a must win game or not? Yeah? Why not? Go win them all? Go win them all, Go win a fifth in a row. Yes, that's that's the key right now, go win your fifth win in a row and try to get to eight

and five. The Eagles are back to five hundred. They're six and six and trying to pull within a tie or pull into a tie with Dallas Cowboys. Rob Phillips hosting for Bill Jones today, Kent Garrison producing next door, Mickey Spagnola, welcome, You've got a color of money. How you doing. You've got a half eaten biscuit just lying on the brand new table we got in our studio here. It's brand new. That's cleanliness, Well it's two years old. It's relatively new. It's it's clean, so it's it's okay.

We'll get your napkin. During I don't know. I saw the gamer guys in here doing a podcast. So how do you think steals the jack Black read the gamer guys. I'm blaming the game they want to do it. I'm just kidding. The gamer guys are good. You did fine without it, guys. You know what I'm gonna do. I'm gonna I'm gonna I'm gonna laminate another one. I'm gonna put a punch hole in it, and I'm gonna tie it to right there and someone just cut it loose. You think they would work? Yeah, I just I didn't

want you to read. They want to see you try and navigate that read without any visual I think that might be. That's what I want to see too. Yeah, well, I do hear that read done on Brad Sham's show with the Players? Yeah? Who does it? Shannon? Some young? Al Right, okay, all right, let's move on. Let's let's get to like, let's talk cowboys. Let's ask me question. What do you want? A good question? I'm sorry that

we're back to practice today. I got some questions and practice we got big show Brian brought us, and I'll answer these questions to Mickey. You'll love these questions today. Okay, you'll angles you're answering with this. I am with you on these questions, all right. Five simple question two two nine seven is the number if you want to join us over the next hour. Anybody. It's not that not that tough. I'm not gonna I'm not gonna put Mike you through that and we'll dive in a little bit

into this matchup. I don't think we've done a whole lot of that yet, and team you're kind of familiar with, though, I mean, this is where the wind streaks started, right yea at the link twenty seven to twenty over Philly. At the time, you were three and five. Yeah, must win, must that was absolutely it, must win. And the Eagles kind of went into a free fall there and now they're They've rided the ship two straight wins for the first time this season, posted a season high Monday night

against the red Skins in total yards and first downs. Yeah, they're playing better. They've got flaws, but they you know, they've put themselves back in the mix at least. Yeah, they have put themselves back in the mix, and you know, they're getting The biggest problem that I've seen in the games that they were not as good was their offensive line.

And that's and I guess we could talk about everybody in the National Football League is when you're pretty good, your offensive lines kind of rolling along, and when you're pretty bad, your offensive lines. One of the reasons why you're not rolling along pretty well but you know, this group did a pretty good job against the Redskins, h you know, handling that. They didn't do a very good job of handling things against the Saints. You know, that

was something I watched. And then against the Giants they were able to kind of put some things together even though they were behind in that football game. But you know, they they look like they've gone to uh, you know, they've gone to Josh Adams as being kind of their primary back. You know, they were trying to run through guys like you know, Corey Clement was kind of a

role player for them, a third down guy. They got Darren Sprowl's back, Wendell Smallwood has been involved, But it looks like to me they've kind of leaned on this Josh Adams, you know who they got from Notre Dame, a big back, big physical back that didn't get drafted. He had knee problems at Notre Dame, and I think that hurt his draft stock, but they've gone with him. It's still it's still a little bit of a read

option attack. They're going to give you a lot of that fake the inside handoff throw behind the coverage gets you to react. But as overall though, they've They've got their offensive line playing a little bit better, and I've yet to really see the Golden Tate emergence. But they still got capable guys out there playing receiver, and they got one of the better pass catching tight ends in the league. Yes, how long hast been there? He came at the trade deadline about the same time that you

got Yeah Cooper. Yep. I think they traded for him a couple days at a matter of fact, that the the league's first game against was the Cowboys five games now, yeah, exactly, got eighteen catches for one hundred and eighty two yards one touchdown. Yeah, and that was in the game against the Redskins. Yep, yep. So there's a little bit of a difference there, I think. I mean, the Cowboys traded for Maury Cooper to get a number one guy. Yeah, yeah,

you know, take's a really good player. He's he's not a he's not a role player, but he was another piece to what they've already got. I mean, you know, this is a group with Jeffrey and Arts that I mean, they've got Matthews, Jordan Matthew, Jordan Matthews, established guys that helped Go win him a Super Bowl. Yeah, but again, I guess it also does speak to the way Cooper is coming here and adjusted and really done a nice job. To Brian's point, Zach Ertz sixteen targets in the November

eleventh game against Dallas. Yeah, fourteen catches, one hundred and forty five yards, two touchdowns. I went back and looked at Zach Hurrants forty three percent of his receptions or for first downs. You know, that's huge. He's a chain mover from the career against the Cowboys. That's that's that's overall.

That's overall, Yeah, overall, I mean and and and where they really throw him the football is on believe it or not, on first down, he's a like six like first down, and then and then if they need seven to ten, I went back and looked at this between seven and ten yards. You know, if they need for a first he gets the ball sixty four percent of

the time. You know, that just shows you right there of what he's capable of doing by by reception this year, fifty four him on first downs, thirty seven on second downs, twenty seven on third downs, and he's got three receptions on fourth down. But it's funny, you know, you do you guys kind of feel like zach Ernst is a cowboy killer? Do you ever do you ever feel like he's a cowboy killer? I think all tight ends are cowboy killers. But I mean, ye would you would you

say Zach? But if you go back and look at the history of zach Ernst, you mentioned he's played, He's he had fourteen receptions in the first game. He had two receptions in the games last year, both games history he had two receptions in each a four total. In sixteen he had seventeen catches in two games. In fifteen he had eight catches in two games, and then you kind of get to him. In fourteen he only had three,

and then in thirteen he had six. And I wonder, and you know, we talked about this, if how do you play zach Ertz? Right? How do you do you? And obviously in some of his years there he's gone against Byron Jones. You know, we kind of floated that idea yesterday as a possibility. How do you how do you take care of zach Erntz there? And to Mickey's point, I went and looked at the game last time. He's

absolutely right. Nicky's in the sixteen targets, nine times they played zone and seven times they played man against him. So how do you primarily with Jeff Heath? Not primarily with Jeff Heath. It was a mix of linebacker and and then also Jeff he but Jeff Heath, the majority of the stuff was when it was when it was man, it was like linebacker and Jeff Heath. So, you know, I don't know if I don't know how, you know. I think Mickey's right the receptions he's making in zone.

You know? Do you want to figure is zone coverage the best way to handle Zach Earns? You know? And I'm gonna ask you guys a question, and if you don't mind, I'll lead off to it. You know it. But you know, if you could control one guy in this game, do you want to control Zach Ernswer? Do you want to control Fletcher Cox? You can only control one of the guys. But who do you want to

not have a great game? Wow? Question Brian, And I will answer Fletcher Cox, okay, because I'm gonna need to score some points and I think he can single handedly ruin your offense. Yeah, I don't disagree with that. I mean, I've gone through the number, like I said with you know, he's got forty nine career catches against the Cowboys. This that urts, you know, but but is he But do you do you fear all Sean Jeffrey? Do you fear Jordan Matthews? Do you do you do you fear Nelson Aguilar?

Do you fear Golden Tate or do you fear I mean, this guy two touchdowns against you last time. Yeah, I'll go with Lerts. But see that's but Mickey's point though too. I mean he's right. I think he's right, But you don't want him to wreck your offense. You don't. You gave up seven sacks against the Saints and you still won. Yeah, I know you had a goal line stand. Yeah, but you also were moving the football. You are um hurts though. You know, he gets a touchdown against you to tie

the game twice in the second half, I believe. Yeah. And they were driving at the end too. Oh. They threw in the ball the last play and you tried to lateral the Tate and it luckily everybody was kind of where they needed to be. You know, you're they're driving and you're thinking this thing might be going over time. They've got a five way to neutralize him, and the Byron Jones thoughts a good one. I don't know what

they're gonna do. I don't know what they're gonna do either, but I'm just thinking if you go back and look at the history of zach Ertz, if you go back and look at him, his numbers are not as good when it appears that Byron Jones is in coverage. You know, maybe I'm reading into this too much, but but you mentioned those other receivers yea, and those are guys you got to handle on the outside too. I mean, Jeffrey's gonna be a tough cover for Jones on the outside

as well. But I get your point. You know, Byron was primarily a safety's first two years, but part of his responsibility was, hey, go cover that tight end. Yeah, you did a pretty good job against it. We used to see it in practice with Witten, you know. Yeah, it's something he's able to do. He's able to use his size. It's interesting thought, But yeah, you don't want Fletcher Cox to ruin your Yeah, I think to me,

I just don't need Fletcher Cox in the backfield. If you're trying to run the ball, and I don't need him. I don't need him, you know, rushing up the middle and hitting my quarterback in the face a bunch, you know that, man. I know, Zeke only had seventy six yards against the Saints rushing, but they were moving the football, yeah, and they ended up with one hundred yards rushing and somehow the quarterback that got sacked seven times, you know,

two hundred and forty eight yards passing. Yeah. So I just I just don't want that guy to ruin the running game that they've got going over these last four games, when Zeke's run for four hundred and seventy yards, the passing game that Dax completed seventy five percent of his passes over these four games, and that guy can do it somehow, some way. They got to absorb what Artz is gonna do. But don't let everybody else beat you. He's his size is a mismatch. Yeah, how well he runs, No,

there's no quicks five to fifty, no question. And you better put somebody really physical up against him. And I think Jeff Heath is physical, right, no question about that. And he's bigger than people think. Didn't Jason Witt and I didn't see the tire broadcast. Well we were Mickey, I know, was an allowed ballroom and so was I. So we'd really watched the little of the game, but

you couldn't. Did Winton talk about how to stop zach Ertz of not letting him get started, like, not let him get up the field, jam him at the line, make him fight off the line of scrimmage. You know, I didn't talk about that that I heard, but those are but those are keys absolutely. I just don't. I just don't want him running up the field free, you know. And that goes to Mickey's point again about the zone coverage. When you play zone, what happens? Everybody's dropping and now

he's fine in space. Yep, you know he bothers me in this game. That bothers me because if the Cowboys start to if the Cowboys are getting pass rush, what's the one thing this guy's gonna do. He's just gonna unload. The boy's gonna keep unloading the ball. Right. But but the guy had fourteen catches last time, and that you didn't They didn't win Ken, Like Mickey said, can you absorb fourteen more catch? Just two? Touchdowns and still win this game because your your offense got thirteen points last

week against a really good defense. But yeah, you need your defense to be able to hold teams under twenty each game. Just just go ahead and keep going, keep doing that, yeah, and hope your offense gets going. By the way, about Fletcher Cox and this offensive front for Dallas, this is the first game where they really started to control the line of scrimmage. One hundred and seventy one rushing yards. Yeah, Dak was sacked four times in the game, but Zeke got rolling. Cooper had a game high seventy

five yards. I mean the things started to turn after the change to Colombo with the deal line, coach, they got a problem. The Eagles have a problem covering Amari Cooper in this game. And when I mentioned that they had issues their second yeah, they've got some problems. And if Mickey's offensive line can give you some pass protection again,

I think you can make that. You have to be encouraged last week that the Saints put their best cornerback, one of the better cornerbacks in the league, on Amari Cooper eight targets, eight catches. That has to encourage you that no matter who plays over Amari Cooper? And trust me, the Eagles do not have a Lattimore that could play in this football game and take this guy away if they want. So we'll see about that, all right, what's she doing over there? I was just looking to see

which person Cox would line up over. He moves, yeah, but they move him around, they move around. He plays that undertackle, Mickey. I'll look for the soft spot. Yeah. That's why my next question would be, do we have time? We're gonna go break? We have little time? Yeah, go ahead. I need a bigger game from from Suephila or a woozier. How do you ask where I was going? Actually, how

do you feel about Sue Philo's health? I think it's time to put Connor Williams this weekend, okay, Mickey, So so you're just gonna go ahead and make the switch back then, right, Okay. The head coach that he didn't grade out very well. No, he did not. I don't think he did not either. He did not, and I don't know how if if you know, maybe nine days

and he's a lot better. Coaches are so strange about that, though, they're like, oh we kind of you know, but if you watch the film, Mickey's right coach said he didn't grade out that well. He might have been a little banged up, but people are probably gonna say, whoa, whoa, whoa broadest way. Wait, you know you're running the ball. Well, you did give up seven sacks. You gave up four sacks a week before. I mean, you know what I'm saying.

It seems like the number is still alarmingly high, but coaches kind of go into that get into that mode where they don't want to mess with things. They don't want to mess with the offensive line. The switch to Suaphilo was this first Philly game, correct, Yeah, And part of it, you know, it's the matchup too. That's a physical defensive front, and they went with a but he was hurt. He was hurt. But they they went with sua Philo over Redman because I think he was a

more physical Yeah, experience, bigger Ryan, Yeah, bigger man paid off. Um, But I get your point, Mick. We've only seen Connor Williams is kind of jumbo Joe these last few weeks. Really, but at least he was moved from just playing one play when Tyrn Smith lost his shoe or whatever. Or shoe right, and then and then the next game, Oh, here comes jumbo Connor. You know. Um, and so you're you're you're you're thinking. I'm just thinking you went with him from the start, and now why all of a

sudden you know you're gonna change. Was he that bad? Oh Connor? Yes, I think they. I don't know if it was that bad. I just think that they, you know, and I'm the champion of Okay, grade him sixty five plays, don't grade him three? Yeah, you know, and well it just appeared. Why why they run the ball better than I'm just kind of wondering that. I'm wondering why. I'm not saying the past protection got better, quarterback got better. Something.

Something's going on with a quarterback that's a good I think the box opened up a little bit. Yeah with Cooper yes on the outside. Yeah, but they're doing a lot of this without Cole Beasley. By the way, if you think about it, he's got three catches in his last two games. Yeah, it's amazing to me. I mean the big one last week, that one and you know he stretches for the first down was huge. Ye played really well against Atlanta, you know, dropped a touchdown catch,

but then came back and made right. But I'm just saying they're doing this, you know, the quarterback improvement without out of his safety blanket, exactly without him getting a huge numbers. Yeah, I don't know. I just don't know, Mickey, and I like what you're saying. I just don't know if the coaching staff will go that way. I just don't think that. I don't I don't know they're gonna put Tyrn Smith back in there, aren't they. Yeah, they run the ball a couple of games without them. I

knew this was coming. I just knew this He's coming. I can't even take his own Joe. Let me ask you just okay to the question though, do you need do you need of guys that are kind of hanging on hanging in there, Suefilo hanging in there, a Wouozier hanging there, need to be more aggressive, made a couple of plays hanging in there. I went with Earth's in your previous question. But I don't think you can't be effishing offensively of Dack's on the ground all the time.

So on the ground seven times he was, he was, but thirteen points. Yeah, so I'll go with Suaphilo. He needs to get Cooper going. You need someone of a clean pocket, Okay, Suilo the left guard, Yeah, okay, do you need left guard? Do you need the left guard or the left corner to play better? Which one you? Yeah? I think the left guard. I think a Woozier will play just fine. Yeah, you know, he he It's it's not like he just gets burned. He just doesn't make

a play on the ball every once in a while. Yeah, I mean he's there. Um gosh, though, which touchdown was it? Was it the Saints game? It was the Saints game where the ball hit the guy in the chest and he had the interception and then the guy caught it. Yeah, it's like, come on a Detroit game a few weeks back, where he was all over guys Marvin Jones and they still find a way to catch the ball. He's done a better job overall finishing plays. Yeah. I'll go with

the left guard, though. I think your left guard needs to be great in this game myself. Yeah, because where do you think they're gonna put Cox over the left guard? Yeah, it's a good sound bite like that. You would do it again? No, we got it the first time. Yeah, got it, we got it. It's good at this all right, let's take our first breaks the number. Brian has a bunch of questions for us and for you guys. Next has been helping Cowboys fans see better since nineteen seventy two.

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slash Cowboys. Okay, good. You know when you read that, I just kind of just kind of goes. But when Nicky reads, I think he's adding stuff. Don't let it right up on your boys. But yeah, he had emphasis on the awkward. Yeah, he had stuff that you know, somebody from Chicago would add. I know, I'm just definitely don't why I hear and up is bold face up up? Up? Yeah?

I don't want to go up. No, no, no, I had another line there, No, I know you did, And yeah, exactly see Jeff Mickey ran bringing his own peanut butter on the Setcky's got a cup of peanut butters in a spoon in his pocket of his shirt. No, my pants, Oh it's pants either one. Yeah, it's weird if you're on the go though, aren't you. That's why you have pockets. Back to a Wednesday. All right, let's let's go to the phone lines. Kick Garrison. Who we got first? Oh? Hello,

yeah kid? Heude? We got today? We got Spencer online? Hey Spencer, Hello Spencer, what do you got? Hey? Guys from morning? Hey? I just look at the game coming to this week. I gotta admit I am kind of nervous, but uh should I'm thinking about why because they got a lot of talent on you know, on offense they do. So here's I'll think about the two pieces of the game I've noticed with the Eagles. I'm thinking, why do

they you know, why they shouldn't? Why they suck? And it's because just winning the South their bottom five and turn on the differential bottom five and fumbles lost. But the weird thing is they leave the league in time of possession. So if if dal can do what they do, which is force and turnovers makes us got some of the ball whoever that is, if it's you know, a Clement or I'm thinking the small would actually but Clement will drop it two now Clement will fumble it too.

Yeah yeah, yeah, So I'm just hoping that, you know, they can get that done. I think that's what we need to do when when it's an over game. I know you guys are worried about Fletcher Cox, Um, I'm not. You know what, I think Joe Looney has done a great job to stepping in there and really get things done. Left guard kind of makes me iffy a little bit, but I still think that with Looney and Martin, they can handle their front pretty well. Um, and I think

they can pull it off. They just have to win the turn of the battle and they gotta keep the Eagles on the sideline like you did last week. She worried about hurts. Yeah, I am okay, now what though, I am kind of in the camp where I would not mind deploying Byron Jones and taking by shots Offshan Jeffrey and you know, Aglor, I want that guy raised

the best way that they can deal with it. And even watching Carson Wentz last week against the skin You know what we rip on deck and I know I've done it a couple of times with you, Brian, but I gotta say Carson with missus some throws too. He will last, so you will know what we can keep the heat up. I think you got champled we gotta take away and said we gotta do it. Got you all right, Spencer? Thanks for the call man. Turnovers? Are

they really the first in the league? And I thought they were second or third in the National in the on time of possession? I know there's second in the in the NFC. Does that make them first? I guess there's there's somebody ahead. I'm sorry, I'm a possession Yeah, time of possession. I want to say there's somebody has better time of possession than them, and I'm not trying to call our call him out for that, but I just want to make sure that I don't say it

and I'm wrong. Time of possession NFL. Yeah, I think they're they're second in the NFC to go through a team by team. Oh they don't have it broken down by broken down time. We can figure out all right another another time, but no, thank you. He you know I think that. You know, anytime you play the Cowboys, you and I think the Cowboys are seventh in the NFC six or seventh NFC in this so um yeah, yeah it can't. Actually Baltimore, here we go with thirty

seven minutes a game, New Orleans and then Philadelphia. Okay, so they're their top three. Actually it's yeah, okay, there you go. So yeah, I mean you got to figure out ways to you know, I think the Cowboys. Where the Cowboys have been really oppressive this year has been just not allowing points. You know, you can tenure on this streak of not allowing thirty point the NICKI I think it goes all the way back to the Philadelphia game,

you know what last year or something like that. It's kind of crazy that they gave up a bunch of points that home game here and then you know, but they've done a great job but just not allowing teams to score, which has allowed their offense to kind of flounder around down there. It's too Yeah, that's another thing. You go down to Philadelphia and then you had a chance to drive the ball and you kept to kick another field goal down. I mean, it just it just

can't happen anymore. It just can't happen. I wrote about this yesterday in my three and out column. Red zone they if you told me before the Saints game that they were going to go one of four in the red zone, and really they were one of five, but that was the kneel down at the end of the game. Sure, no, they don't have a chance to win the Saints and they are twenty six. I believe in red zone efficiency,

it's under fifty percent. I think. I think Pittsburgh leads the league with like seventy seven or seventy eight percent, and goal to goal situations even worse. They're thirty first. Yeah, and you've got to be able to cash in. They know that. But the Eagles have struggled there too. They're nineteenth in the red zone I think, and I mentioned yesterday they missed two opportunities down there against Washington where they didn't get any points. Yea, but yeah, I mean

Cowboys defense holding strong, getting goal line stands. I mean that's they're keeping a lot of times, they're keeping their offense in it that way. So the time of possession is really not that different that the Eagles have like a minute more time of position than the Cowboys within seconds. Yeah, they're at thirty two oh nine. The Cowboys are at thirty fifty five. I like the time of possession thing. I love the turnover thing that that's proven during the

winning streak. It's proven. Except last week you had the two turnovers right to the Saints one. So that's the first time in a long time you've won a game where you lost a turnover battle there. Yeah, that's always going to be a key with the Cowboys. Oh sure, that's always going to be you know. And how how are they going to find ways to create turnovers? It might be the most meaningful stat in football, just when

you look at what determines wins and losses. In the week before that, on Thanksgiving, I think they had a season high three takeaways right starting to they're starting to build for him. You just got to hope that wins throws vander esh another one like he did trying to fit the ball in his zaccurance. Yeah. I mean, that's as a great play by that kid's part, you know.

And if they can get some of these these corners to get involved too, and and the call is right, you know, this guy's not always accurate throwing the ball. He'll overthrow some. He'll make some overthrows. Boy, he'll throw some pretty wins though too. There's a couple of touch ones, touch passes he made, guys going up the sidelines that you're thinking, oh, while big league throw. And I didn't watch all of the TV broadcasts. I went back and

watched some of the game pass. But he looked Wentz looked more like himself at this point in the season with the coming off the knee. He was moving around the pocket, making plays with his feet. He looks like he's pretty much all the way back at this point. Yeah, he is. And you know, and he's one of my guys. I wrote today. They'll go up on Dallas Cowboys dot com and you talk about the nemesis, the weapons and the under the radar guy, and you watch him play.

He's not afraid now to run. He's always been a tough guy. What's amazing about him is how long he will hold the ball and take a hint but then still be able to deliver the football. And we saw that the other day. I remember Damian Wilson is getting held right in the middle of the pocket, you know, right there on the blitz and he's fall he's hitting his arm and you know, he still gets rid of the ball and stuff. So this guy's get a real knack for that. I mean, you have to be able

to get him on the ground. I've never seen a quarterback take Aaron Rodgers a little bit that way. Take a take huge hits and don't let the ball come flying out of there. You know, the quarterbacks they get hitting the back like Eli Manny gets hitting the back and he just the ball goes flying out of there. Rodgers in the playoff Rogers, these guys will hold onto the ball, hand strength, you know, just toughness, that kind of stuff. So yeah, be careful with that, all right.

Do you want to get back to your question? Yeah, how about this one? How about this one? She got? Who goes for it more on fort down in this game? Doug Peterson or Jason Garrett? Hm Um, Maybe I've got the Philly Special in my mind, but I'm saying go for it like on fourth down? Who goes for it more on fourth down? You know, I don't know how calculated all of our decisions are. Are you're talking about stats wise or in this particular game, in this particular game.

Who decides to roll the dice more in this game because we've seen Garrett and games. I mean they've in fake punts and stuff against the Eagles. They've tried to do things different differently. It's gonna to depend on situations obviously, where teams are on the field. I might lean towards Peterson just because I watched him go for it on fourth down the other day night. They've had they you know, they didn't have six. They tried against Dallas, didn't have

very much success. But it's a must win game for both teams. But Philly's the more desperate team. Yeah at six and six, So yeah, I might just go with fourth and one. At their own thirty, they're going for it. No, I said, it depends on the situation, said the situation for both teams. You know they both neither team may go for it. Yeah, you never know. But if they had to say, if you said to say, one guy

might be willing to gamble a little more in this game. Yeah, well you got to tell me what the score is. Just give me an idea, who would you say? I think the Cowboys look at this as a knockout punch, So there you go. I mean that that that gives me hope because I would say the same thing. I would say, Yeah, Jason Garrett, go for this. You're at home. You're at home. You have a chance to put the Eagles away. Take a page. You know that guy the other side on the other side of the field. You

played against a crazy guy last week. You did. You played against a crazy coach, you know, when it comes to onside kicking in the Super Bowl and stuff like that. But you know, I think Mickey's right. I'm glad you said that, Mickey, because I was gonna say it. I think you got it. I think if you're Jason Garrett, you have to say, Okay, Doug Peterson, you want to

go for it and do thing. I'm gonna try and do the same thing, but but calculating, calculating like the fourth and one or certain situations stuff, But fourth and one at their forty. Yeah, I'm going for it. I'm not trying a fifty eight yard film. Yeah, go, I'm with you. Try try and go take their will. That's what I want to see in this football. If you if you win this game, you're up two games on them with three to play. Yeah, and with the schedule.

They've got not the Rams next week and got Houston rulling in. Not that you're remaining games are gimmeys, but you've the whatever. The next gen stats stay as far as percentage you went into the vision, they go up dramatically, Yeah, dramatically, absolutely so. Yeah, knockout punch. I like that next gen snaps as Yeah, there we go, said, happened to them.

Eight game next gen stats? Huh eight eight games? There's stats said that you got what twelve percent chance of making the playoffs if you continue on your current track, probably you're gonna have anything to do with the quality of the team there in the twelve percent chance of yeah twenty Yeah that man, what does it mean? It means that it was more likely for them to miss the playoffs than to make it. If you're and it was, it has thing to do with the quality of your team,

and it just plays the percentages off your record. Yeah, well, they better win this game. That's all I have to There's no question about that. Cowboys needs something big to happen in this game. What is that big thing? Cowboys need needs something big to happen in this game? What is that big thing? Need a defensive takeaway for a touchdown, pick six fumble. Yeah, Scoop and score A have turned the ball over seventeen times already this year, Philadelphia. Yeah

minus eight. So yeah, Scoop and score interception return one of those two. I'll take another ninety yard touchdown by Amari Cooper. Just give me another big chunk player two to take the pressure off your offense from having to drive seventy five yards every time. Yeah, give me that. Yeah, I'm with you. I'm with you, guys on the turnover, the big turn I would like something, and I've asked for like a And I know it's hard to do because of the return game the way it is to

shape it, it isn't. But how about something like their return game if it's Darren Sproles or whoever back there. How about a turnover from a Darren Sprowl knocked the ball loose, get fuel position at the eighteen. Something like that, something big to happen. I like what you're talking about, too, Rob with the Amari Cooper making a big play. You know this secondary is problematic. They don't tackle very well.

Or Michael Gallup had he's been this close to two straight deep touchdowns in consecutive weeks, and they just Dak hasn't put it out there for him, right. I wonder after they watched what took place against New Orleans, if they don't back off their secondary and say, you're gonna have to remember what happened driving the ball. Yeah, not

gonna get a ninety yard catch on. Remember this was the game they started losing all their corners, Darby and I remember, and they went to zone coverage and you got some guys catching slants and you know, all kinds of things. They had to back off because they really couldn't. They didn't have enough bodies to play, right. So yeah, that's and if they back off, then I'm handling Zeke the ball and then let me see if they want

to tackle him in the open field. All right, Speaking of well Zeke, and how about a Mary Cooper more receptions, Amari Cooper or Golden Tate Cooper. I'll say Cooper just because he's been a more featured part of the game plan for his respect. There's two guys who got traded for right, and we talked with that, yeah, and we talked about Beasley. His numbers have dropped really since the trade. I think I looked up. He's got fifteen catches since

the trade. He had thirty something closer forty before the trade in the first was it eight games? Yeah, but when you've got eight targets on Cooper and eight catches, I mean the guy gets open and he makes he finished his plays. Yeah, so he has become their number one guy, no question. I think he has more receptions myself than Golden Tate. I think Golden Tate will be involved, but I mean they haven't done a very good jo. I think they're gonna have to find a way to

get him going in this football game. So anyway, got two more? Yeah, I got a couple of I got one more? Well, I'll ask this one. This is a good question for Mickey here. Eric rim Is a Harvard professor suggest that you should only consume six French fries at a sitting. Is that even possible? It's like just one? Yeah, Eric rim R, I mm, he's a Harvard professor should jest that you should only consume six French fries at

a city? Which I want? Is that? And I want to This guy's a health a health professor at Harvard. He wants to eat z yeah, six French fries? Is that even possible? To eat six French fries? This is a man that eats healthy that you're talking to, right, can do it? Yeah? You can eat You know what you would do? Can I substitute? Because six tater tots might be more filling than six French fries. I just don't know how you can only eat six French fry. I'm a big heavy guy. I mean, how do you

How do you do that? Because you can? That's a national study by Harvard if you get it in a cup from a fast food restaurant, Yeah, I mean you get a bottom burger. I can eat six while the ladies handing me my change. I mean one scoopful is probably like four or five, so out of your hand a handful of Yeah, you eat six when they fall out of the bag. Have you never been to some of those places, like five guys, they just dump them all in the bag and you just and you're just

eating them out of the bag. I've done catch chip in the bag before because they had so many leftover fries in there. Is it possible? It's possible. It sucks. It's not any fun a cheese steak. Yeah, um, I have a cheese steak coach. I wonder, like what the calorie comparison is. Like, you mentioned potato tots, Like, could I get six onion rings instead? I love onion rings. I love them more than anything. Onion rings are like my favorite thing. You get steak, you say, oh, you

could have steak and a potato. No, give me steak steaks over here? Yeah, kid is on point. Yeah steak. You like fries or on your rings? You don't? You don't like either? Wouldn't I like onion rings? Do you? Oh? Yeah? Yeah, you're eating potatoes out of a cup the other day. What am I talking about? It was mashed potatoes. Yeah, no, that's what I'm saying. You're eating potatoes out of a cup. It was a potato bar. Yeah, did you fix it yourself? They put majority of the stuff in. Did you like

scoff at them while they were doing it? Though? I just put some shrimp in there. Yeah, there you go, right, let's ax shrimp. And then I had sterling tips, yeah, ray serling tips. Yeah. Now we're talking all in a cup. But that was all in a cup. You could if you want it. Yeah, you had choices chicken probably boring. Yeah. Um, but the best part is the the bacon bits. Gotta have bacon bits out, all right. I gotta put bacon bits on everything. That's so, how about just six potato chips?

Can't do that? Potato chips are hard? Is that was that a national commercial or it might have been just a local one in Chicago. Can't eat just one? Let's lays national one. You got it? Rob, All right? Let's uh, you got one more left, don't you You know what that one? No? What that one? I think? Let's carry it over all right, Let's keep breaking down cowboys and Eagles when we come back. Two ninety seven is the

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the pros use always? Well, then you've got to get you some Jack Black and especially the Jack Black JB four phaves and you can get those by ordering them online. You get them for ten bucks, four of their best products, free shipping. And all you gotta do is go to get Jack Black dot com and use the code Cowboys. All right, Mick, thank you, And by the way, registration

for holiday youth camps now open. One day camps are available for both Dallas Cowboys Football Academy and Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders Dance accad to me at the Star in Frisco. Spots are limited, so register today at Dallas Cowboys dot com slash Academy. And you can't stop Jack Black just because you take our read. We'll get it done. So distraught over this read unbelievable, We'll get another one. Mickey, You're done. A great job. That was a good one. That was a good one. Yeah, it was very good.

All right, you guys want to hit the phone lines again? Sure, Lynn in California, you're up next on Talking Cowboys. What's up Lynn, Good morning, Rob, thanks for taking my call. It's Altadena actually, which is a little city outside of La Here we go. Hey, is this a game where we see more Sean Lee snaps or Xavier Woods snaps?

Thinking that you leave Keith in and the three linebackers in and he can play high or low and Layton can press hurts and be adaptable that way, and they just become more valuable a fat personnel than with two safeties. So that's my question keeping in the spirit of Brian brought us to thank you all right, taking out of the box. I appreciate you doing that. There you go, there you go. Appreciate it. Thank you. Mickey. What's the status on league? I don't think he plays like Mickey

made this face throughout that call. Yeah, it's like Shaun Lee's not going to come back after missing five weeks in play sixty plays, It's not gonna happen. Yeah, he was out there working with his full pads on. I stood up and turn around. No, this was yesterday day, Yeah, Yester him and both Austin and Tavon. Austin, Yeah, both out there working with Britt Brown, the associate. I would just being surprised if they played him that many plays

after he's missed so many weeks. I don't know, if you know, if I don't even know if he plays, if he gets back even for this game, I don't know, for the rest of this month. You try to get into that snap total. I think you try to manage him, assuming you can get into the playoffs. So you guys thinking this is going to be that goal in mine

thinking it's gonna take care of itself. Then that by limiting him, by him not having to play forty fifty snaps, that naturally the rotation will allow him to rotate back in at a comfortable pace. I think it's gonna be pretty organic. Yeah, and I think it it can be because of the level of play that you're seeing from these young guys. Yeah, you're not. You don't have to force Sean back in. I mean there's a there's not the same drop off that we've seen in the past.

So yes, organic, it's easier to do it right. See. And then the problem with that idea is they put Ernst out in the slot. That is a problem. So you want to put your linebacker out in the slot and then have one less linebacker in the middle when they hand the ball off and run right up your gut. Yeah. The thing that you have to think about though, is yeah, they're gonna try. They will try and spread you out.

That's there's no question there. And even if zone it like they did the first time, so you're widen out the linebacker to take away the inside route, but then you give more space in the running game. I'm trying to think about how the best way to play these guys. I mean, I'm thinking about the best way to have to deal with a tight end at flexes and then and then also wide receivers that you know they're gonna get into like a eleven personnel, but for their receivers

are gonna be spread out. It's like you're gonna play with a tight end that's in line, you're gonna play with a flex guy. So that presents problems in itself. I'm just trying to I appreciate the call. They're trying to find ways not to let Zach Ernst run up the field, though. I think I think team passes, Yeah, I think that I think that was I think maybe that we missed a point on that a little bit. He was trying to say, Hey, I'm not gonna let this guy beat me running up the field, which I

think is the absolute brilliant plan. Don't don't let that happen. But how do you how do you? Mickey's right though, how do you play the run? Are you? Are you comfortable enough saying okay, my four down linemen are going to handle it my you know my linebacker? And do you does that mean you keep a safety down as well? I mean, who's covering the running back when he comes out of the out of the backfield. I was just saying, we haven't talked about Sprowls, and that's another guy that

you can put out. There's another guy there just started now getting back into Yeah, they're starting to get back into is. I think personally it's going to be more Clement than than Sprowls right now. Now, maybe they'll find ways to get him on the field again, but it's it's been a slow process for him. You know, he's built with believe, with a hamstring engine. It's been a

problem for him all year long. Did have a touchdown Monday night though, Yeah, yeah, so I don't know I just I you're gonna play with three dbs, you're asking for trouble or four three corners in a safety. Yeah, I just don't, That's what I'm saying. I mean, we have to sit here and figure this thing out. Yeah, I mean, what's the best way to handle them stretching

you out? That's remember what we were talking about with the Saints last week, for them to they make you play horizontally too, you know, so they can attack you vertically. And I think that with the Eagles, there's a lot of that, a lot of that crossing stuff, a lot of the picks, a lot of you know, they try and work the middle of the field. You know, they get guys starting at one end of the field and

they end up on the other side. And now you know, Wentz to stand the pocket throwing the ball all the way back across the field. You know, those are those are the pitfalls of playing against a team that's got a lot of weapons on the outside and plus a big time tight end it's also a weapon. Saint. Zone's fine as long as you're getting pressure on the quarterback, yeah, and then making him make quick decisions and maybe not

read the zone correctly. But if he's going to have the time of day in the pocket and they're in zone, they will find your soft spot. The thing that helped the Cowboys in the Saints game was they had Saints had some drops, you know that that helped them along a little bit. And there was a third down player I was watching yesterday the Cowboys and the Eagles in the game, Zach Erntz. One of his he had a

drop that was on third down. It wouldn't have been a first down, but it was one of those things where he was going away and you're thinking, okay, there's separation, and Wentz put it just a little too far on the outside. I mean that's what you kind of got to hope a little bit. You gotta get a little lucky sometimes with some of these drops. I mean, hell, the Saints had at Smith, the rookie. They threw a slant to him right there, remember the goal line. He

dropped it. I mean, that thing was going in. So sometimes you have to just get a little lucky with your defense and hopefully you can affect Wins enough that he is not as accurate as you know, we thought he might be. WinCE in the first game thirty two of forty four, three hundred and sixty yards and a couple of touchdown. A lot of that was late, that's true. Fourth trying to get back in the game twice. Dallas

was crazy. It's crazy. It was. It was painful to watch the last minute of that game, just because the ball, mean that Dallas was so back off and I'm thinking, God, just don't I was worried about him getting down inside the twenty and then throwing the ball, you know, throwing the ball inside to one of those guys, you know, Jeffrey, a big, tall guy, Ernst. They got the ball the way down to damn near the seven yard line and then start pitching it around a little bit, you know,

try and make things happen. But God, I just didn't want that last minute that game was painful to watch the way that Dallas. I mean, I know that the Eagles didn't have timeouts in time, but man, it got close. It got way too close for me at the end.

Have to play the picket defence defense. Oh god, it's just well, you're watching him complete pa Okay Gan of fourteen, Gana eighteen, Gan of seventeen, Gan of a. I mean, you're just and it's getting out of balance every single time, and you're like going, Okay, somebody, somebody step up and make a play here, you know, and you know, luckily they did. They just ran out of time. You know, luckily that was the case. Back to the phone lines,

Joshua in North Carolina, you're up next. What's up, Joshua? How we doing, gentlemen? Good? Good? I appreciate you guys. Take him my phone call on your mind. My question is about Dak. I'm a I'm a Dak supporter. I think he has great potential. But um, I was gonna get your guys thoughts on running more RPOs with him, giving him the option to running the ball more opening

up the defense. Also, what would your thoughts to be about maybe spacing the offensive linement out a smidgeon if not, you know a little bit, just to give him more passing lane, more opportunities to see the field, have better vision down the field. What do you guys to think about those? Okay, thanks for the call. We've talked about RPOs. Yeah, I'm throughout this season. The place where I like it the most and where they seem to have a lot

of successes zone zone. Yeah, I mean because you have the threat of Zeke and that's a way to sometimes you're using Zeke as a decoy. Yeah. No, I mean times when we've seen Dak keep it down there and score. I think did he not have a keeper for a touchdown in this game? Was out of scramble against Philly. The first time he scored a touchdown. I can't remember how he got it. But yeah, the RPO has been something in red zone, goal to goal to go that

has worked for them. Yeah, I I you know, And he's talking about creating spacing by your splits, you know, I don't think that's you know, to me with Dak.

I think the thing that hurts Dak the most is and I don't know how you work on this, but no, the play action stuff Dallas has been really really really good on, believe it or not, and because of the running game, but when he turns his back to the field and then has to come back to find guys, you know, And I don't know if spacing and splits and all that creates lanes, but it's just something that I think he's gonna have to But they're so good play action. I mean, when he when he makes plays,

it but some of his misses. I mean, I think they could be even better with the play action stuff because you know, they can affect defenses and he just it's when he turns his back to the field and it has to bring his eyes back, you know, whatever, whatever that fixes. Because I think he's got the armtown, I think he's got the mobility. Don't know always about

the anticipation he made. He's made some anticipated throws. But I just think that if there was a way to get Romo was so great at this was his ability to look away and then come back and know where everybody is and have a great understanding like, okay, that's

where I need to go with the ball. You know, if there was one thing that I could say, hey that if they could develop this or they can give him this trait, it would be his ability to turn his back find and then find the receivers after play action because, like you said, just the presence of ze even if you're not running it that way, you would be. It's incredible when they fake him the ball, how defenses react,

We've seen it. But I just wish, I wish I could say a Dax got a lot of great traits, but I wish that was the one trait that he had all the time where he could just turn his eyes away from the defense and then come back and know exactly where everybody is. You know. The weird thing last week when we had Danny White on our show and went back and looked at some of the film that Atlanta game when he led to come back and eighty,

it was weird. He would take the snap under center and he would turn left like like he was a left handed quarterback. Was he would do a one eighty right and then go when he hit his back foot, he would drop back to his right like he'd spin around. And I was like, was he dealing with injury, no game, No, it just and it was repeatedly right right. That was kind of the drop back, and it was like the weirdest thing I ever said. Oh he was taught that do that? Yeah, yeah it was. I thought it was

really unorthodox. Yeah, you know, I can't remember if I got a question into him or not on that, and he basically I think he was saying it was one of Tom's things. You know, to your your role, you're turning that way, so maybe the plays going that way and then you spin around and you hit your back foot and you're back to you on your right side.

Big deceptive offense though, with the shifts, I mean they were they you know, everybody back in the day would just put a hand on the ground and run a route. You know, this was a team. Of course, the shifts, the motions invented Shotgun Preston Pearson. I mean, you know what's what brought Shotgun back? Yeah, yeah, exactly, and you

know that. But that's there's things you could do. There's quarterbacks the great ones have, of course, the traits, certain traits, but my point was he had the ability to kind of have the field total back to the field and find I was wondering where you were going. No, no,

the great quarterbacks have that ability. And again Romo was tremendous at this boomer size and those guys that could fake and really sell it, you know, really sell the fake and then all of a sudden know where everybody was gonna be, you know, and it's pre snap reads or whatever. But you know he did that against the Saints when he came back to Gallop and overthrew him. He was fucking left. He was trying, he was trying to get to Cooper Cooper and then came back right,

and I think he got excited when it suck. Who uh how gallop breaking open? Yeah, and he didn't take his time to throw it. He's like, oh yeah, I gotta get at make get it out there. Yeah exactly, I got a touchdown. Yeah. See, that's that's if if there's one thing I could give him, I said that ability to find everybody on the field, because hey, when when when guys are open, I mean, or you know, guys are getting open, Michael, I mean, uh, Mary Cooper

is a great example. He's getting a great rapport with you know, Mary Cooper. Even if Maury Cooper's covered a little bit. He's throwing some tight window balls. You know, I think that's encouraging in itself. But I you know, I mean, I I don't think. I don't think. I guess the long story to hear is I don't think splits yeah, helt there. I don't like that. But because

you're opening up stuff inside. Now, if you're if you're the Air Force Academy or Army or Navy and you're running the read option stuff because week yeah, Army, Navy. But if you're running that stuff, spread them out, give me some gaps to run that ball up inside. A matter of fact, my sister and brother in law going to the game Philadelphia, right, all right, gonna go to Philly, all right, snowed last year. What a great game that was. I'd love to be in the stands for that one.

I'd love to see Rogers on his way there too. He was in New York for the dinner and cast a Heisman vote and then go on to the Army Navy game. All right, Well, Philly is coming here Sunday, and we will continue breaking that down the final two days of the week. Cowboys get back to practice today. It's been almost a week since they've practiced. Good for them. You think they remember how I think they remember how. So let's remember how to play right. Check guys, Dallas

Cowboys dot Com. Yes, thank you. AI. Check Dallas Cowboys dot Com throughout the day for all our coverage and stay tuned for the break after Jason Garrett next on Dallas Cowboys Radio. This has been a production of Dallas Cowboys dot Com and the Dallas Cowboys Football Club.