Talkin' Cowboys: Trade Deadline Winners?

up for Halloween. What are you going as? It's going as an old sportswriter, Pool shar Alion lounge singer Pool Shark. Can't you tell Paul Newman money? Her money had to h to dress for the Legend Show tonight with Drew Pearson. Here you go, Okay, I'll be some story. Do you think it's because you got the collar on the outside of the well, it's not. It's not a button, so

it's not staying. There was a Halloween in and I think I've told the story about covering the game at LSU Ole Miss was playing Miss Lsu at LSU on Halloween. It wasn't the day before. Didn't nine game, did you? No? I don't think so. This would have been eighty two maybe, Mickey. That was my freshman year at LSU. Three. Was it a home game, home game? Yeah, Ken Austin and those guys. Yeah, and all miss like fumbled the first two kickoffs and turned them for touchdown. The game was over. In the

place was just coming apart at the scene. It was anyway, we covered the game and we got back to Jackson. It's a three hour drive, and somebody was having a Halloween party and we walked in and they go, uh, what did you guys come as go drunk? Sports writers? Sports drank all the way back on the drive. That's when sports that's when sports writing was fun. Yeah, I

bet you, I bet you know. Guys sitting there, you know, I cigarette in the press box, cigarette in the press box, you get a oh, we get beer in the press box at the game. Gars the guy in Nebraska, it was Lincoln Paper and he Virgil Parker whose name was and he would smoke a cigar in the press box and when Nebraska had the ball, he lit the cigar. When Nebraska didn't have the ball, he put it out and it's like, okay, I know what kind of you know situation we're in here. It was the loudest most

homer press box I think I've ever been in. The cheering was unbelieved. I've been in a few of those. I've been a few though. That is extremely frowned upon in the NFL, But it happened. It was frowned upon in college. It's ut at Nebraska. I'm sure I'll get people from Nebraska. It happens. Getting mad. They've only won a couple of games this Year's right, they're kind of struggling. Love me some Nebraska Cornhusker football, but again, you can't

been beaten by them. Twice, missed them in the Big Twelve. That was good. Yeah, they're in the Big twelve. I'll miss I'll mention it twice in a row that Missouri ruined their season in seventy eight. Here you go beat him in the last play, last game of the season and they had to play Oklahoma and the Orange Bowl and got beat Let make you feel better about last Saturday, then, Yeah, but that was a different stone still better, okay, different? Still too soon? Yeah, Okay, Well, let's move on. Let's

talk some Cowboys. Rob Phillips hosting for Bill Jones, by the way you haven't noticed, joined by Brian brought uson. Mickey Spagnola as always, that's Kent Garrison next Door producing. It is a Wednesday, but it's a Tuesday at the Star in Frisco for the Cowboys. They are due back. The players are from their bye week. They won't practice until tomorrow leading up to the Monday night games. Everything's pushed back a day. God, it seems like we've been

off for three weeks, doesn't It feels like it does? Yeah, it seemed like it. We've been working. Yeah, No, I mean I just as far as covering this team. You know, you kind of you kind of the way you do. You're you're you know, you get ready for the game. You have your little order that you do things. And now I'm feeling like, okay, do have to split this for two days? Is this? You know? Yeah? Trust me, we're gonna have that conversation. Let's just hold us over

till Sunday. You know that. Oh yeah, we've already been doing it. How did we get to locker room Thursday? You know? How do you get the locker room Thursday? Yeah? Nothing today. There is locker room Wednesday today, this Afternoon's what I thought. Yeah, so we'll talk to some players. We'll see what their thoughts are coming out of the bye week. And uh, you know some things have happened. Obviously, Amari Cooper's here, yeah, Paul Alexander is not here. True.

Mark Colombo is the new offensive line coach. And I thought we we could get into Tennessee a little bit here, sure, start on them at some point in the show. Happened to do that for you talk a little tight and for the Monday night matchup at at and T Stadium coming up, you guys can call us eight five five two two ninety seven is the number and check in. I thought we could start though with the trade deadline yesterday. We know what the Cowboys did last week, and there's

been some movement in the NFC East. Yeah, a lot of teams seeing that they have a chance. Huh. Yeah. I want to get y'alls thoughts on what you saw within the division. And you know there's a couple receivers traded in the league, a couple veteran receivers traded. Your thoughts on the deals made for Golden Tate to Philly and the Marrius Thomas to the Texans. I thought that the Tate deal, I mean, that's just kind of a rental player, right, Yeah, thirty years old, free last year

of his contract, really a free agent next year. So Detroit wasn't going to keep them. And it was like, okay, well, let's get something for him. And where did they get, like a third round, third round pick? Yeah, so they got something for him, and um, you know, and then I guess you could look back and say, well, if he you know, does well, we get a compensatory pick

in twenty twenty. Right, So yeah, okay, fine, you know, rental player Damarius Thomas to me, another guy going to be thirty one years old in his in his ninth season. So they're there, and he's got a kind of similar to fourteen million dollars. Yeah, similar career path not not. Maybe personal numbers have been great every year and then the last year and now this year, and they will sign their deals quarterback at the same time. Quarterback play

has been really bad for them. Yeah, and so you know, I think he's probably still got something, uh fourth round for the Texans. Yeah, that they gave up before now and I think he still has something like he can he can probably still play and help him. And they just lost Corey Fuller, right, they did knee injury, knee injury, and they were other than Hopkins, they were kind of down yea at wide receivers. So you can see that. And you know Washington with haha, Clinton dicks to me

is they traded for a name. I don't know how great a player he is. Safety, gave up a fourth round and he's another one. He's going to be an unrestricted free agent next year, so you're running the guy for eight weeks ninety free baseball like some of these trades. Yeah, and exactly because and what used to irritable except in baseball, they do it when they don't think they're going anywhere, right, and they unload guys and then you get's like, well, now what do you do next year? Because you got

to replace them? But with this, they probably weren't resigning him and I don't know their defense and all that great anyway, Yeah, I think the thing that I think, the thing that what I kind of took away from that is what I just said when we opened the segment here, is that these teams are all looking at this as this division's wide open. You know, they're they're looking at, Okay, can I add one or two players

here or there to maybe win this division? You know, obviously the Eagles feel like that they need, you have more of a presence catching the football than what they have right now. You know, they've got to. I mean, Golden Tate's a nice player, he really is. I mean, here's I think he'll help them. I think he'll help them more than what Thomas will probably help Houston. I think Thomas is more at the end. But Tate, that's a legitimate player there, and it was You're right, Mickey,

it's right now. It's a rental, is what it is. The Eagle is probably looking at this is they're going to get a couple of compensatory picks. They're planning on a couple of different guys that they lost that they're able to probably pull back a three or four, and so they're they're they're looking at that deal that way. I think the Cowboys are unique in the way is they need help, but they're looking at their deal more

long term. They're looking at their guy is saying okay, you know, and obviously by giving up a first round pick. You're thinking about more long term than you are just you know, eight or nine weeks. So you know that's the difference. But people within the division, you know, the Giants were sellers, and you know they feel like that. You know, they're they're right now trying to figure out if they're gonna need to bench Eli Manning. So you got to take them out of them out of the mix.

But the other three teams feel like that they've got a legitimate chance to win this division and they just want to make sure that they if they can add a piece or two along the way to ensure that, then that's exactly what they had to do. So, yeah, the Giants traded away Snacks Harrison to Detroit and Eli Apple to the Saints, both teams that are trying to

stay in the mix. Obviously, the Saints are doing very well, and I brought up those two receivers first because third round pick for Golden Tate, fourth round pick for Damarius Thomas. Some reaction is that, oh, maybe the Cowboys overpaid you know, first round pick. You guys were saying, Okay, it's a rental for Golden Tate. He probably won't be resigned there and Mickey mentioned the age of both of those guys. I think that's the bigger concern I would have, you know,

these are guys in their thirties now. Yeah, and Cooper, we talked about it last week and this week twenty four years old. I think the Cowboys look at him essentially. I had Stephen Jones this last week. He's essentially their first round pick. Yeah. I mean that's what do you because age wise, if you went and drafted a twenty one year old wide receiver, okay, three years difference, and this guy has proven he can play in the league, there's not a projection made. This guy can play. Yeah.

So and they get us and they get a season and a half interview of him to determine if they want to sign them to an extension. Now our long term, but your hope is your going hope is you really like what you see this year, and they sure to do it next year and lower the cap hit. That's fourteen million dollars. The only the only downside to this.

And Nebbie brought it up a while back, and we you know, I don't know if we really addressed it, but if you were in fact looking at a quarterback, and then that pick that you were going to make or potentially make or could have made, would have been a quarterback or quarterbacks at that spot. Yep. But that's the only that's the one downside I would see if you were if if yeah, and if you were looking at your quarter back spot, don't you think they consider that?

And I think what they're telling you by using the first round pick is dek Prescott's gonna be Yeah, that's that's what they're That's it clearly. But that mean if I was looking at it from the outside, I would say, Okay, if you evaluate your quarterback and okay, we're gonna go with him another year. You know, Okay, I see it. But but that that's the only the only real downside that I have with this whole thing is you know, I again I applaud the the general manager for trying

to do something I don't. I'm I'm always trying to make my team better. That's the whole plan. I mean, what what how can I make my team better? Oh? I can do this, I can do you know, give me options, give me opportunity, give me the ability to evaluate and to add players along the way. I just don't. I just don't see real downside to this other than what I just said, you know, And I thought Nebby

brought up a great point. If in fact, you were in the quarterback market or you were thinking about making a pick for a back, you know, you potentially could have used that for a and that might be really one of the only positions that you would, you know, feel badly about. Everything else. You can kind of say, Okay, I could find me a tight end. Okay, I could find a defensive tackle, Okay, I could find me a you know, an offensive lineman. Oh, I can find me

a safety, you know, everything else. Those quarterbacks come at a premium price. The history says, if you don't draft one in the first round, you're not gonna you're not gonna get one. Yeah. Yeah, Dak has turned out to be a productive guy for the most part, you know, as a fourth round draft pick. That's rare, really rare. No,

it is very rare. But I just don't, you know, I think you have to look at this, you know, like I say, you know, there's gonna come a time where to me and if and if it gets this and I'm not because I'm I'm willing to see this thing out till the end, but there's gonna be it could very well be a more important thing. You have to think about the coaching, you know, that's what you have to think. And I'm not I'm just bringing that up. People are making a big deal about not having a

first round pick. I think the decision you're making on your coach, whether you keep him or not, it's going to be a bigger decision whether you have a first round pick or not. Me personally, I think that's a I think that's a more important decision than a first round player in my in my book. But I again, i'm I'm I'm I'm one of these guys that, hey,

let's see this thing through. You know, hopefully everything pulls together, the moves they made with the coaching change at offensive line and then also the help at wide receiver, and hopefully your defense can continue to play well. You're about to be really tested here, you know, in the coming weeks. If they can continue on with the path they're going, I think they're in good shape. But again, at the end of the season, you know, I think there's even

a bigger decision. Let's see when we get there. And I would not. They've done this before and it was a mistake tying moves into the head coach, and I don't believe that's what they're doing. There's this idea out there that to save Jason Witten. I can think back to ye. Sorry, I'll be doing the game Monday night, two thousand and eight. I believe it was the head coach wanted a hybrid, stand up linebacker that could be

a pass rusher. Williams, Jason Williams their third round pick in two thousand and nine, but it was their first pick, yeah, because they traded back twice. It was two thousand and nine. Yeah, right, that's what Wade Phillips wanted. What Wade wanted, and then all of a sudden, Wade's gone, and yeah, you got a bad player. Just left you with a bad player. He was like a combine He wasn't even a combine guy. He was like a workout warrior type, you know, the

same thing. It wasn't really the head coach, but it was the position coach. Defensive coordinator in two thousand or nineteen ninety four and just had to have a defensive end and they draft Sean take Carver, right, right, and that doesn't work out, But then a year later, you know, or two years later, that guy's gone, Yeah, So you gotta be careful thinking, oh, I may this move for the head coach. You better make the move for your

team and worry about the coaching part later. Because everybody that's well said, you know, I like I said, let's let's give this, let's give this, let it play out. But you've at least given yourself a chance to see

some things. You know, You've given yourself a chance to say, Okay, can Mark Colombo turned things around with this offensive line that hasn't played at the level that we're used to seeing them play, you know, And can can this wide receiver make a big enough difference with a group that we thought they went in as a committee. Now they said, okay, we don't need a committe. We need somebody to come up and make some plays along with Cole Beasley and

along with Michael Gallop and those guys. But isn't the offensive line the biggest issue without a doubt, Because with this, they didn't give up anything in the receiving corps to make this, make this move for Cooper right, and they actually when they played well, the offensive line. They won games. Yeah, didn't play well, they lost right as opposed to making the change with the offensive line, coach, you lost something, he's gone right now, you got something new in there.

But none of this is going to work unless that offensive line consistently plays better. He's absolutely right. That's the That's the one thing that I look back in the first through the first eight weeks that I felt like that I missed. I felt like I missed evaluated really what this offensive line was all about. I was a little worried about Joe Looney. He's the least of my worries right now, you know. I just I didn't see

the lack of consistency with this group. And it's not just on the road, and they're giving up hits and sacks at home too, just not as much, not as much as much. But there's still there's still times you watch and you're thinking, oh, thank god, Dak Prescott spun out of that one. You're right, gott he oh Ezekiel, Oh thank god he made that. You know, he made

that cut. You know, that's where I focused too much on other things other than the offensive line and that and that was probably that was something that that that I should have focused on more coming out of camp. Okay, hey this, you know, he wanted to believe that Lyle Collins was on his way up and in the season and he was one of your better offensive linemen. You know, I wanted to believe that Connor Williams. I had an

idea that Connor Willams would struggle a little bit. But I didn't see Tyrn Smith a healthy I didn't see a healthy Tyrn Smith. Now, I think injury has robbed him of some of his flexibility. I think that he doesn't bend as well as he once did. Still, you know, twenty nine other teams, thirty other teams would love to have Tyrn Smith playing tackle for them, you know, even at his current state. But I just I felt like that a misty evaluation on that, because that's I think

that's the reason. I think that's the I think that's the biggest reason this team is three and four. Oh, I no question, man, I picked him to I thought they would be a playoff team after I saw the Connor wall pick, honestly because I thought, Okay, this is a solidified that position. Yeah, it's been another high draft pick on a guy and you've got all pros elsewhere, Travis Frederick who didn't know about his situation back then, and uh, and it's just not hasn't been the same group.

But I will say this, Brian, the Jacksonville game, That's what just just puzzles me so much, is that I felt like the protection in that game was pretty good against what was thought to be a really good front. Maybe Mickey's right, maybe that team is a fraud. Maybe that's a defensive fraud. That was my super Bowl team, But it's it's the same guys that almost had a historic season defensively, it is the same personnel, the same offensive line that's blocked well over the years. Have they

won since? No, they haven't. They lost last week to Philly. Yeah, they've lost four straight games. Wow, Okay, so that's that's the problem. But I just I don't know. I just you know, and I could see, you know, And I'm not I'm not washing my hands of the quarterback play either, but I think the quarterback is directly acted by the offensive line, you know. And I think the quarterback is also affected by the receivers, you know. Yeah, I'm not

sure het all on the line. Yeah, I mean, I'm willing to I'm willing to say that dak As faults absolutely I am. You know, I'm not going to sit there and act like that, you know, put my head in the sand and not not be the case. But this offensive line is really the one thing that I felt like that they can hang their hat on. They just haven't been able to do that, you know. And even in the two last two home games that they won, he got sacked six times, three in each. Yeah, so

like it's better than five in Seattle. But they're moving the ball here at least. Yeah, they are still getting hit too many times. Yeah. The bottom line now, I don't know if you know the coaching change is going to make a difference. They're they're certainly hoping on it, and they're certainly banking on it. That you couldn't keep going the way they were because, as Brian said, you know, if it was Joe Looney, okay, I understand, and it

really wasn't. I if it was just Connor Williams, I'd understand. But it's been almost across the board. It has. All right, let's sake our first break when we come back. We'll take your phone calls. Eight eight, eight, five five two two ninety seven. Next on talking Cowboys. You're like me and you love. I mean, if you have a right thing, then cutting the chord is scary. But then I found out I could switch it or ACTV now and still

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Doctor Pepper the one you crave to talk in Cowboys. In football, often the quickest plays mick. But some good old fashioned ingenuity are the key to Winnie, kind of like Tommy John's horizontal quick draw. And let me tell you about that quick draw. You in a lot of different places, including Halloween costumes, the airplane, airplane jumping, snow skiing, and if you just happen to have to go into one of those porta potties, it helps quite a bit.

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I didn't want to say. Let's talk about the team. He says, I got some that Tommy John underwear, you know, And I'm like, oh, hey, good, good for you. You know, as I'm looking through I'm looking through clothes myself and talking underwear. But no good hey, but thank you, sug go out men and women too. Go get it fantastic, take it on every road trip. I do. Right, Kent who we got up first on the phone line, so down I'm talking cowboys. Hello, he's got me. Yes, we

got you our friend in La, David. I believe David in La. What's up man? Good morning man? This is day from out to Dina near Lamari Cooper Trade. All right, it's just like when you moved up for Claiborne or we got Travis Fredrick. You gotta trust your people to have vented and figure it out. You bets value for your first round pick, so I'll go with it even if it doesn't work out. I think it's a good, good investment and it's just the way it goes in the draft. Um. I think it could help easily and

Gallop perform better. I am perplexed as to why we hired Paul Alexander. I don't understand what happened. We had something that wasn't broken. Yea, we tinkered with it, and I don't know why the previous coach left. Maybe you can shed some light on that. But it seems like if it took more dollars to keep them there, then do it. We had something good going. Um. Last thing is where are we at an advantage over Tennessee? And where are we where do we not match up well?

First Tennessee? Thanks guys, by thanks for the called David. Maybe we'll save that Tennessee from last segment. Um, Frank Pollock was not retained him they you know you know that. You look at what happened with let's be honest, how many coaches they replaced on the offense, How many guys who all stayed, you know, Gary Brown stayed, the OC stayed, who else stayed? Anybody else? Nobody? Right, I think it's is it eight or nine assistant coaching changes? Yeah, well

there was a bunch. Yeah, So so let's let's say, let's look at the situation here. You know that it might be you know, you with coaching changes, you get guys that that don't get along. They don't you know, they don't like philosophy, they don't like you know, they you know, they don't like the fact that you're saying, well, we should do this, and we should do this, and

we should do this. It happened to me fought Bill Parcels too much, you know, I should have just kept my damn mouth shut, you know, And sometimes you keep fighting, you keep fighting, and as Jerry Jones will say, you got bit by the dog. And you know, if you look at the in the OC stayed and a lot of other guys got shown the door. Vince of Vince, Derek Dooley went off for a job, you know, to

be an OC. That's what he wanted to do. So, you know, with coaches, you know, they have their they have their disagreements, they have their philosophy questions that they they feel like that, you know, I'm writing this and you're not right, and this and that and the other, and you butt heads and you'd finally just say, okay, enough of you, you know, And that's that's that's that's reality. That's life. You know. You you fight somebody and piss

somebody off enough, make them mad, they'll get ready. They'll find a way to get ready. And in Pollock's case, the old line coach last year, yeah, who replaced Bill Callallahaney. No, it was performance related if you look at it. I mean, I'm pointing the stat out yesterday's twenty two of thirty two sacks that Dak Prescott took was in those final eight games. And that Atlanta game was a complete utter disaster. That's the reason Connor Williams is here, a big reason

he was drafted in the second round. And Frank Pollock lost his job in large part because of that, I'm sure yea. And and you know he was a Bill Callahan disciple, and they have gone away from that philosophy a little bit because you know, they brought in Paul Alexander with his own ideas, and Paul Alexander and my thinking and you'd probably ask Jason Garrett this. Paul Alexander very highly respected around the league. You know, you've been

in Cincinnati for twenty four years. They never fired any coaches at Cincinnati. You know, he was there. We worked under the great Jim McNally, who was a really good line coach back in the day, you know, kind of the Hudson howk of that time, you know, but you you know he's also you know, you you hire these coaches because also because of recommendations, you know, like somebody like his brother John worked with this guy at Cincinnati. What do you think about Paul Alexander there? Bro Oh,

you know, a really good teacher, technique guy. You know, you don't, you don't every time they ever they Hey, Amari Cooper, we talked to the We talked to Save and we talked to him and we talked you know, you look at you look at all these guys. You know, you look at anybody that's ever brought in. It's always you talk to a guy. Jack del Rio was consulted about Amari Cooper exactly exactly. Yeah, you don't just make

decisions on your own. That's what Bill Jones said yesterday, these these ads that have committees to help them hire a coach. You shouldn't be an a d if you can't hire a damn coach. You gotta be able to ask your own questions and figure out your own things. But we always hire people on a recommendation. Do it in every walk alife, every day and walk of life. You have to you have to rely on some of that, right. I mean, it depends on who you're asking, It depends

on who you're putting together. Yeah. I could remember when after the seventy seventh season, Missouri fires Allen Freal and the AD was leaving too, so they don't have an AD to find a new head coach. Who hanging to pirn the coach? So they ended up getting this committee committee. Yeah,

but it was a commitment. And the committee was head headed by the dean of the law school, and then there was these other deans and teachers and you know, Grandino and and and the uh the chancellor, the new chancellor coming in and it's like, what are you doing? You know, that's why you guys aren't a football school. Hire somebody, hire somebody. Yeah, And I learned that real quickly. Too, uh, idiots, hire somebody that knows how to hire a coach. I'm

with you, Mickey. You don't hire the coach and then go tell the ad here's your coach. I'm totally with you on this. I you know, I would love, you know, the opportunity to sit down and visit with somebody and talk about a job. You know, I think that's a that's a that's a skill, not not only just football, it's in life. Sure, you ought to be able to interview people, get to know, you understand, make your own decision. Don't rely on me to tell you, Hey, hire that

Rob Phillips. He's a good guy. And then you get and then you go in there terrible and then you're a terrible work rappy good guy, bad worker. And then all of a sudden, that guy, Mickey is looking at me like, why the hell did you tell me to hire this guy? Hire this guy? And then you start, you know what, then you stop listening. Mickey will say, you know what brought us? You don't know what the

hell you're talking about. They brought in John Cooper. Was that Tulsa, Yeah, before he went and was Arizona, Ohio State and the female Chancellor asks him during the interview what his favorite offensive play is. He walked out. I was told and basically told somebody, I will never take this job even if they offer it tonight. And then he goes from Tulsa and becomes he's now scouted since Nati Bengals, by the way, a very good head coach

at Arizona State and parlays that into Ohio State. Sure, dude, see that's but the pole Paul Alexander thing. I know we went once again, we were we were all over the America's Cup yacht racing there going on bed back forty years. But I'm just saying though that, you know, sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't. But that's a bad fit.

That's a bad fit. And you probably are thinking, why would you mess with a group group that has had some success, And you're right, Mickey's been documenting this Last Day Games. You just said it, Last Day Games last year. They were awful. They were awful, you know, and they had to do something about it. And and Frank Pollocks, he's the one that they kicked him the curb because

of it. He probably had It's like they kicked Paul Alexander the curb Well and Paul Alexander had the most experience by far, probably if anybody they could have hired that was available in January, Old Dog New Tricks. Yeah, I mean Mark Colombo though you mentioned this earlier in the week, he was a serious candidate for the job in January that I don't think Garrett could have had that many Kellen Moore's you know, first time Yeah, yeah, he's a special teams coach. You know, how many guys

is he gonna say? Oh, I'm just gonna name all the you know, he probably looked at and said, man, I better get some guys with an experience here. And maybe if somebody sold him a bad bill of goods. Yeah, and maybe I know you don't want me to say that. Man, it's cringe worthy, but it's true. No, that's fine, that's fine. I'm just trying to think back to what we were told, what we heard back in January, and it was you know, he'd been there, like he said, twenty five years. He

had experience with a lot of different personnel. Obviously during that span, different schemes, he kind of adjusted around different personnel zone yeah, and power. So I mean maybe they thought he could be more flexible, and maybe he wasn't. I'm just speculating, but obviously they felt like indeed it was a bad fit, no question about. I just look at what's happening, what's happening with Lyle Collins, and that's all I need to know. And I understand what's going on.

I do understand what's going on with Tyrren Smith. I really do. I think I do. He is not the same player because his flexibility. He doesn't bend as well as he once did, and that's something that unfortunately, but he's fought through us. He's thought through shoulders and neck and back and all that stuff to play the way you know, the way he has and he's not terrible

every time. I'm not going to act like that's the problem every time, but I'm just saying, though, if you're telling me that Lyle Collins has gotten worse, why why is he gotten worse? And I've had I've had people that I respect and players telling me they're like, the guy that struggled the most with the coaching change was gonna be a lile cons the one player told me because he's screwed. He you know, it's true, he just changed because he just changed positions and now he's having

to learn all this over again, you know. And now he's learning. And we saw how bad his hands were in camp. You know, he's trying to do with Paul Alexander's telling him to do, and he's a maler and he's just finally and he finally got through last year with the left hand right hand punched things. Yes, Now you've given him something else, Yes, because he was left handed,

and credit Nate Newton for seeing that. And he's used to punch in with his left Hand's gotta punch with his right hand right right, because he's got to keep his hand, you know. And yeah, and there there's and it seems like there is too much thinking going on, sure on that offense, and that I don't know if that's hurting Tyron Smith, like slowing him down. Uh. And again the other thing is that boy, if you had Travis Frederick next to your rookie guard, I think that helps.

That's what you're accounting on, right, He's gonna he's gonna nurse that guy through as ky season. Now, Joe Looney, I'm saying, that's what I'm saying. He can't take care of himself, but I don't know how well he takes care of the guy and maybe Tyron Smith doing the same thing with him. How many different guys as Tyron Smith had to play next to a lot and last, I mean, he's the one guy that's had to play against throw them all in there. He had He started

off last year playing against with Chaz Green. Remembers Jazz Green starting. Remember he was the starter till he got hurt and then Jonathan Cooper. Jonathan Cooper jumped in there. Bell. I mean, how many guys have had played that position next to him? Ron Leary? Ron Leary, you know it's great as Yeah, as great as Tyron Smith has been, he's probably had the most turnover next to him. Yeah, because they haven't figured out. You're right, I thought. I

I'm still bullish on on Connor Williams. I think Connor Williams is gonna be just fine, you know. And Joe Looney to me, has there is there? Is he perfect as coach? No he's not. But you know what, Joe Looney hasn't been killing you in these games. He hasn't, you know? Is he second level block and all that? No? But is he? But is he just totally. I mean, I'm with you, guys. It's not one two areas where they they've struggled. It hasn't been just one or two spots.

I wonder at the end of the year, when we all sit down and evaluate and someone comes out and says, you know what, the loss of Travis Frederick was the worst thing that happened to this offensive line. I wonder someone is going to come out and say, you know, Travis Frederick not being in the middle of that offensive line hurt This hurt them. It took them completely out of their game. Could be, could be? And you know the key thing on that is going forward, they gotta

make good decision too. Is he God willing he can get health? Yeah? I mean, I mean you just hope from his own number one. We always say that, But if you want to just be selfish football fan, you know which we all are, God, you need him back. Yeah, you just hope that he could regain his health, his strength and be in there and play five thousand straight snaps again. You know that's what you took out of there. You took a guy out of there. It played never

missed the sap. You never had to do without him. Yeah, you know, And the miracle thing of the whole deal is they really haven't had like fumbled snaps or you know, shotgun over the head. Joe Win, You'll snap at high everyone he will. And we saw that training camp. Yeah, but they haven't had a disaster that Tony Romo had to run forty yards to gain two because the snap went over his head. All right, let's take our final break. Sound really negative here, don't we did? No? No, I mean,

we're just point of special. We're just pointing it out. I think there's you know, sometimes there's got to be some balance, and I think too many times on talk radio it ends up being complaining radio. Yeah, you know, and the never talk about anything that's working well. It's always let's complain about this, let's complain about that. We gotta tell it like it is is what we try

to do around here. So let's continue doing that. And let's when we can't talk about some things that are working well for this team as they try to prove to four and four Monday night against Tennessee when we come back. And I got another question for you guys too, after the pros. 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 it to ACTV now and still get the live

sports I love. No satellite needed, no bulky hardware, no annual contract, just that the live sports. You try direct tv now for ten dollars a month for three months. There's a direct tv now dot Com direct tv now more for your thing that's out a thing us called really a limited time price a little page if three months when he's monthly ay full price currently mad aimum forty dollars and let's ask. Prices may change. You subcribe, cancel any time, content barries by package and maybe limit

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what the pros use. Jack Blacky's the official men's skincare brand of the Dallas Cowboys. Get your Jack Black Playmaker four JB faves plus a full sized lip bomb for just ten bucks free shipping at get Jack black dot com. Use the code cowboys and they need to throw in a shower caddy. Yeah, because I've got four blue waves I bring with me now at the health club and it's hard to carry him. I've got body wash, shampoo

to the other, facial cleanser and beard lube. Did the other old Italian men borrow that stuff from you there from you? They better not. Mickey was that it was like the pitch you kind of kind of hit another boat backed out of the harbor. There we want It's okay, yeah, the off Yeah you get caught for a balk. Yeah. Yeah. One all those guys was balking. I don't know how they get away with it. During the World Series of picture, he kept moving his not the foot that's on the rubber.

He kept tapping the foot, his front foot. Chris Sale, isn't it? No Sale? It was one of the one of the relievers would glasses on and I was like, how do they let him do that? I thought, you know, when you planted your foot, it was planted. But I guess not a lot of things changed. They will changed. Yeah, designated hitter, all those things. Eighteen innings in a World Series game. Hey, since this Halloween, I had to ask you, what's the best Halloween costume you've ever had? Gosh, and

do you have pictures that we can share? No, no pictures, Come on, give me something. To have pictures, you would have to have film, right and you would have to

keep the picture. You have iPhones back? Then, get going Facebook back to you know, I think I think I had some politically incorrect one yeah, share those just something funny when they weren't politically incorrect, Okay, like dress up as a hobo, used to put cream on your face and then take coffee grounds and just stop, just make it look like you had a get any calls a beard? You didn't have a beard in your ten Yeah, fifteen maybe, but not ten. Hey, by the way, Cowboys, what was

your what was your favorite? Cowboys? Titans return home to AT and T Stadium Monday night. Don't miss a chance to get the tickets live now on sale on Dallas Cowboys dot com. You went right into that. Yeah, you knew exactly what you were doing, and you went that direction even though you knew what about that. I didn't know what the answer was going to be, and I wish i'd never asked a question. Yeah, better get your question you have on the piece of paper you got

dress stop. I was a hockey player once. Oh yeah, yeah, okay, you play hockey. Though then I did. I had had equipment like fake missing teeth and all that. I didn't quite go that far. Okay, but I think you know when you don't see you get dark in your teeth and make it look like you had some missing Well, what was your what was your outfit? I don't know, man, I'm gonna trying to bring this back on the road.

About that. Brian probably dressed up as a football player. No, yeah, I played one every week dressed up and I handed my uniform in. I said, oh here, don't worry about washing this. It's okay. Now, uh, I think real quick. Okay, I'll trying to be real quick. Since Halloween, do it?

Did you mickey? Did you guys ever have the Halloween costumes where you had that when you put on the suit where you put on like that you're like a batman and you had like a thing that like it went over and you tied it in the back, and then you wear the plastic mask like and you couldn't breathe in the plastic mask. Could be an insiderator? Yeah it wasn't flame person. Yeah. No, do you having Oh you know, my mother used to make us stuff. Okay,

she would together. We used to go by the Latex masks. No, no, no, like like a plastic like its over your face. Google it, folks, if you like nineteen seventies Halloween costume. It's like a plastic mask with a small little intention here to breathe, and you sweat and sweating I mean back. Yeah, you're running from house to house and you're like, you get to the house, you'd fall out because you couldn't breathe. Yeah, because the mask. It was like in the seventies, they

didn't care about your health. And then when you'd run to the run of the house, you're like, oh, I'd have to take a knee halfway because I couldn't breathe. And then when you got to the eighties, they made those masks, the rubber masks or head that was worse. Yeah, just google nineteen seventies Halloween mask. It just fit right over your face and it had an elastic chord that like kept it in place on your head. I'm guessing in light of what goes on these days, I'm surprised

they haven't like banned masks. Yeah, let me see who you are. Yeah, fair fair point, fair point. We had a we had a party. You still have Halloween party here with the cowboys. Back in the day. They did it back at the over at the Old Corral, at the Corral at the stadium and we had to stop it. We had to stop the parties. We couldn't do it anymore. They said, nah, no more, no more parties. They were out of hand one time. Remember the group that showed up.

There was four guys. It should have like like Kiss. They were paying. I mean they it was like Kiss. They the rock group. They looked exactly like the band Kiss, and nobody figured out who they are. Yeah, here we go. Kids do a great job, can't. Those are the masks, Yeah, you put those on your face. You talk about sweat. Fact, those don't look comfortable. No they're not. And they're held They're held with a like an elastic band. It's a terrible thing to happen. But anyway, we had this party

in these guys should have like Kiss. They won and then I don't think they even worked for us. I think they just showed up to the party. They crashed the party. Yeah, everybody was like, my gosh, look at the look at Kiss execuingly it's you know, Ace Freely, it's Simmons. Look at him and they're like, who are these guys? And nobody knew, but they were they were just like hey, they got yeah, they got they drank all the beer and they ate all the food and

took took the home the awards. They probably didn't work there if they never took the mask out there you go Kent once again. Kids kids showing. So if you're watching us on on the on the small the breathing hole, yeah there you go seeing I'm saying, you're that one little spot were you go trick or treat and you say that through the hole, but you can't breathe. They were trying to kill us. They were. They were no seat belts in the car belt no, no baby car,

have a smoke, You have a smoke. You go to the park and they got these spinning things that you can flip off them because they spun so fast. Go faster, go faster. Yeah, monkey bars. They were trying to kill us. Hey, I'm glad you're still here though. Yeah. We survived the seventies, sixties and seventies and fifties and the fifties. Yeah, well I wouldn't around for the fifties. It's close. I was close.

He's got us beat there, all right. Uh. I just kind of went, yeah, it's okay, we're trying to get back. Letting us letting us play hockey in the streets when the when the cars come through, and then we grab onto the rear bumpers and they pull us along. You were an animal back then, weren't I wasn't as bad as most of them were. All right, Chicago kid, Chicago Heights. Yeah, that's right, mean streets. All right. A couple questions before we get out of here. David in La had one.

Yeah about Tennessee. Yeah, I'll do my best looking at the Titans. What what maybe I've seen Tennessee? Mickey sat down and watched Tennessee a little bit. I have it, but I looked at their depth charts. Okay, well I watched a little bit yesterday and the thing that stood out to me, and I think you might have touched on this yesterday. Yeah, a fifty five yard touchdown pass

aloud and a seventy five yard touchdown pass aloud. And maybe that's credit to Philip Rivers for getting him in the right situation for La, but uh, all right, you you traded for a guy who can get up the field and make place. Absolutely opportunity. There's an opportunity, and that's for Amari Cooper. It's also an opportunity for Michael Gallut. And you know, this is a secondary that's had their struggles. And I'm writing about today or actually for tomorrow, for

the matchups. You know, they've gone over a couple of different nickel corners. I'm thinking about. I'm thinking about Cole Beasley being good in this football game, either going against the Dorry Jackson or then also having to go against Logan Ryan. And I feel like though that they'll probably play with Logan Ryan because Dorry Jackson had problems in the last game against the Chargers. Keenan Allen wore him out in that game, so they didn't turn around. They

put Logan Ryan. So I think they could probably go with Logan Ryan in this game. So keep an eye on that matchup. Out of the slot Cole Beasley how they play that, because I think he can make some plays like he did, uh you know in that Jacksonville game and late in what we saw late in the Washington football game as well. So it's a front. They don't have the great pass rush. They have a pass rusher, Derek Morgan just been okay. Harold Landry was a second

round pick that they had last year. In this past draft, he's starting to come on a little bit. Their linebackers are not bad though. I do like what they've done at linebacker. I think that you know, when you look at there's Jay and Brown is a guy, and then Rashid Evans is who they drafted in the first round. Those two guys that think are pretty good players for them, you have to worry about their defensive line in this regard, I think you have to worry about durl Casey, number

ninety nine. He's a defensive tackle. They'll move him around all over the place. He's going to be a difficult guy to block. You can kind of see him today. I'm gonna write I wrote about the weapons and the Nemesis and that guys, hope you check it out. Kind of a little idea what you're gonna get with Durll Casey. But he is a really, really good football player. He's probably their best defensive player. I think Kevin Bayard is I think is a is a really good player as

a safety. Everybody's familiar with Malcolm Butler, who was you know, was the corner at New England who made that play in the Super Bowl. But he had his struggles. So it's a defense. I feel like they can move the ball on though, just have to be able to block Casey. That's gonna be really, really important in this one. He must be pretty good if he starts in front of Benny Logan. Yeah, Benny Logan is not the minny Logan

that we knew in Philly's Yeah, yeah, exactly. But no, they've this is not as good as a defense as it played the last couple of weeks. And statistically they're they're very good. They they're right up there with the Cowboys in terms of points allowed. Yeah, they're eighteen point one per game, right behind Dallas. Yeah, I think they played some offensively challenged teams as well. But I watched

I've watched people move the ball on these guys. I mean I've gone back, I've watched Philly moved the ball and I'm a little bit I've watched Baltimore was able to do some good things against them, you know, moving the football. I think that it's going to be it's it's one of those it's gonna come down to again, their ability to block Casey and to make some plays in the secondary. I really think that that that with the addition of what you have with Cooper, they've got

a chance to make some place here. I really do believe that. All right, good stuff, Mick, I got a question for you. The last question didn't go over so well. I hope this one's yeah. Yeah, hopefully we're on the air tomorrow. But looking at positives, Okay, we've talked about the offensive line needs to improve. Yeah, what makes you feel good about this team? YouTube? Brian going to the final stretch here? Well, I think, I mean the obvious one is the defense. I think this defense has given

you an opportunity to win almost every game. The Seattle game, with a couple assignment breakdowns kind of got away, but it was still only twenty four points. So from a defensive standpoint, their ability to rotate guys. We'll see if Randy Gregory gets back to be able to be available to play this week, but you get David Irving out there. I just think that defensive front has been pretty darn good. The linebackers have been really good, and I think the

secondary has come on. So if they continue to play defense at this level, then they give this team a chance to win every game going forward. Yeah, I totally agree with Mickey on this, and you don't need a former scout to tell you this, and he's absolutely right. They will. They will be able. I believe they will be able to cover the Tennessee. You know, receivers in this game will recognize any of those games. Yeah, Sharpe's not a bad player for them. Davis was a guy

they picked. Corey Davis was a guy they picked pretty as a first round guy, very high, and he just hasn't had the production the numbers that they were talking about. But yeah, it's a group of guys of kind of who's who, not who's who of who are these guys? Kind of a thing. I think that the defense. I think the defense is really the king, the key thing to hang your hat on here and and it's and it's gonna be that they're gonna have. I think they're

gonna have another good game this week. I think they're gonna be able to hold Tennessee and check. It's gonna be up to the offense to make some things happen there. So that's what I'm kind of hopeful for. I'm hopefully the offense can find its traction running the football. I think they're gonna have to for these next not only this game, but for the other games, for that game in Philly, for the game in Atlanta, you know, they're gonna have to find a way to be better balanced

running the football and throwing the ball. And I think that's something they've got to get that Billy once again to just go out there and create holes for Ezekiel. They're gonna need him in these games. Now. You know, we're gonna have a lot of games coming really fast and furious here, and so you've got to be ready for everyone of them. But defensively, I think they need some help. They got to get some help from this office, I agree, and maybe Cooper's presence help Zeke as well

as Dak as well as the line. And I wrote in my three and alcolumn on the website if you want to check it out, as well as Brian and Mickey's stuff, I wrote about this defense and how you got to look at the defense in terms of why they made this trade too. Yeah, because here's a stat

I looked up. Since they went to sixteen game schedule in nineteen seventy eight, there's been ten times that the Cowboys are on a pace for allowing this average of seventeen and a half points a game ten times they've done it, and since it's been a sixteen game schedule, they made the playoffs every time. Yeah, they've made at least the NFC title game five times when they've done it.

I mean, it's this is a defense that's again, they're gonna be challenged, like you say, are gonna be challenged, But at the pace they're on, why wouldn't you go out and try to do something to help your offense now, because, yeah, you've got one side of the ball that's playing playoff football and maybe deep run playoff foak. I just wish they could find that whatever they were able to do with those first eight games of last season, And Mickey has brought that up a bunch, that's been a rallying

cry for him, and he's absolutely right about that. That's a twenty six, twenty seven, twenty eight point a game team. You get a defense it's playing. Even if the defense starts to give up twenty one points a game, you know you're still winning, you're still winning football games. You know you've got to find a way to help this defense. They're the one thing that they're the strength of your

team right now. But the offense with what they've just made, the addition that they made, and then potentially the switch at the offensive line coach. We'll see if that's the thing that puts him over the top. We'll find out. Let's go Mark Colombo. Yeah, yeah, no question. Cowboys back to practice on Thursday, Thursday, Friday and Saturday. Cut into our college football weekend. But that's okay. Now, the big game doesn't start till seven o'clock. Brian's a big game.

There are a lot of big games. The Michigan and Penn State will be a good game too. Yeah. By the way, is that a night game too? Three thirty might be home by then, yea. All right, Well, we'll be home tomorrow in studio for another edition. Bill, We'll be back. Thanks to Kent for producing. Thank you guys for joining us to see them all. This has been a production of Dallas Cowboys dot Com and the Dallas Cowboys Football Club.