- Messages
- 2,711
- Reaction score
- 0
By Rick Gosselin , Staff Columnist Contact Rick Gosselinon Twitter
RickGosselinDMN
I spent 19 years as the NFL columnist for this newspaper, and there's one game that stands out above all others in the 400-plus games I attended during that stretch.
It was played in November 1997 between the Green Bay Packers and Colts at Indianapolis. The Packers were the defending NFL champions on their way to another Super Bowl that season. The Colts were 0-10 and playing a backup quarterback that day.
But Paul Justin, filling in for an injured Jim Harbaugh, outplayed Brett Favre at quarterback and the Colts prevailed, 41-38, on a field goal at the gun. It was a coaching victory, a gameplanning victory, by Lindy Infante and his staff. The Colts ran the ball, milked the clock and Justin played turnover-free football for the upset. I saw that day how coaching can make a difference and help a team win a game it has no business winning.
Coaching has not made a difference for the Cowboys this season.
As we sift through the wreckage of a 4-10 season -- the 15th non-playoff season in the 20 years since the Cowboys last won a Super Bowl -- we are left to wonder how a team can collapse from 12-4 to this in the span of 12 months.
It's convenient to blame the injury absence of Tony Romo, an MVP candidate a year ago when he won his first NFL passing title. The Cowboys were 3-1 with him this season and now 1-9 without him.
But there is a flaw in that logic.
The Cowboys were in position to win games without Romo. Several games, in fact.
Let's start by eliminating the losses to New England, Carolina and Green Bay. All were lopsided defeats to division leaders. The Patriots and Panthers figure to be the top seeds come playoff time and the Packers don't lose at home in December with Aaron Rodgers at quarterback (13-2). The Cowboys likely were going to lose those games with or without Romo.
That leaves seven other losses on the shoulders of backup quarterbacks. The Cowboys were ahead at halftime in five of those games and tied in another. In all seven of those defeats the Cowboys were either ahead or tied in the fourth quarter. But they couldn't close the deal. They didn't win any of them -- thus, 0-7.
Win four of those games and the Cowboys are 8-6 and sitting alone atop the division. Win three of them and the Cowboys are 7-7 and in control of their own playoff destiny. Win none of them and you have a fan base that is openly discussing the idea of tanking for the first overall draft pick next April.
The Cowboys led Atlanta 28-17 at half and entered the fourth quarter of their September game with a 28-25 lead. But the Falcons scored two touchdowns in the final 15 minutes to put the game away, 39-28. How did an offense that scored 28 points in the first half disappear after the intermission?
The Cowboys led the defending NFC champion Seattle Seahawks 12-10 with 6:41 remaining. But the Seahawks mounted a 17-play, 79-yard, game-winning, field-goal drive over the next six minutes. How did a defense that held Seattle to 244 yards in the opening 54 minutes wilt down the stretch?
The Cowboys led Tampa Bay 6-3 with four minutes remaining. But the Buccaneers mounted a 10-play, 56-yard drive with a rookie quarterback for the game-winning touchdown in the final minute. How did a defense that held the Buccaneers to a single field goal over the opening 56 minutes dissolve when it mattered most?
The Cowboys lost two other games in overtime to New Orleans and Philadelphia, each time on a defensive bust that allowed a long, game-winning touchdown. C.J. Spiller overmatched the linebacker coverage of rookie Damien Wilson for an 80-yard touchdown reception in the New Orleans overtime, and Jordan Matthews capitalized on a slip by rookie cornerback Byron Jones for a 41-yard TD catch in the Philadelphia overtime.
The other two fourth-quarter losses came on a special-teams bust against the Giants and another blown coverage assignment by Jones against the Jets.
After tying the Giants 20-20 with seven minutes remaining, Dwayne Harris returned the ensuing kickoff 100 yards for the game-winning touchdown for New York. After tying the Jets 16-16 with 1:55 left, Jones let Kembrell Thompkins escape down the victors' sideline for a 43-yard pass reception to the Dallas 26. That set up the game-winning field goal.
Players get paid to play games. Coaches get paid to win them. It's their job to put players in the best position to succeed. The proper play call, the proper substitution, the proper clock management, the strategic timeout -- it's the job of the coaching staff to find ways to win games. Regardless whom the quarterback is.
Jason Garrett and his staff have let this franchise down. The Cowboys needed answers this season, needed solutions, and this coaching staff had none. Any coach can win when he's dealt a hand of aces. The rest must play the hand they are dealt -- and find a way to win with it. It's their job.
RickGosselinDMNI spent 19 years as the NFL columnist for this newspaper, and there's one game that stands out above all others in the 400-plus games I attended during that stretch.
It was played in November 1997 between the Green Bay Packers and Colts at Indianapolis. The Packers were the defending NFL champions on their way to another Super Bowl that season. The Colts were 0-10 and playing a backup quarterback that day.
But Paul Justin, filling in for an injured Jim Harbaugh, outplayed Brett Favre at quarterback and the Colts prevailed, 41-38, on a field goal at the gun. It was a coaching victory, a gameplanning victory, by Lindy Infante and his staff. The Colts ran the ball, milked the clock and Justin played turnover-free football for the upset. I saw that day how coaching can make a difference and help a team win a game it has no business winning.
Coaching has not made a difference for the Cowboys this season.
As we sift through the wreckage of a 4-10 season -- the 15th non-playoff season in the 20 years since the Cowboys last won a Super Bowl -- we are left to wonder how a team can collapse from 12-4 to this in the span of 12 months.
It's convenient to blame the injury absence of Tony Romo, an MVP candidate a year ago when he won his first NFL passing title. The Cowboys were 3-1 with him this season and now 1-9 without him.
But there is a flaw in that logic.
The Cowboys were in position to win games without Romo. Several games, in fact.
Let's start by eliminating the losses to New England, Carolina and Green Bay. All were lopsided defeats to division leaders. The Patriots and Panthers figure to be the top seeds come playoff time and the Packers don't lose at home in December with Aaron Rodgers at quarterback (13-2). The Cowboys likely were going to lose those games with or without Romo.
That leaves seven other losses on the shoulders of backup quarterbacks. The Cowboys were ahead at halftime in five of those games and tied in another. In all seven of those defeats the Cowboys were either ahead or tied in the fourth quarter. But they couldn't close the deal. They didn't win any of them -- thus, 0-7.
Win four of those games and the Cowboys are 8-6 and sitting alone atop the division. Win three of them and the Cowboys are 7-7 and in control of their own playoff destiny. Win none of them and you have a fan base that is openly discussing the idea of tanking for the first overall draft pick next April.
The Cowboys led Atlanta 28-17 at half and entered the fourth quarter of their September game with a 28-25 lead. But the Falcons scored two touchdowns in the final 15 minutes to put the game away, 39-28. How did an offense that scored 28 points in the first half disappear after the intermission?
The Cowboys led the defending NFC champion Seattle Seahawks 12-10 with 6:41 remaining. But the Seahawks mounted a 17-play, 79-yard, game-winning, field-goal drive over the next six minutes. How did a defense that held Seattle to 244 yards in the opening 54 minutes wilt down the stretch?
The Cowboys led Tampa Bay 6-3 with four minutes remaining. But the Buccaneers mounted a 10-play, 56-yard drive with a rookie quarterback for the game-winning touchdown in the final minute. How did a defense that held the Buccaneers to a single field goal over the opening 56 minutes dissolve when it mattered most?
The Cowboys lost two other games in overtime to New Orleans and Philadelphia, each time on a defensive bust that allowed a long, game-winning touchdown. C.J. Spiller overmatched the linebacker coverage of rookie Damien Wilson for an 80-yard touchdown reception in the New Orleans overtime, and Jordan Matthews capitalized on a slip by rookie cornerback Byron Jones for a 41-yard TD catch in the Philadelphia overtime.
The other two fourth-quarter losses came on a special-teams bust against the Giants and another blown coverage assignment by Jones against the Jets.
After tying the Giants 20-20 with seven minutes remaining, Dwayne Harris returned the ensuing kickoff 100 yards for the game-winning touchdown for New York. After tying the Jets 16-16 with 1:55 left, Jones let Kembrell Thompkins escape down the victors' sideline for a 43-yard pass reception to the Dallas 26. That set up the game-winning field goal.
Players get paid to play games. Coaches get paid to win them. It's their job to put players in the best position to succeed. The proper play call, the proper substitution, the proper clock management, the strategic timeout -- it's the job of the coaching staff to find ways to win games. Regardless whom the quarterback is.
Jason Garrett and his staff have let this franchise down. The Cowboys needed answers this season, needed solutions, and this coaching staff had none. Any coach can win when he's dealt a hand of aces. The rest must play the hand they are dealt -- and find a way to win with it. It's their job.
