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Taylor: At times, Cowboys were 'soft as bathroom tissue'; Jason Garrett must toughen them
Jean-Jacques Taylor
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ARLINGTON – The Cowboys, at times this season, were soft as bathroom tissue.
Physically and mentally. We all saw it.
How else do you describe a club that was 0-9 when trailing after three quarters and will be remembered by many as the most disappointing team in the franchise's illustrious history?
The Cowboys' physical softness showed in their inability to consistently convert short-yardage situations inside the opponents' 20, and in the way teams beat them up in the fourth quarter, outscoring the Cowboys 126-111.
Dallas' mental softness manifested itself during the three games in the middle of the season when the Cowboys quit, forcing Jerry Jones to fire his coach in midseason for the first time in franchise history.
Jason Garrett watched the debacle from the sideline. He knows these Cowboys, as currently constructed, lack toughness. His actions during his first week as interim coach revealed as much.
Garrett quickly instituted a new practice regimen, requiring the players to practice in pads at least once a week because he believes that football is a tough, physical game and that players develop those characteristics during physical practices.
The tougher, more physical team wins most weeks. It's not that complicated.
Another subtle thing Garrett did was ask the public relations department to stop mass-producing the daily press clippings – a packet of photocopies of every newspaper or internet article about the Cowboys from throughout the country.
He understands this team has too many players who let a negative headline, article or quote distract them, even for a moment, from their daily focus. Of course, players can still find out what's being written about them – they all have smart phones, iPads, computers, wives, girlfriends and family members to keep them informed – but there's no need to hand-deliver it to them.
Don't let Garrett's baby face, low-key demeanor and shy smile fool you. The guy who served as the Cowboys' offensive coordinator since 2007 is not the guy who's the eighth coach in franchise history.
This guy is edgier, more forceful.
He's nearly as much a control freak as Nick Saban or Bill Parcells, guys under whom Garrett has worked, except he's a little more refined. Clearly, he's trying to create the same controlled atmosphere those coaches did because he believes it's conducive to staying in the moment, not living in the past or thinking about the future. He views that as the key to winning football games.
This team has holes, no doubt. We saw them weekly.
But it's lacking more in the way of intangibles than it is talent. Smart, talented teams that play as hard as they can for four quarters each week can make up for talent deficiencies. The key is to get your team to play as close as it can to its potential each week.
That's why Garrett constantly talks about the process of winning, stacking one good day on top of another during the course of a week, a month and a season. It's why he talks so much about fighting through the adversity of the game and moving on to the next play, whether the previous one was good or bad.
It's why he says football is a hard game, and why he says training camp will not have the day-spa atmosphere it did last season.
The process of forging a physically and mentally tough team will continue with the additions Garrett makes to the coaching staff. He must hire assistants who will hold players accountable for their performance and eliminate gray areas, just like he does.
Jerry is giving him an opportunity to hire his own staff – what a novel concept – so there will be no excuse for Garrett not hiring like-minded assistants.
The best football teams live in a world of black and white, where ambiguity about the rules or who's in charge doesn't exist.
The transformation of the Cowboys has begun. Again.
Garrett's changing the environment. He must, if he's going to succeed, because the Cowboys were too soft last season.
• • •
Jean-Jacques Taylor
Archive | Bio | E-mail
ARLINGTON – The Cowboys, at times this season, were soft as bathroom tissue.
Physically and mentally. We all saw it.
How else do you describe a club that was 0-9 when trailing after three quarters and will be remembered by many as the most disappointing team in the franchise's illustrious history?
The Cowboys' physical softness showed in their inability to consistently convert short-yardage situations inside the opponents' 20, and in the way teams beat them up in the fourth quarter, outscoring the Cowboys 126-111.
Dallas' mental softness manifested itself during the three games in the middle of the season when the Cowboys quit, forcing Jerry Jones to fire his coach in midseason for the first time in franchise history.
Jason Garrett watched the debacle from the sideline. He knows these Cowboys, as currently constructed, lack toughness. His actions during his first week as interim coach revealed as much.
Garrett quickly instituted a new practice regimen, requiring the players to practice in pads at least once a week because he believes that football is a tough, physical game and that players develop those characteristics during physical practices.
The tougher, more physical team wins most weeks. It's not that complicated.
Another subtle thing Garrett did was ask the public relations department to stop mass-producing the daily press clippings – a packet of photocopies of every newspaper or internet article about the Cowboys from throughout the country.
He understands this team has too many players who let a negative headline, article or quote distract them, even for a moment, from their daily focus. Of course, players can still find out what's being written about them – they all have smart phones, iPads, computers, wives, girlfriends and family members to keep them informed – but there's no need to hand-deliver it to them.
Don't let Garrett's baby face, low-key demeanor and shy smile fool you. The guy who served as the Cowboys' offensive coordinator since 2007 is not the guy who's the eighth coach in franchise history.
This guy is edgier, more forceful.
He's nearly as much a control freak as Nick Saban or Bill Parcells, guys under whom Garrett has worked, except he's a little more refined. Clearly, he's trying to create the same controlled atmosphere those coaches did because he believes it's conducive to staying in the moment, not living in the past or thinking about the future. He views that as the key to winning football games.
This team has holes, no doubt. We saw them weekly.
But it's lacking more in the way of intangibles than it is talent. Smart, talented teams that play as hard as they can for four quarters each week can make up for talent deficiencies. The key is to get your team to play as close as it can to its potential each week.
That's why Garrett constantly talks about the process of winning, stacking one good day on top of another during the course of a week, a month and a season. It's why he talks so much about fighting through the adversity of the game and moving on to the next play, whether the previous one was good or bad.
It's why he says football is a hard game, and why he says training camp will not have the day-spa atmosphere it did last season.
The process of forging a physically and mentally tough team will continue with the additions Garrett makes to the coaching staff. He must hire assistants who will hold players accountable for their performance and eliminate gray areas, just like he does.
Jerry is giving him an opportunity to hire his own staff – what a novel concept – so there will be no excuse for Garrett not hiring like-minded assistants.
The best football teams live in a world of black and white, where ambiguity about the rules or who's in charge doesn't exist.
The transformation of the Cowboys has begun. Again.
Garrett's changing the environment. He must, if he's going to succeed, because the Cowboys were too soft last season.
• • •
