It’s the wake of a close Cowboys loss. Worse, it’s the wake after a close Cowboys playoff loss, a 23-17 defeat to the 49ers, and the familiarity of the disappointment have sent segments of the fan base looking for easy scapegoats and quick fixes towards a better 2022.
Fire the head coach! Fire the offensive coordinator! Change the culture! Trade the quarterback!
All have some merit, and there’s an abundance of vitriol devoted by the faithful towards the last drive, which ended with the clock striking 0:00 as Dak Prescott tried in vain to spike the ball, allowing one final throw into the end zone.
Tactical critiques miss the mark, I believe. Sure, there are plenty of mistakes to parse, from Kellen Moore and Mike McCarthy, and even from Dan Quinn’s defense. All contributed to a 14-penalty abomination that kept Dallas from seriously challenging for the win.
That said, I think those critiques miss a much bigger problem. Sure, Moore and McCarthy might have called the end game differently. Sure, Jerry Jones would have closed the curtains in the sun end zone and helped his offense jump start its sputtering self just before the half.
Even had the Cowboys found a way to pull a playoff win away from their many miscues, they would be facing a constant shortcoming that would make them certain underdogs to Tampa Bay, one that must be addressed if the organization wants to improve next season and not backslide into the 8-8 maw.
Their offensive line was manhandled by the 49ers defensive front, And this mismatch persisted for four quarters, even after San Francisco’s starting defensive ends left the game with injuries and the middle linebacker limped off the field with a knee injury.
“We have to do better,” said right guard Zack Martin after the loss. But looking at this contest, and every contest since Dallas beat Minnesota on the last day of October, the most apt question should be, can they do better?
I’m skeptical. And if the Cowboys brass deceives itself into thinking it can, a playoff berth next year is far from certain.
Leaning on the past, living in the past
It’s easy to point a finger at left guard Connor Williams, who ended a poor year with the poorest performance on the line. The 49ers targeted him from the onset. Nick Bosa blew past him on a stunt for a sack on Dallas’ opening drive and various Niners tackles beat him with power moves and swim moves later.
In fairness to him, none of his line mates distinguished themselves on Sunday. The 49ers simply out-muscled the Cowboys’ line. They shut down Dallas inside runs and kept Prescott from finding any confidence in the pocket.
The completeness of the whipping suggests we may have seen the twilight of the great line Dallas built in the early ’10s.
Recall that Dallas has had three decorated lines in the Jerry Jones era. The first, the storied “Great Wall of Dallas” was a collection of massive misfits, holdovers from Tom Landry’s final years (Mark Tuinei and Nate Newton) select picks from Jimmy Johnson’s early drafts (Mark Stepnoski and Erik Williams) and Jerry’s finest pick from the mid-’90s (Larry Allen). None of these players were first-round selections but they cohered with John Gesek and free-agent pickup Ray Donaldson to form colossus lines.
In 1994 and 1995 six different linemen made the Pro Bowl. The entire ’95 line earned the accolade.
Then, the line aged, and as it declined, so did the Cowboys’ fortunes. When Bill Parcells failed to restock it in the early ’00s through the draft, he turned to free agency. In came Leonard Davis, Kyle Kosier and Marco Rivera to bolster the guards. They combined with Flozell Adams, Marc Colombo and Andre Gurode to give Tony Romo and his running backs a bully-boy line.
Between 2006 and 2009 they made three trips to the playoffs. But in each campaign, the aging, store-bought line faded in December. They collapsed in 2008 and Adams knee injury early in the ’09 playoff loss to Minnesota saw the game snowball in the Vikings favor. Their uniform unraveling in 2010 cost Wade Phillips his job.
(AP Photo/Bruce Kluckhohn)
2011-2014: Getting the Line Back to Where It Once Belonged
The Cowboys had neglected their line and they lost their offensive swagger and identity in the process. The team did not devote first-round picks to the unit and relied on spectacular (Allen) and solid (Adams and Gurode) second-round picks to give them a talent base.
When he took over as head coach, Jason Garrett made rebuilding the line the key to Dallas’ resurgence. He needed to protect Tony Romo and re-establish a power-ball ID.
His first first-round pick was USC tackle Tyron Smith, a 20 year old human spider with 36-inch arms. He played his rookie season at right tackle, then flipped positions with Doug Free. He’s been a perennial Pro Bowler ever since.
In 2013 Dallas took a beating from draftniks when it moved down 13 spots from 18th to 31st and picked Wisconsin center Travis Frederick. The Cowboys got the last laugh when Frederick, ripped as a fourth-round talent by some pundits on draft night, made the All-Rookie team.
The following season Dallas spent another first rounder on Notre Dame left tackle Zack Martin. He was moved to right guard and earned the starting job on Day 1 of camp.
Those three first rounders formed the core of Dallas next dominant line. They rolled the Cowboys into the 2014 playoffs, helping DeMarco Murray win the rushing title. They paved lanes for rookie Ezekiel Elliott two seasons later and helped fellow rookie Dak Prescott guide the team to a 13-3 record.
Then, the unit started to fray. Smith missed three games in 2017, most of a fourth and parts of three others and Prescott was battered in the process.
The core took its first extended hit in 2018 when Frederick was diagnosed with Guillain-Barre syndome. He made a game return in 2019 but was not the same player and retired after that season.
In the interim Smith has suffered neck and ankle problems, which have reduced his game.
Matthew Emmons-USA TODAY Sports
Time for a recharge
Smith appeared to have regained his form after off-season neck surgery but he suffered an ankle injury during the win over the New England Patriots in late October and re-injured the ankle shortly after returning to the lineup. On Sunday, he was a shell of his former self. His power was negated by his bad wheel and by a recent stint on the COVID list.
A line that had three perennial Pro Bowlers between for the middle part of the decade has been reduced to one. Zack Martin made First-Team All-Pro this season but none of his line mates approached his level.
(AP Photo/Brandon Wade)
Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports
That means the Cowboys will have some hard lessons to ask.
Martin has right guard and second-year man Terrence Steele played a power right tackle when Collins was out.
The left side is another story.
Smith’s best days appear to be behind him and Dallas learned that neither of its left guard, Connors Williams and McGovern, are passable options. Williams can pull, but he’s always been undersized and struggles against power opponents. McGovern lacks Williams mobility and struggled as much if not more against shifty rushers.
Center Tyler Biadasz splits critics. He improved as the season progressed but also has anchor issues. He’s not an in-prime Frederick.
With so much cap space invested in Prescott and Elliott and Amari Cooper, the Cowboys are committing offensive malpractice if they don’t improve the line in front of them.
The ’10s line was great, but San Francisco may well have drawn the curtain on its run.
With so much veteran talent on that side of the ball, this off-season is no time for sentiment.
1
1