Takeaway Tuesday: Coaching Remains Cowboys Biggest Issue

It’s tough to imagine the Dallas Cowboys football team turning things around after their last performance against the Tennessee Titans in which they were outscored 28-14 by another mediocre NFL team. Hopes were up after Amari Cooper was brought in and Paul Alexander was fired as the OL coach, but once again, the Cowboys failed to deliver.

It’s a bad time to be a Cowboys’fan as it’s been for more than 20 years now.

Without further ado, here are this week’s takeaways!

Amari Cooper and Michael Gallup are a legit duo

As bad as this offense looked overall on the field last night, wide receivers had a great game. Specifically Amari Copper and Michael Gallup impressed as a duo. Gallup hadn’t seen many opportunities this season but Cooper’s presence on the field helped his case a lot. Allen Hurns ended the night with a touchdown, but Gallup should continue to get the most snaps between the two.

As for Cooper, he didn’t disappoint. His ability to consistently create separation last night should be promising for Cowboys Nation moving forward.

Dallas Cowboys HC Jason Garrett (Matthew Emmons / USA TODAY)

Coaching Remains Cowboys’ Biggest Issue

Scott Linehan and Jason Garrett are failing. Through nine weeks, they are the biggest issue on this football team. Despite trading their first rounder a couple of weeks ago for Cooper, the team found itself on third and sixteen twice on the game.

Both times they opted to throw a running back screen, like they’ve done frequently on third and long situations throughout the season. It’s pretty frustrating to give away a first rounder for a receiver to improve the passing game and watch them throw a screen pass twice in the same situation.

Let’s also talk about Ezekiel Elliott’s carries. Even though the offense made multiple mistakes on offense and the game felt like a huge loss, the game was at 21-14 in the third quarter. Down by only one possession in the third quarter, the Cowboys ran the ball twice the rest of the night.

There is no better skill position player on this offense than Ezekiel Elliott. Don’t give up on him when you’re down by seven! That’s on the offensive coordinator but at some point, the head coach needs to make things right as well. Neither did.

Sean Lee’s absence will surely hurt

During the first half of the season, Leighton Vander Esch rightfully made Cowboys Nation feel better about the idea of not having Lee on the field. In previous years, the defense would crumble entirely without their best linebacker. This wasn’t the case in 2018 before the Titans arrived at AT&T Stadium.

Lee will be out for a while and this defense will miss him on the field. Even if they have done better without him as of late, his presence on the field is needed when your offense isn’t working at all.