The Dallas Cowboys put up a good fight in the in-state battle against the Houston Texans, but unfortunately have to surrender any kind of bragging rights they had hoped to obtain. It was definitely a tough pill to swallow to see the game end the way it did in overtime, but then again, getting blown out wouldn’t have been any easier either.
We are through the first five weeks of the 2018 season and I still don’t really know what to make of this 2-3 Dallas Cowboys team. Maybe it’s my optimistic nature, but I think there are flashes here and there of something brewing. Unfortunately, it just hasn’t come to fruition just yet and might not. But, hope might be all we have to hang on to this season.
Luckily, this loss doesn’t hurt the Cowboys too much in the NFC East. They are still very much in contention to win the division, but definitely need to play better. With that in mind, let’s get to this week’s edition of The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly. Let me know what you think about what I put in each category in the comment section located at the end of the article.
The Good
Anytime the Dallas Cowboys lose, especially a close one like against the Houston Texans, it’s really difficult to find much good from the game. But, the one thing that really stood out Sunday night in prime time was how well Linebacker Jaylon Smith played. So, that’s what I’m going to go with the good for this week.
Smith’s stat line against the Texan reads 12 combined tackles, one quarterback sack, and one pass defensed. If for some reason you didn’t watch the game, those numbers don’t look overly impressive. But, what you would’ve seen is how important a lot of those tackles were. A lot of them were in clutch situations that could have ended up making this game more lopsided in the Texan’s favor.
Jaylon Smith continues to improve each game and is looking more and more like the LB he was at Notre Dame. It doesn’t matter if you’re a fan of the Cowboys are not, Smith is somebody you want to root for and it’s good to see him perform at a high level.
The Bad
Deciding what to put in this section was an easy decision for me quite honestly. I think the bad for the Dallas Cowboys against the Texans Sunday night was the coaching. I hate to beat a dead horse, but the playcalling was once again highly questionable. But, the thing that irked me more than that was Jason Garrett’s decision-making.
The first thing that really got under my skin was Garrett’s decision to challenge Wide Receiver Tavon Austin’s catch along the sideline. Throwing the red flag to challenge a completed catch that Austin clearly dropped was a bad decision and ended up costing the Cowboys a timeout. But, the worst decision Garrett made was not going for it on fourth and one in overtime.
The Texans offense was able to drive up and down the field pretty much at will the entire game and choosing to punt away on fourth and one meant Houston just needed a field goal to win. In that situation, with the game on the line, you absolutely have to play to win. That’s especially true when you have one of the best short yardage backs in the NFL. It’s a decision that quite possibly cost the Cowboys the game.
The Ugly
It was pretty easy for me to decide what to put in this category as well. For me, the Dallas Cowboys defense was the ugly against Houston Texans. I know some of you will disagree and say that they played pretty bad, but they are the sole reason the Cowboys were in this game to begin with because the offense did next to nothing.
Personally, I hate that “bend don’t break” mantra the Cowboys coaching staff likes to use. For me, it sounds like a copout. But I guess that would be the best way to describe the way they performed against the Houston Texans Sunday night. The Cowboys defense ended up giving up more than 400+ total yards to Deshaun Watson and Company, but only gave up one touchdown.
The Cowboys entire defensive unit played their hearts out against the Texans. I really thought they would be able to fluster Watson more with their pass rush, but that just wasn’t the case. I commend the way they played. I think it should have been enough to win the game, but when the offense and your head coach don’t live up to their end of the bargain, it makes it that much more difficult to win.
