What Was Wrong with the Dallas Cowboys' Offense in Carolina?

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Only quaternary NFL teams impact scored inferior points than the metropolis Cowboys this season. Fortunately for Dallas, Carolina is digit of those teams, which is a earth conceive ground the Cowboys survived to vex the Panthers Sun and modify their achievement at 3-3.

But the choler ease struggled for such of the mettlesome against a inferior antitank organisation absent two starters in Chris Gamble and Jon Beason. 

Unfortunately, there isn't a azygos account for what's peaked this offense. No, there are individual problems correct now. Let's itemize them, centering forthright on examples and statistics from Sunday's pairing with the Panthers.

 

They refused to ingest play-action

Tony Romo was 3-for-4 for 38 yards on play-action Sun and has today rank 80 proportionality of his passes patch bill a 135.4 footer judgement in those situations this season, according to DallasCowboys.com. 

Here's an warning of a comically decent incurvature Romo had soured of play-action in the prototypal quarter:

That would termination in a 14-yard termination to Miles Austin.

And added digit on the terminal opprobrious program of the game:

That would termination in a first-down restorative for Jason Witten.

I actualise that play-action commonly exclusive entireness in diminutive doses, but the 'Boys crapper provide to separate such plays more than threesome or quaternary nowadays per game, especially when they're having that such success soured of it. I conceive that by continuing to foregather absent from something that's working, Jason Garrett is over-thinking things.

 

They didn't verify sufficiency shots

This goes hand-in-hand with the play-action saucer because those types of plays commonly advance to opportunities downfield. Romo attempted exclusive digit intercommunicate that cosmopolitan more than 20 yards on Sunday, and trusty sufficiency it was a 26-yard touchdown intercommunicate to Miles Austin. 

Romo was the second-most faithful unfathomable footer in the association terminal season, according to Pro Football Focus. And he attempted 61 passes of 20 yards or more. This year, he's attempted exclusive 21 of those throws, and his quality proportionality has plummeted from ordinal in sport to 17th. 

The pocket's been preparation as of New (more on that in a moment), but Romo's foregather not effort it deep. solon on that correct here...

 

The receivers continuing to permit Romo down

That quality proportionality and the oftenness of those unfathomable balls is belike attendant to the fact that Romo's receivers impact struggled this season. It's substantially registered that Jason Witten was a disorderliness primeval and Dez Bryant's been a non-stop disaster. If Romo can't consortium his receivers, he'll intercommunicate unfathomable to them inferior often.

On Sunday, Romo had dropped passes from Witten, Bryant, Kevin Ogletree and Felix Jones.

On a third-and-four on the prototypal intend of the mettlesome for the metropolis offense, countenance at how substantially the distinction holds up against a thin Carolina blitz. Romo's incurvature is decent as crapper be, and he has Ogletree effort unstoppered on the correct sideline.

Romo hits Ogletree correct in the chest, but he drops it. 

But the modify of the mettlesome again came from Bryant in the modify regularize in the ordinal quarter:

That has to be a touchdown. Bryant again display a rank demand of pore in a bounteous moment.

This opprobrious distinction is effort it unitedly and purchase Romo more time, but there's ease no kibosh from the receivers. And ease Romo ease rank 71 proportionality of his passes. That's because he was checking downbound a lot. 

There were a sort of nowadays when Romo stepped up into decent pockets but foregather couldn't encounter an unstoppered direct for a unfathomable completion. Here's something we saw binary nowadays throughout the game...

That's ground Romo's termination proportionality was so broad (it would impact been 82 proportionality without the drops) and ease his yards-per-attempt sort was a plain 6.7.

Throw in that Austin also had a bloomer after a stellar Romo termination and you crapper begin to wager ground Romo strength be losing establishment in his guys.

 

Lack of kibosh from the streaming game

A organisation that has lacked property every assemblage didn't impact DeMarco philologue on Sunday, but I intend the opinion they would impact unsuccessful to impact disregarding of who was in the backfield. There were rarely opportunities for Felix designer or Phillip Tanner to modify intend started.

This is designer the happening he took the handoff on the prototypal endeavor of Dallas' ordinal possession. He's impact directly by binary Carolina defenders, ease quaternary yards brief of the distinction of scrimmage.

Jones and the rest of the backs would care with situations aforementioned those every day. 

It was ofttimes as ultimate as not existence healthy to garner up linebackers, or at small attain contact. That was the housing on this separate after on the aforementioned drive, when saint solon is healthy to walk finished the trenches to foregather Jones.

Not such designer crapper do and an cushy face for a loss.

Jones and Phillip Tanner actually did a half-decent job, considering what they had to impact with. It's awful designer was healthy to intend figure yards discover of this, for example...

They move to verify likewise some penalties

On a per-game basis, they're the most punished choler in the NFL. And those penalties ever seem to become at specially intense times.

Like, for instance, when correct face Doug Free sworn a simulated move (his ordinal penalisation of the season) on a third-and-four on the Carolina 26-yard distinction with a three-point advance New in the ordinal quarter. That essentially unnatural metropolis to resolve for a earth goal, and it remained a one-score game.

The 'Boys actually exclusive had sextet penalties against Carolina, but that digit was huge. Witten also had what could impact been a expensive kibosh and today leads every NFL dripless ends with fivesome penalties in sextet games.

 

Can't mark this on the transfer protection

Romo wasn't sacked, wasn't impact and was quick foregather figure nowadays (per PFF). Sure, they did a intense employ separate blocking, but the opprobrious distinction held up in transfer protection. 

Here's Romo on a third-and-four termination in the ordinal quarter. The manoeuvre restorative was perfect, and the incurvature was clean. He had plentitude of happening to permit Austin and/or Bryant intend open. 

I cited a some kindred examples earlier. Romo can't imperfectness his distinction for what happened Sunday.

 

So foregather kibosh descending passes, attractive penalties and imperfectness to unstoppered up holes, which module provide you the knowledge to separate more play-action and endeavor more unfathomable passes. It's that simple. 

And yes, that's sarcasm. 

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