Frisco, Texas – In my nearly 50 years of covering sports, I'm not sure if I've ever heard the word “comprehensive” associated with a discussion of football. It's not high school. It's not a university. It does not belong to the World Football League. Not in the USFL. It does not belong to the Arena Football League. And certainly not the NFL.
But 11 days ago, at the Senior Bowl in Mobile, Alabama, Cowboys owner Jerry Jones talked about how cruelly the 2023 season ended with a loss to Green Bay in the first round of the playoffs. The word “comprehensive'' was repeatedly brought into the discussion. Picking up the pieces that will face this franchise going forward.
And if the apple didn't fall too far from the tree, his son Stephen Jones, the Cowboys' chief operating officer and executive vice president of player personnel, has a history of ups and downs when it comes to player contracts and contracts. The word “comprehensive'' was incorporated into the discussion of overcoming the situation. Unrestricted free agent decision. The Cowboys feel like they need to improve on a 12-5 regular season that included winning the NFC East for the second time in three years and earning the No. 2 seed in the NFC Playoffs, but the Cowboys could not advance further in the playoffs than they have in the past 28 seasons. Not yet.
Jerry said: “But the important thing is that we all know there is room for improvement.” And while there's no arguing with that, it's very interesting when Jerry goes on to say, It has become a thing.
“At the end of the day, our plan is you have to take a look Overall Because right now we have some key players who are probably going to be in the top three on the team, who are automatically going to be in the top three. … And when you mention a contract, whether it's Duck's or Pollard's or Lamb's, when you mention a contract, you distort the situation.
“That photo is Overall, And you have to look at the whole landscape. Most of the time you won't be able to fit everything in, you won't have the space, so you will have to make adjustments. ”
Stephen Jones was then asked what “holistic'' meant to him, and he further emphasized, “When you have a complete picture of the team, answering questions specifically about the players.'' It's really hard. You have to do it.'' Making difficult decisions in one area may make you more proactive in other areas. Does it make us feel good in our minds about what makes us better? Not just repeating what we did in normal times. The season is over, but it's time to take the next step in the postseason.
“I think you have to think about it as a whole. You have to consider the draft, you have to look at the players you want to keep, the players you want to make difficult decisions on.”
And with that, Stephen brought up trade talk, like the Cowboys did last year when they acquired Stephen Gilmore and Brandin Cooks, saying, “When you put it all together, it's this…You have to look at the big picture. I would say it's a big thing.'' “Look at the painting, look at the work as a whole. You could call it comprehensive, but there are many terms for that.''
Are you starting to get an idea?
We now turn to Merriam-Webster for the definition of “holistic”: “Relating to or relating to a whole or complete system rather than the analysis, processing, or subdivision of its parts.”
Simply put, the Cowboys must analyze their entire team moving forward. There's no point in having 10 players in the Pro Bowl during the regular season and making the playoffs if you're just one or two linebackers short to play one of the top seven teams in the conference. Or you could go short at cornerback when you have to play a top player with a shoulder harness and change your defensive scheme because you're not confident in the next guy.
It's great that the Cowboys have a leading MVP candidate in Dak Prescott.
It's great that they have CeeDee Lamb, who is a top Offensive Player of the Year candidate.
The great thing is that we have Micah Parsons, who is a top Defensive Player of the Year candidate.
But did the Cowboys have enough soldiers to maintain a good running game and a well-regarded pass defense?
On top of that, the Cowboys are currently in the process of hiring a new defensive general, so to speak, and with news coming out of Super Bowl week in Las Vegas, the Cowboys are hiring a former longtime assistant and defensive coordinator for the Cowboys. is focused on. Mike Zimmer could be the perfect addition to what the Cowboys need. But this is the first contract they need to sign, and as of Friday afternoon they were still dotting the “I's” and crossing the “T's” before making personnel decisions.
He can then jump in to fill the defensive void that expanded in the playoffs. Because the Cowboys had up-and-coming Darron Brand at corner, but with the loss of Trevon Diggs early in the season and Gilmore's shoulder injury in the final game of the season, the Cowboys were really stuck at the cornerback position, which only hindered the playing zone. Was it deep enough? A game against the Packers?
They didn't, so Green Bay took advantage of that flaw.
It's great to have Parsons, but with the Cowboys lacking linebackers after losing Leighton Vander Esch early in the season, does he have a dilemma about whether he should play defensive end? ? Or should the Cowboys be a little short on defensive end with just DeMarcus Lawrence and a few rotation players and Micah should play linebacker?
A difficult problem that needs to be solved.
These two defensive deficiencies and the lack of depth at defensive tackle led to them entering the next season unable to stop the run, throwing for 266 yards against Buffalo, 222 yards against Arizona, and No. 143 to Green Bay.
And on offense, even though Pollard finished with the 12th most rushing yards in the NFL (1,005), he averaged only 4.0 yards per carry and the team's total rushing yards were just 4.1.
So it's no wonder Jerry Jones said during that interview, “We need to run the ball better, we need to stop the run better,” but he's serious about it. Those warts that were hidden while playing in lower conferences in the regular season always seem to be exposed at some point in the playoffs.
That's why the Cowboys have defeated the Rams (10-7), Seahawks (9-8), Eagles (11-6) and Lions to improve to a 4-5 record against teams that ended in wins. It wouldn't be too surprising if they did. 49ers (12-5), Eagles (11-6), Bills (11-6), Dolphins (11-6), and Packers (9-8). And when it comes to playing against payoff teams, the Cowboys are 3-5.
That's exactly why they'll be at home watching San Francisco take on Kansas City in Super Bowl III this weekend in Las Vegas, trying to finalize a deal with Zimmer to replace Dan Quinn. They have Dak's existing contract, Sheedy's current fifth-year option, the final year of Zach Martin's contract, Michael Gallup's contract, and Trevon Diggs' contract to avoid any looming salary cap headaches. Recognize that you will be faced with seeds. Not only that, but starters like Pollard, Gilmore, Tyler Biadasz, Tyron Smith, Jordan Lewis, Jonathan Hankins, and Jaylon Kearse, along with Dorrance Armstrong, Dante Fowler Jr., Rico Doodle, and Neville. All key contributors, such as Gallimore, will also be available for unlimited play. Free agent player.
Jerry Jones said, “We have to look at things like how do we manage the cap, where do we put our emphasis to spread the cap more,” and said it's great to have stars, but money especially doesn't balance out. I understand that it is better to allocate well. It helps you run the ball better and stop the run.
No matter how many outsiders think this team needs to be more physical, Hall of Fame candidate Darren Woodson recently explained in an interview in Las Vegas why the Cowboys can't get over the hump. He gave me a pretty good review and turned me down again.96.7 The Ticket on Sports Radio.
“That's all I can say,” Woodson said of the loss to Green Bay. “They couldn't control the line of scrimmage defensively. They're always in second-and-third, third-and-1 situations. And when you have moments like that and you can't control the line of scrimmage, If a linebacker gets blown off the ball, bad things are going to happen, especially in the playoffs when you're playing good teams.”
In fact, Woody went on a defensive rant.
“Something needs to happen up front with this defense,” Woodson said. “I think the interior of this defense, whether it's the tackles or the linebackers, the linebacker corps really needs to take a good look there. With that overview, we need to understand that, but that's not going to happen. It has to be and I’m going to do it.’ I don’t care who it is. It's going to be a rough stop because they don't have the right personnel right now.
“They're going to have to go into free agency and get some guys, tough guys. Sometimes you need guys that don't like the media. … He's tough, he yells a little bit. Yeah, I was like, 'There was a guy named Charles Haley who played with me, right? He brought a different vibe to the team. Not everyone liked Charles. But I knew on Sunday, hey, he was lights out. And he was going to bully people during the week, and that's the kind of linebacker that's needed there.
“What you need may not be the nicest guy who’s going to beat you up and give you some shit. Not all of them, but we need some of those guys. ”
here here. Big picture. Bring the team together.
And this comprehensive renovation begins with signing a contract with Zimmer.
