Week 4 Dallas Cowboys coaches film analysis

jonnydel · 2016-10-04T11:30:15-07:00

Happy October people!! Now I see why Green Day once said, "wake me up when September ends"..... After a 1/4 of the season one thing is abundantly clear - we're a bad team. We're not a team that's just, "a couple pieces away". We're a team that lacks talent in a lot of areas. We do the things that bad teams do and we don't do the things good teams do. We don't play complementary football. We can't overcome penalties. We don't take advantage of penalties on the other team. We don't make the crucial plays when they're there to be made. We can't consistently run the football. We can't defend the run. We can't make the big time throws when the plays are there. We can't defend the big throws when the shots are taken. While we had a tough opponent coming in, they were beatable. They were starting a rookie QB, didn't have their star WR, didn't have their starting LT and LG. They aren't known for having a great defense and were starting a corner who hadn't had an INT in 2 years. Yet, we couldn't take advantage. We lost 2 out 3 phases of the game and IMO it was a draw for special teams(They missed a FG, but we got pinned on our own 14 and shanked a punt right after the 2 minute warning for only 26 yards...). You can't win football games that way. This week, I'll start out by talking about the defense first because the biggest news to hit the faithful in a long time occurred - we lost Bowman for the year . Defense - The loss of Bowman can't be overstated. He was such a crucial part of what we did and he was a huge amount of deodorant on a defense that wasn't playing well already. He made up for so many plays that there's no way we can come close to replacing him. This may sound, "sky is falling" but I'll be shocked if our defense isn't in the bottom 5 in the league. What's even more disconcerting about that is that we have spent 5 of the last 6 first round picks on defense already. D-Line: Our D-line, again, had a manageable situation. They were playing a good OL - but one that was missing 2 key pieces. We should've been able to at least contain their run game. But, we continually got gashed. We played very poor gap integrity and weren't able to win the battle in the trenches at any point. The best run stops in the game came when Bowman was picking up the slack of our D-lineman. Armstead - While I know he's got a lot of defenders about his shoulder - his problems go beyond the shoulder. If it was just his shoulder than you wouldn't see him push the pocket like he does, at times. His problems are that he still plays too high, doesn't grasp the team defensive scheme and doesn't seem to be an every down player. I would be easier on the guy if he wasn't a mid-1st round pick. The long run Elliot had to set up the 1 yard go ahead TD, Armstead was so guilty, it was . It reminded me of something Albert Haynesworth or Suh would do when playing D-line and not wanting to play their assignment. There was another occasion where he took the wrong lane on a blitz and pretty much blocked his own guy and it gave up a big passing play. Purcell - dude had a bad game. I mean....bad.... He consistently allowed the center to get to the 2nd level and was neutralized on most of the Cowboys runs. We need Ian Williams back in a bad way, but we also need more depth behind him. Purcell doesn't seem to have the abilities to play the NT position at a starting level. He looks great in pre-season, but against starters on Sunday, he looks over-matched. Buckner - He's more capable than Armstead, but his technique needs a lot of work still - which I'm more ok with because he's a rookie. However, he's also a top 10 pick. It's one reason I'd prefer us to take some guys that were more NFL ready. If you look at Jarron Reed in Seattle out of Alabama - he was an early 2nd round pick IIRC this year and he's been more than capable when he's been in the game. Buckner may turn into all-pro but he's got to learn leverage, staying low, consistent hand placement and consistently 2-gap. Buckner and Armstead may start to shine more now that we'll have our top edge-rusher back, but I'm not holding my breath. We did a lot of things to try and scheme pressure in the game as we, again, really struggled to get to the passer. One thing JoN was trying to do was vary who was coming from where to confuse the O-line. It didn't work far too often and we often had our big guys(Buck and Stead) trying to take looping outside rushes - which is not their strength. If we were able to just line up 4 and rush the passer like we did in Fangio's day, I think you'd see more flashes from these guys. But, right now there's not threat that our edge guys are gonna disrupt the QB. ILB - This is gonna be a rough situation for the remainder of the season. Hodges was already benched. Considering I said last week that he played one of the worst games from a LB I'd seen in a while - not surprised one bit. Wilhoite played a little better, but he's still Wilhoite. He's almost like a Blaine Gabbert of LB's. He can do a few things from time to time to make you start to believe, but in the end is just, "meh". Doesn't make the big plays when they're there and plays too passively. Bellore got taken advantage of when he came in as well. The very first play after Bow went down the Cowboys ran right at Bellore for 20+. DB - I thought our DB's played fairly well. The biggest problem we had in the passing game was that we couldn't stop the run game consistently. Because we were struggling with gap integrity JoN had to rely on a lot of run blitzes to fill the gaps, which exposed the secondary. Offense - Overall, we're missing playmakers. Hyde is the only guy who's a consistent threat and teams are aware of it. The difficult thing with our offense is that we haven't been able to take advantage of spreading the defense out. We're facing 6-7 man fronts and unable to run against them consistently. We did far better than we did against the Panthers, but still couldn't consistently run the ball. When you can't run the football you need a stud at QB and some playmakers at WR - we have neither. Gabbert - Over the first 4 weeks my analysis has usually lined up a lot with what other analysts have said, including Kelly. However, I'm going to differ from Kelly on that INT throw from Gabbert - it wasn't just bad...it was awful. It's the kind of throw that has epitomized his career so far. He does enough things throughout a game to make you start to believe, but then, when the big chance is there and you have everything set for you, he can't do it. That should be a throw he makes 9/10 times. Instead, we've seen it the opposite. It's really a shame because he played pretty well throughout the rest of the game. He had some pinpoint throws and several of his incompletions his receivers did nothing to help him out. But, we don't have the kind of team that can mask any QB's deficiencies. I'm not ready to say he should be benched - especially not on a short week like this. we're not going to be in the playoffs no matter how good our offense is because our defense won't be able to get them back on the field. So, I don't see much of a point to it. If anything, it would still leave a plausible excuse for next year(the offense as a whole was still learning the system). So, IMO, let the Gabbert role til mid-year. Get a good, beyond doubt evaluation of him and if the next 1/4 of the year is like this, pull the plug. WR's - Kerley is still our best pass catching option - which is quite shocking considering we've known we needed playmakers at WR for a while. I don't see Patton ever being more than he is now. He just hasn't refined his route running. He's got the physical tools but IMO runs poor routes. His corner routes are terrible. He also slows down a lot when trying to make a catch over-the-shoulder. There was one play where he'd beat the corner on his initial cut, but once he turned back, he slowed down so much the corner ended up all over him and the pass looked over-thrown. Also, if T. Smith wants his QB to throw him the ball more, he's got to block more. Dude was the one that Kelly talked about in his presser when he said the QB runs, "didn't get a lot of help from blocking on the edge". Yeah...that was Torrey. O-line - I thought they played pretty well but had more lapses than I've seen from them. Brown almost looked fatigued, at times, and struggled with a lot of reach-blocks. Both Brown and Tiller are helped out in their pass-pro because they have quick feet and are huge - but it's been a bit of a liability in the run game. They haven't had the speed to get to the 2nd level or, like I said, get to their reach-blocks. Overall - It's gonna be a long season and we'll see if some of these young guys start to step up as the year goes along, kind of like our defense did last year, and the team as a whole begins to show more. If not, we're still gonna be at least 2 really good drafts away from being competitive.

Oct 4, 2016 at 11:32 AM

SoCold
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Oct 4, 2016 at 11:48 AM

Jcool
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"If you look at Jarron Reed in Seattle out of Alabama - he was an early 2nd round pick IIRC this year and he's been more than capable when he's been in the game."

Buckner has been the top rated rookie DL this year. So who cares what some 2nd round pick is doing on a top 5 defense. Keep that nonsense out out of the film review thread.

Oct 4, 2016 at 11:52 AM

itlynstalyn
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Posts: 38,533

Originally posted by Jcool:
"If you look at Jarron Reed in Seattle out of Alabama - he was an early 2nd round pick IIRC this year and he's been more than capable when he's been in the game."

Buckner has been the top rated rookie DL this year. So who cares what some 2nd round pick is doing on a top 5 defense. Keep that nonsense out out of the film review thread.

Lol, great contribution. JonnyDel doesn't just read PFF ratings to form his opinion, he actually watches tape. Unlike you. Probably best you let the people who actually know what they're talking about voice their opinions.

Oct 4, 2016 at 11:53 AM

Jcool
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Originally posted by itlynstalyn:
Lol, great contribution. JonnyDel doesn't just read PFF ratings to form his opinion, he actually watches tape. Unlike you. Probably best you let the people who actually know what they're talking about voice their opinions.

Might want to take your own advice.

Oct 4, 2016 at 11:54 AM

jonnydel
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Here was a play that highlights both Armstead and Purcell failing to maintain their gap integrity and letting O-lineman get to the 2nd level.

This was the play I mentioned above that set up Dal go ahead TD.

Dallas comes out in a 3 WR set and we counter with a "big Nickel" set. With 3 DL, 3 LB's and 5 DB's with the 5th DB being Tartt. We have a numbers advantage in the run game. That blue, "#7" should be red.... But, Dal has 6 blockers and we have 7 defenders. I've highlighted their gap assignments. The MLB when the D-line has an under tackle on the weakside has the strong side "A" gap. The rest you can see. Bethea doesn't help this play out any, but it's bad all around.

At the snap, Armstead doesn't read the play, he immediately shoots a gap that's not his with an inside swim move. Purcell, on the backside doesn't read the play as well and takes an inside move also and allows the center a free release to the 2nd level.

Bethea gets washed down and Armstead has taken himself out of the play and Bellore is facing the center immediately.

That is a hole, literally big enough to drive a truck through.

Bellore gets walled off by the center and it's a gain of +17 to set up at the 1 yard line.

Oct 4, 2016 at 11:54 AM

Young2Rice
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Posts: 71,701

Originally posted by Jcool:

Originally posted by itlynstalyn:
Lol, great contribution. JonnyDel doesn't just read PFF ratings to form his opinion, he actually watches tape. Unlike you. Probably best you let the people who actually know what they're talking about voice their opinions.

Might want to take your own advice.

He wasn't asking the OP to "Keep that nonsense out out of the film review thread."

How bout you start a thread with your own analysis.

[ Edited by Young2Rice on Oct 4, 2016 at 11:55 AM ]

Oct 4, 2016 at 11:55 AM

SoCold
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Why is Jcool telling people what to do?

Oct 4, 2016 at 11:55 AM

jonnydel
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Originally posted by Jcool:
"If you look at Jarron Reed in Seattle out of Alabama - he was an early 2nd round pick IIRC this year and he's been more than capable when he's been in the game."

Buckner has been the top rated rookie DL this year. So who cares what some 2nd round pick is doing on a top 5 defense. Keep that nonsense out out of the film review thread.

I'm basing that more on how NFL ready to play D-line they are. Buckner may turn out to be great, but it was an example of a guy who came out NFL ready.

Oct 4, 2016 at 11:56 AM

Young2Rice
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Originally posted by SoCold:
Why is Jcool telling people what to do?

I dunno. Especially to the film expert in his own thread.

lol

[ Edited by Young2Rice on Oct 4, 2016 at 11:56 AM ]

Oct 4, 2016 at 11:56 AM

#10

itlynstalyn
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Originally posted by SoCold:
Why is Jcool telling people what to do?

Lol, seriously. Especially to someone who actually takes the time to break down plays instead of just brainlessly posting tweets about players PFF ratings.

Oct 4, 2016 at 11:58 AM

#11

thl408
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Nice breakdown jd. Overall, I thought the gameplan on both sides of the ball was sound, but the execution is subpar and that points to the ability of the players. I know JoN has taken heat, but when players don't know where to line up, or which gap to attack, it comes down to the players imo. I suppose one can extend that and say that JoN is giving the players too much to think about, which can be a valid complaint, but the players did not execute their assignments well. With the injury to the QB of the defense (Bow), I can see the defensive scheme being simplified in the coming weeks as reserves are going to be asked to play more.

I saw that play where Armstead attacked the wrong shoulder of the OL and destroyed any chance of Bethea getting through. I can't imagine that AA is being taught to do that so that is a clear instance of not playing his assignment. I think all these variations of defensive fronts is confusing the defense and causing them to not know where to line up on a down to down basis. There was an Elliot run in the 3rd where, again, there was a huge bubble gap and Elliot ran though a lane that was about 4 yards wide, between the tackles! 49ers played a lot of man coverage, which makes sense considering DAL was missing its star playmaker and the 49ers thought they'd be able to match up well 1v1 across the board.

There was one play that occurred before the Tartt penalty that I thought gave DAL life and it was on a 1st & 20 where they ripped off 19 yards on a screen pass. That set the table for the Tartt penalty. The other momentum swing was Pinion's horrible punt at the end of the 1st half followed by the 49ers playing very soft man coverage allowing DAL to complete a series of 8 yard passes to get into FG range, which led to a touchdown to close the 1st half. That was a terrible sequence of events.

Offensively the 49ers opened so well and it came down to some key moments that caused future drives to fail. You mentioned how the 49ers don't play complimentary football from offense to defense and that's a glaring issue. The offense struggles to stay on the field because they can't run the ball. The defense can't off the field because they can't stop the run. There is such a disparity between how well the 49er OL pass blocks, and how poorly they run block. Tiller/Brown simply cannot block LBs. They are not athletic enough to chase and hit LBs at the second level and it is becoming a huge weakness. I had attributed it to playing good front 7s (SEA/CAR), but DAL is nowhere near those two teams and that duo still struggled. I'd like to see Garnett sub in for Tiller to see what he can add to the run game. Let's see the rookie already.

DAL came with a lot of man coverage and Gabbert's poor ball placement reared its ugly head once again. It's not nitpicking when a QB needs to place the ball on the proper shoulder on a short pass. That's the benefit of throwing short passes - they should be accurate. DAL baited Gabbert into keeping the ball on several zone read plays and that caused the 49ers to adjust by going with a two back set. Something that HaRo used to do to combat the same defensive concepts they saw.

Overall this was a game they could have won, but did not execute well for too long a stretch. Then again, that's what bad teams do, don't execute for an extended portion of the game.

Oct 4, 2016 at 11:59 AM

#12

951NINER
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Oct 4, 2016 at 12:08 PM

#13

jreff22
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Purcell is trash

Oct 4, 2016 at 12:13 PM

#14

jonnydel
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Here was another example from Purcell - this was early in the game and came to represent how we'd do. But, it also shows how Bow was a deodorant on those plays.

Here, the Cowboys are going to run the same play as earlier. This time, we're in zone coverage so the alignment is different. We're in an "even" set. 4-0-4 tech.

You see the center first hit Purcell, then pass him off to the LG. Wilhoite thinks Dials is giving up outside leverage and comes up to the "c" gap. However, Dial, as a 2 gapping 4 tech should have that gap, Wilhoite needs to trust the guy in front of him read inside out.

You see Purcell gets scoop blocked and the center gets to the 2nd level. Purcell just allowed himself to get blocked by a backup LG who came across his face and walled him off. He needs to recognize these stretch plays better. He should be taking that inside shoulder of the C and try and occupy both those blockers. That's what Aubrayo Franklin, Isaac Sopoaga and Ian Williams have all done. It's what NT's in a 3-4 have to do.

Because Wilhoite was unsure of where Dial would maintain he gets walled off and you see the running lane.

The difference is that Bow was able to defeat the center and helps make the tackle for an 8 yard gain in stead of 17.