The Way I See It

Here are some of the biggest problem spots for Dallas, according to Yours Truly.

Offensive line: This was a major problem in Week 1 against Washington, but with a few normal starters returning from injury in Week 2, I thought they looked fine against Chicago, and will probably be fine for the rest of the season. The black eye of the unit has GOT to be Alex Barron who, as everyone knows, was quite the goat in Week 1. I think I'm probably in the minority here, but I don't think Barron was given a hard enough time after the Redskins game. Excuses were made about how he was supposed to have blocking help against Orakpo on the final play of the game, and since he didn't have it, he was forced to hold the defender because he was outmatched. Sorry, but that's a complete load of hogwash. Maybe he was supposed to have help, but that's no excuse. Watch a replay. He didn't even make the slightest attempt at doing his job the proper way on that play. The instant the ball was snapped he was in the process of wrapping his arms around Orakpo's neck in the most pathetic display I've ever seen from a professional football player.

Special Teams: How can David Buehler still be the starting kicker for the Cowboys? My mom could match his field goal accuracy (and, no offense, but she doesn't have a whole lot of place-kicking experience). And it's not really his fault. He was signed as a kick-off specialist. Last season he put just about every kickoff he had into the end zone. The poor kid never thought he'd be kicking field goals in high-pressure situations for the most spotlighted team on the planet. I don't understand, as a coach or an owner you can really believe that this guy is the right choice for that position. Nick Folk wasn't this bad (and he was pretty darn bad). I also just read that in the portion of Cowboys practice that was open to the media today, Buehler was 1-for-5 on field goal kicks.

Defensive Line: Where are you guys? Seriously. You showed up for a couple of series in the Chicago game, but then you disappeared. I think a big piece of this was the Cowboys coaching issues (keep reading), but there is no way through two games the Dallas defensive front should look as inept as it has.

Coaching/Owning(?): This is the bottom line. The play call that gave the Redskins their only touchdown in Week 1, the lack of effectiveness of the offense, the fact that one of the best defenses (and especially defensive lines) in the league has been largely irrelevant through two games, the fact that David Buehler is still the starting kicker  -- all of these things point to two people: Jason Garrett and Wade Phillips. I realize that there aren't 32 elite head coaches in the league right now, but think about teams with talent who should win, and do win. The teams that come to my mind are New Orleans, Indianapolis, New England, and Pittsburgh. Do these teams win every week? No, but they almost never lose two games in a row. Why? Because their coaches make losing very uncomfortable, and because their coaches make sure the team is both mentally and physically prepared to take the field every week. When a team is only consistent in its inconsistency (looking like maybe the best team in the league one week, and the worst the next -- though so far this season it's only been "worst"), it's the mark of coaches that cannot adequately prepare the team week in and week out.