Both the Sunday and Monday night games this week were complete stinkers despite being games that featured seemingly even match-ups and tight spreads. On Sunday, we watched Rob Ryan’s New Orleans Saints defense completely devour one of the hottest teams and quarterbacks in the NFL with relative simplicity.
On Monday night, Ryan’s former employer, the Dallas Cowboys, were completely blasted in Chicago by a backup quarterback after being tied late in the second quarter. They fell by a final of 45-28 largely because Chicago played it safe for much of the fourth quarter. For the night, they gave up 7.1 YPP, witnessed four different Chicago receivers go for five catches or more, and yielded 4.9 YPC to the Bears’ ground game.
Over a decade or so ago, as the Tampa Bay Buccaneers prepared for a Super Bowl battle with the Oakland Raiders, current Dallas defensive coordinator Monte Kiffin was viewed as an icon. His “Tampa 2” defense had become a mess for offenses to try and deal with, and the Bucs looks invincible that season. Many often lump them into any discussion regarding greatest defenses of all time, and rightfully so.
Flash forward to 2013 and, while Kiffin is still miraculously employed, it’s hard to see why. Perhaps no family in the history of the game has benefited more from the work of one team as the Kiffins have. Monte’s 2002 Bucs were led by two of the game’s greatest players ever in Warren Sapp and Derrick Brooks. Their success in the early 2000’s in many ways embellished the Kiffin name, enabling both Monte and Lane to have little trouble in finding quality jobs, regardless of how the economy was doing.
While Sean Lee and DeMarcus Ware are good, they aren’t that good. Moreover, the hand checking rules at the line of scrimmage have been both altered by rule and called differently in general since the days in which Monte’s clubs prevailed with such success.
Gone are the days where Kiffin’s corners could completely harass the receiver for 7-8 yards prior to handing him off to safety coverage. The quarterback would have an extremely small window to get the ball to one of his primary targets, and pressure had typically already arrived. That’s simply not the case today.
Kiffin is trying to function within a completely different game today, and it’s safe to say the 73 year old is having trouble adapting. I’m a staunch supporter of his generation and old-timers in general. They helped forge this country into what it is and fought in wars for our survival. They simple don’t make them like they used to.
But when it comes to the world of NFL coaching, it’s difficult to really expect a man of Kiffin’s age to be able to continue success when you look at the limitations coaches have had when it comes to getting up there in age.
Kiffin has been blessed with some talent in Dallas. He has a pair of corners who many G.M.’s would salivate over in Brandon Carr and Morris Claiborne. He has a middle linebacker in Sean Lee who, when healthy, is as good and versatile in playing the position as perhaps any 4-3 MLB in the league. DeMarcus Ware grades out as an elite pass rusher as well, making it at least appear that this defense has the makings of a juggernaut.
While Dallas lost some key bodies to injury and other circumstances on the interior of their line, it can’t be used as an excuse. Yes, teams have been able to run successfully against them on first down which tends to soften up their secondary. But every team in the league deals with injuries, and Dallas has been pathetic in attempting to overcome them virtually every year since head man Jason Garrett took over.
Dallas sits at 7-6 and is likely headed toward yet another late season meltdown during which everyone in their organization will be questioned. Tony Romo’s leadership will be challenged while many will wonder if Dez Bryant is really “the guy” they want alongside Romo as this franchise continues to push back toward a playoff berth.
But, at some point, Jerry Jones has to wake up. Garrett has proven a serviceable interim coach, but the idea of hanging onto him after yet another mediocre season is comical. When you look at this team on paper, outside of a few positions, they have one of the best rosters in the entire league. I would place them into the top eight and, given the explosiveness of their passing game, they are a real threat to come from behind in virtually any spot.
Dallas still has a few weeks to salvage a season that could easily result in a playoff appearance should they be able to beat Philly in Week 17. Still, if this team wants to contend in an NFC which includes several extremely talented teams, they have to develop a much stronger defense. They have to get better bodies at the defensive tackle and safety positions, and they also need to develop a greater commitment to the ground game, something that could benefit their defense.
But, as usual, the bigger issue is at the top. It’s almost ridiculous to think that, in a league predicated so heavily on quarterback play, a team with a pretty good option at the position can continue to fall flat on it’s face so often. The mental tenacity this franchise continues to find elusive is the biggest thing lacking in my mind.
Hiring a name like Jon Gruden or Bill Cowher could alleviate that issue to some extent, but it has to be organization wide. It has to start at the top, and this management group has to get it together in their hiring decisions. The days of simply hiring big names and praying it all works out has to end.
