Cowboys: Jason Garrett A Huge Disappointment

Dallas Cowboys head coach Jason Garrett is having his worst year in coaching, a major disappointment.

When the Dallas Cowboys removed the interim tag and named Jason Garrett the head coach of America’s Team, I thought owner Jerry Jones had made a wise decision. Considering the Cowboys started out of the the gate at 1-7 back in 2010, Garrett finished  the season strong with a respectable 5-3 record and won back the locker room.

In Garrett’s first full season (2011) as the Cowboys head coach, he made several first-year head coaching mistakes. For example, Garrett was notorious for poor clock management and not having the right personnel on the field in key situations.

In fact, a loss to the Arizona Cardinals that season can be attributed to one of Garrett’s rookie mistakes. He made plenty of blunders that year. However, Garrett put the Cowboys in position to win the NFC East title in the season finale against the New York Giants.

Of course, the Cowboys lost that game to their hated rival, but Garrett proved he belonged in the NFL as a head coach because of coaching acumen. He guided the Cowboys to an 8-8 season with a mediocre defense and a putrid secondary.

Remember how then Cowboys defensive back Terrence Newman got torched by Giants wide receiver Victor Cruz in that winner take all game? That’s why the Cowboys moved up to draft LSU All American defensive back Morris Claiborne in the 2012 NFL Draft.

That’s a different topic for a different day, but that was one of several issues Garrett had to deal with while building the Cowboys into a contender.

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The 2011 season would be the first of three straight 8-8 seasons for Garrett. The Cowboys lost three straight season finales to their divisional rivals, the New York Giants, the Washington Redskins, and the Philadelphia Eagles.

For three consecutive seasons, Garrett had the Cowboys in position to win the NFC East division and host a playoff game. The Cowboys hadn’t been in that position since their last Super Bowl dynasty of the 1990s.

The only problem I saw with Garrett’s coaching was being too conservative, always coaching not to lose instead coaching to win the game.

Despite the fact that those Cowboys teams were depleted with injuries to key players on both sides of the ball, Garrett had the Cowboys in position to win the division every single year. Garrett was finding ways to keep the Cowboys competitive.

Garrett started to evolve as a head coach, perhaps proven by his support for drafting offensive tackle Tyron Smith, center Travis Frederick, and Zack Martin to protect franchise quarterback Tony Romo. Finally, the Cowboys had an identity and a fully obvious first-round draft strategy.

No wonder Jones praised Garrett for his coaching ability.

That belief came to fruition in 2014 when Garrett took the Cowboys to a 12-4 regular season record. Dallas finally won the NFC East title and a playoff game over the Detroit Lions. If not for the officials ruling a non-catch on wide receiver Dez Bryant in the divisional playoff game at Green Bay, Garrett would have led the Cowboys to their first NFC Championship game since 1995.

Ironically, that’s the last year the Cowboys won the Super Bowl.

In 2014, Garrett pushed all the right buttons and made all the right decisions to get the Cowboys to a winning season. First of all, Garrett made a commitment to running the ball, which protected Romo, sustained long drives and kept the Cowboys vulnerable defense off the field.

The 2015 season looked bright for the Cowboys, with several NFL experts predicting a Super Bowl berth.

Finally, the Cowboys had found their coach, the new Tom Landry.

That prediction changed when Romo and Bryant were lost to injury. Bryant would miss five games and Romo would miss seven games, with the latter set to return on November 22 against the Miami Dolphins.

Garrett has guided the Cowboys to a seven game losing streak in the absence of Romo. That is absolutely stunning.

What happened to the coach that guided this team to a 12-4 record? Where is the coach who has had the Cowboys in position to win the NFC East four years in a row?

Where is the coach who came up with the slogan, “Finish The Fight?”

Where is the coach who did more with less?

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Seriously, where is he? Can someone call the Texas Rangers and put in a missing person’s report?

Everyone knew the Cowboys would struggle without Romo as the starting quarterback. No one expected the Cowboys to lose seven games in a row, the last one to the lowly Tampa Bay Buccaneers. No excuse for that lost.

Garrett did not win one measly game without Romo. Garrett didn’t change anything from week to week, but only produced the same bland and predictable offense to go with an unpredictable and mediocre defense.

Garrett didn’t motivate the players or hold them accountable for ridiculous and untimely penalties. The worst penalty was committed by safety Jeff Heath in the closing seconds against the Bucs.

Heath was called for holding after the defense recovered Buccaneers quarterback Jameis Winston’s fumble in the end zone. That recovery would have ended the game.

Just like the previous six losses, there were several opportunities for Garrett to make in game changes. As a result, Garrett stood pat and watched the Cowboys lose in heartbreaking fashion.

Disappointment is an understatement for the way Garrett has coached this year. No one expected the Cowboys to win seven straight games without Romo. It’s amazing how Garrett went 5-3 back in 2010 without Romo but couldn’t muster one victory this time around.

Everyone expected a few victories, like a win over the Atlanta Falcons and the Buccaneers. Both games were beyond winnable.

Actually, the Cowboys were in position to win all of their games, except the New England Patriots game.

Next: Cowboys: Jason Garrett Should Be Fired

Even with Romo playing Sunday, Garrett’s inept coaching has ruined the  Cowboys chances of making the playoffs, regardless of how weak the NFC East may be.

That reason alone is a major disappointment of head coach Jason Garrett.