Dallas Cowboys lose game and season: Week 16 Quick Takes

Beaten by their own mistakes, the Dallas Cowboys have no one to blame for yesterday’s loss but themselves.

The Dallas Cowboys couldn’t get out of their own way. It’s and accurate description to Sunday’s disaster against the Seattle Seahawks as well an accurate description to the season as a whole.

Injuries and suspensions plagued them before the season ever began. Throw in a significant regression from some key personnel, and you have what we have here today. Before we dive into the game tape deeper, let’s take a look at some Sport DFW Quick Takes:

Dink Kearney

Once again, the Dallas Cowboys lose in an important game, and do so in dramatic fashion. Except this time, this loss will keep the Cowboys out of the playoffs. What’s even sadder is how the Cowboys lost the game to the undermanned Seattle Seahawks.

The Seahawks were missing key players like Richard Sherman and Kam Chancellor, and Cliff Avril to injury. Bobby Wagner was playing but he had a bad hamstring. And the Seahawks offensive line is one of the worse in the NFL.

The Seahawks were a shell of the Super Bowl champs we have been accustomed to seeing. This was a game the Cowboys should’ve won handily. Instead, the offense looked beyond pathetic, the play calling was suspect at best, and Dak Prescott looked lost and weary.

Dak threw a pick-6 that turned the tide in the game. It was Dak’s fourth interception returned for a touchdown, the most in the NFL. Dak threw another interception because “can’t-catch-the-ball” Dez Bryant let the ball go through his hands for an easy interception.

Dak’s inability to make plays is one reason the Cowboys lost the game, but not as much as his propensity for turnovers. I believe Dak will get better but he has to make better throws and work on his accuracy. Also, Dak needs to use his legs more, similar to Russell Wilson. The fact the Cowboys couldn’t move the ball with Dak under center is not good, especially when the Cowboys needed to win this game to keep their playoffs hopes alive. This is the first time where I don’t blame the defense because the defense did their job and kept the Cowboys in the game.

Dez Bryant is an overrated wide receiver who needs to be either traded or have his salary reduced. His fumble led to a Seahawks score. If not for the Cowboys miscues, the Seahawks probably don’t score any points. This blames goes on the players, along with Jason Garrett and Scott Linehan.

I don’t know if these coaches come back next year, but someone needs to be held accountable for this uninspired performance. With the ball at the 2-yard line, why not hand the ball off to Zeke? This game was a reflection of the Cowboys’ season — missed opportunities at the wrong time.

Let’s look forward to the draft and pray for a coaching change.

Dan Ruppert

More from Sports Dallas Fort-Worth

This game has revealed a few things that need to be talked about, no matter how unpopular they might be. This was a failure by the coaching staff all the way around. When you have a first down at the 2 and never hand it off to Ezekiel Elliott you deserved to lose this game. This should force Jerry Jones to pull the trigger and fire the coaching staff. This has been the story of Garrett’s career in Dallas. Questionable challenges, bad playcalling, bad gameplans, no adjustments, poor clock management, and no killer instinct.

Another issue brought to light is the offense needs to be fixed beyond the coaching. Dez Bryant is no longer an elite receiver and the Cowboys do not have a wide receiver that can consistently get open.

This needs to be addressed in the offseason both in free agency as well as in the draft. The other issue is the offensive line needs to have better depth.

The last topic will be the most unpopular. Dak Prescott may not be the quarterback of the future. I am not saying replace him this offseason, but his accuracy has become a serious issue as has his inability to see the field. Too many times receivers have gotten open and he does not see them. He continually throws bad passes and if he does not work on that this offseason, he will need to be replaced. His lack of throwing the ball downfield has also made this offense look stagnant at times.

Next: Is Dez Bryant a Liability?

This game was a terrible game overall, but hopefully it creates some changes that need to happen for the Dallas Cowboys. Now we wait for week 17 to wrap up and the postseason to finish to see the future of this team. If I am Jerry Jones, I wouldn’t wait that long to let the staff go.

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