There's a ton of blame to go around after the Dallas Cowboys' loss in Week 3. No matter who you have your pitchfork pointed at, though, this defeat falls on everyone's shoulders.
Dallas was lackadaisical across the board facing an inferior opponent, and it cost them. However, they can use this experience to learn and get better. With that in mind, here are three mistakes they cannot repeat in Week 4.
Mistakes Cowboys Can't Repeat vs. Patriots in Week 4
1. Being Sloppy and Drawing Penalties
Week 3 was a whistle-fest for the Cowboys. While Dallas did receive a few unjust calls, the team still had some unforced errors that didn't make life any easier.
A trio of first-half penalties stick out as plays absolute killers. First there was Daron Bland's pass-inference call that gifted the Cardinals 25 yards, taking them from their 35 to Dallas' 43. That serious boost in field position helped Arizona cash in five plays later with a touchdown to take an early 9-0 lead.
One drive later, the Cowboys shot themselves in the foot again. This time it was Jourdan lewis, whose defensive holding penalty negated a stop on 3rd-and-11, providing the Cards another set of downs when they should've been punting. It only two Arizona two plays to score another touchdown as Rondale Moore scampered 45 yards to begin the second quarter.
Dallas' sloppy play burned the team to close the first half as well. On the team's last possession of the second quarter, CeeDee Lamb hauled in a nice 12-yard reception, but an offensive pass interference call on him backed the Cowboys into 1st-and-20.
Unsurprisingly, the offense struggled to convert this and was forced to punt. The Cardinals then had enough time on the clock to kick another field goal, giving Arizona a 21-10 lead and all of the momentum going into halftime.
In total, Mike McCarthy's squad was called for a whopping 13 penalties and lost 107 yards. Even if there's a couple questionable flags in there, Dallas' execution simply wasn't on point, and it allowed a less-talented team to upset them. They run the same risk if they give Bill Belichick's struggling side more chances than they deserve.
2. Easing Up on Run Defense
One unfortunate theme from Cowboys players during Week 3 postgame interviews was them admitting they didn't take the Cardinals as a serious threat. That led to the silly mistakes, poor execution and a very preventable loss.
An area Dallas clearly slacked off against Arizona was run defense. This usually stout unit limited the ground game to begin the year, holding the New York Giants and Jets to 186 yards combined over the first two games.
The Cardinals, however, ran all over Dan Quinn's defense with little trouble. They racked up a staggering 222 rushing yards against the Cowboys. Most disappointingly, Dallas couldn't stop the run no matter where it came from.
Running back James Conner paced Arizona with 98 yards, but quarterback Josh Dobbs (55 yards) broke off several big runs that helped keep the Cards in it, and wide receiver/RB Rondale Moore had his highlight-reel 45-yard TD score while lined up in the backfield.
If New England is to upset Dallas, they're going to do it behind their run game. Former Cowboy Ezekiel Elliott is coming off of his best performance of the season, giving him plenty of positive momentum heading into a revenge game. Meanwhile, everyone is just waiting for dual threat Rhamondre Stevenson to finally break out, and he could certainly do that if the Cowboys' trenches come out less than 100% engaged again.
It's time for Dallas' defense to find its hunger again after attacking every ball carrier they faced over the first two weeks.
3. Failing to Convert in the Red Zone
Everyone around the Cowboys knows Week 3's red zone inefficiency simply can't happen again. Coaches said it, players said, and now it's time to see some meaningful changes.
Dallas was a disastrous 1-5 in this key are against Arizona, which doomed the team in a contest where little went their way. Aside from Dak Prescott finding Rico Dowdle for a 15-yard score in the second quarter, the Cowboys either came up empty handed, turned the ball over, or were forced to settle for a field goal the four other times they were in prime field position.
That's not going to be good enough to beat even the lowliest of teams, and the Cardinals proved that. Maybe an outside move can help, but this still ultimately falls on McCarthy as play-caller to set his players up better when a touchdown is in reach.
A Belichick-coached team isn't going to give up scoring opportunities easily, so Dallas needs to take advantage whenever it is within reach of the pylons. Otherwise, the Cowboys may find themselves in another game that has no business being close.
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