DENVER — After the Dallas Cowboys‘ 44-24 loss to the Denver Broncos on Sunday, messages were delivered to the team by the head coach, the quarterback and one of its most veteran players.
At 3-4-1, the Cowboys are at a critical moment in their season. It is no longer early in the year. They can no longer say there is plenty of time. They are 10th in the NFC playoff chase at the moment and have lost to the two teams directly in front of them, the Chicago Bears and Carolina Panthers.
The first person to speak was Brian Schottenheimer, the head coach.
“I said to them, ‘If anybody feels like you coached or played well today, raise your hand,’ and there was not a single hand that went up,” Schottenheimer told reporters. “I said, ‘OK, I agree with that.’ I said, ‘We have to learn from it. We have to fix it.'”
Next was Dak Prescott, who brought players together for a quick thought.
“Just the old saying: ‘Adversity reveals character and also builds it,'” the quarterback said. “And so, who are we? And I just challenged everybody, myself included, to look in the mirror. Are we giving enough? Are you giving enough through the week, through your preparation, and particularly on game day, to make sure that you’re giving your best performance. I know the coaches. I know the men in that building. I know how pissed we all are from this, and I know the way we’re going to get back to work and be ready for Monday night.
“So it’s a hell of a business we’re in. It’s a tough business, but I wouldn’t choose anything else. Wouldn’t choose any other men than those guys in that locker room and those coaches. We’re going to come together and we’re going to make sure this doesn’t turn into two games. And more importantly, we need to find a way to get a [winning] streak going.”
The next was an informal meeting between Prescott and veteran defensive end Jadeveon Clowney. One of the reasons Clowney, 32, chose to sign with the Cowboys in mid-September was his belief in the strength of the roster and its potential to contend for the playoffs.
“We have to find a way to be consistent, whether it’s at home, on the road, regardless. We’re too good. We have too many players. We have great coaches,” Prescott said. “Clowney was just saying in the locker room, ‘This roster should not be going up and down like we’re doing.’ A guy like that, when he says it, and he’s been on seven teams, that hits. That’s real. We just have to look in the mirror, like I challenged the guys, ‘What can we do more?'”
Owner and general manager Jerry Jones said he is willing to make a move at the trade deadline to help but also acknowledged he does not think the defense, 31st in yards allowed per game (404.6), is one player away from being that much better.
The Cowboys have not won back-to-back games since Week 15-16 last season. Five of their next seven games are against teams that currently have a winning record.
Their next two games are on “Monday Night Football,” against the Arizona Cardinals a week from today and at the Las Vegas Raiders on Nov. 17 with their bye week mixed in between.
The defense is having difficulty stopping the run and giving up too many big plays. The pass rush was nonexistent against the Broncos (zero sacks). They were without their top three safeties in Malik Hooker (toe), Donovan Wilson (shoulder) and Juanyeh Thomas (migraines). The hope is Wilson can return this week, but cornerback Trevon Diggs won’t be back until Thanksgiving after being placed on injured reserve Saturday.
“He just generally has got to get in better shape to play,” Jones said of Diggs, who suffered a concussion on Nov. 16 and had been dealing with an issue with his right knee.
The Cowboys’ hope is the time off will allow Diggs to get healthy and help down the stretch.
To be in it down the stretch, the offense will have to carry the way. It has been excellent at AT&T Stadium, averaging more than 40 points per game, but average on the road at 24 points per game.
Javonte Williams had two rushing touchdowns against the Broncos, his former team, but finished with 41 yards on 13 carries. Tight end Jake Ferguson was held without a catch. CeeDee Lamb and George Pickens were held in check in part because Prescott was harried for most of the game.
Schottenheimer called the Cowboys a “good team” even though the 3-4-1 record might say otherwise.
“I see us every day, I see what we’re capable of,” he said. “Here’s the word that’s coming back again: consistency. We’re not very consistent and we have to be more consistent. Last week, we did a great job stopping the run — tonight, we didn’t. Therein lies a problem. [The] last couple of games, we’ve been protecting the football, which has given us a chance. Tonight, we didn’t. I think we’re a talented football team. I know we have things to get better at and improve on, but I do think we’re a good football team.”
Good teams put together winning streaks. In their past 10 playoff seasons, the Cowboys have put together at least one winning streak of four straight games.
“It’s hard to even give you an identity until we put a couple of games together in a row,” Prescott said. “Right now, our identity is up and down, and that’s not anything I’m proud of and not anything anybody in that locker room should be proud of, on either side of the ball or coaches. Our identity right now is inconsistent, and that’s unacceptable, and we have to be better.”
