Troy Aikman criticizes Cowboys over CeeDee Lamb usage in Wild Card
For a guy who initially seemed bitter about not being able to broadcast the Dallas Cowboys vs San Francisco 49ers game, Cowboys legend Troy Aikman seemed even more upset about the performance by his former team. And, rightfully so. The Cowboys had several key errors that kept them from staging a comeback in a game that the 49ers made winnable.
But, Aikman was particularly angry about one specific aspect of the game plan. The Hall of Famer was a guest on 96.7 The Ticket (a local sports radio station in the Dallas Fort Worth area) and was, of course, asked his opinion on the loss. While most people were focused on the situation with Dak Prescott in the final 14 seconds, Aikman pointed out the puzzling lack of usage of wide receiver CeeDee Lamb.
Lamb, who had more than 1,100 total yards on the season, had only five targets and one catch for 21 yards in the Wild Card game. If Dallas knew that the 49ers’ secondary was a serious weak spot, why wouldn’t they try to get more passes to Lamb, as Aikman said? Short passes. Long passes. Anything.
Aikman also noted that the second-year wideout was in single coverage for almost the entirety of the game. His full comment is in the tweet below.
Troy Aikman on @dfwticket on Cowboys WR CeeDee Lamb only having one catch vs. the 49ers: pic.twitter.com/sdIZD8dmpx
— Jon Machota (@jonmachota) January 19, 2022
Cowboys legend Troy Aikman says he doesn’t understand why Dak Prescott didn’t target CeeDee Lamb more in loss to 49ers
Aikman went on to say that the game just isn’t that difficult. He said that if he had “a great player at wide receiver and a corner is playing him in single coverage, throw him the ball. He’s going to win most of the time.”
Mike McCarthy and Kellen Moore obviously didn’t call their best games. But an elite quarterback Prescott has every right to read the defense and make a different call if he sees that Lamb is continually open. If only the three-time Super Bowl champion could have told Dak Prescott that beforehand.
The former Cowboy also said this isn’t just an issue in Dallas. He feels many teams focus too much on schemes instead of taking advantage of opponents whose defenses play single coverage on top receivers.
Lamb’s lack of targets and catches were far from the only issue with this game. But with the majority of people talking about penalties and the final play, Aikman does bring up a valid point that has been overshadowed. This offense needs a serious lookover before the 2022 season.
