5 Cowboys red flags from 2021 season that led to playoff loss
Cowboys Red Flag No. 3 – Not Enough Touches for Their Playmakers
49ers Head Coach Kyle Shanahan knows how to get the ball in the hands of his special players. He schemes up favorable looks for players like tight end George Kittle and wide receiver Brandon Aiyuk and gets them involved. He even went as far as getting his star receiver Deebo Samuel touches as a running back; he rushed for 365 yards and eight touchdowns this season.
Cowboys OC Kellen Moore seemed to struggle with creating those same matchups for his stars on offense.
It is understandable if the Cowboys were in the era of only having receiver Dez Bryant and tight end Jason Witten as true weapons, but there are playmakers all over on offense. There are two legitimate No.1 wide receivers in Amari Cooper and CeeDee Lamb, two dynamic tight ends in Blake Jarwin and Dalton Schultz, and a No. 2 running back, Tony Pollard, who has a comparable game to Alvin Kamara when healthy.
If there is so much talent on offense, why was Cooper only targeted more than 10 times in only four of the 16 games he played? He eclipsed the century mark just twice this season.
When watching the game film from the season, the Cowboys offense seemed to play defeated when they took on the Denver Broncos, Kansas City Chiefs, and Arizona Cardinals. Dallas only gained 290 yards, 276 yards, and 301 yards of total offense in all three games, respectively. It’s just not good enough when playmakers are not involved.
Look at Sunday’s game. If a healthy Lamb and Pollard create mismatches for defenses, then why did they only touch the ball a combined eight times?
Random observation:
— David Moore (@DavidMooreDMN) January 17, 2022
Eight players had more receptions than CeeDee Lamb in Sunday’s playoff game between Dallas & San Francisco.
Lamb & Tony Pollard are 2 of the Cowboys more explosive offensive threats. They combined to touch the ball 8 times for a total of 52 yards.
The blame cannot be put all on Prescott. It is the job of a good OC to know the opponent and game plan accordingly. The offensive explosions against the Washington Football Team and Philadelphia Eagles to close turned out to be an aberration on the season. When it mattered most in the playoffs, the star-powered Dallas offense did not show up as they did for the back half of the season.