With a spot in the playoffs on the line before Thursday Night Football, there was a lot of emotion running high on the field. Unfortunately, the Dallas Cowboys came up short in a high-scoring affair at Ford Field and watched their playoff odds drop to below 10 percent.
Jared Goff went 25 of 34 for 309 passing yards, and a lot of that came from firing quick slants off of zone coverage. It didn't seem to matter who was on the field in those scenarios, as Matt Eberflus' defense wasn't even in the right position all night long.
Fox NFL analyst and former star tight end Greg Olsen was one of many who torched Eberflus in the Cowboys' loss to the Lions. It also didn't take long to realize that the Cowboys were playing the "not to lose" strategy. Considering they were trailing all night, this was anything but a satisfactory defensive performance.
Greg Olsen said the quiet part out loud about Cowboys DC Matt Eberflus
I’m surprised Dallas’s defense wasn’t more motivated to get a stop when they cut the lead to “one score”#fieldgoalsgetyoubeat
— Greg Olsen (@gregolsen88) December 5, 2025
The crux of Olsen's point came in the fourth quarter after the Cowboys pulled within one score on two occasions. On both ensuing Lions possessions, Eberflus insisted on playing soft coverage. Dan Campbell said, 'thank you very much,' and Detroit responded with back-breaking touchdowns in both instances.
The Cowboys' zone coverage didn't get the job done all night. While there's an argument to be had about whether Dallas has the horses to play man, again, playing soft was not working. Goff had all day to throw slants and deep-crossing routes over the middle of the field.
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The blitzing strategy didn't make sense either, as the Cowboys were able to pressure Goff four times on his first six dropbacks, blitzing him three times. For whatever reason, Eberflus hardly blitzed Goff the rest of the night, giving him all the time necessary to pick apart the secondary.
This has been a common theme all year with Eberflus: He makes obvious adjustments like blitzing more and playing tighter coverage look like brain surgery. And half the time, he is too stubborn to adjust, so Cowboys fans are fighting a losing battle with their defensive coordinator.
The Cowboys now have zero margin for error over the final four games. Another defensive showing like this and you can kiss their already-slim playoff hopes goodbye.