In the second quarter of Dallas’ matchup with the Philadelphia Eagles, the under .500 Cowboys could’ve quit trailing 21-0 with the season not going their way, and everything going right for the opponent. Dallas had to decide whether to fight or pack it in for the season, and they chose to fight with great play across all three phases of the game.
The special teams caused a turnover, the defense shut out Philadelphia from that moment forward, and the Cowboys’ offense scored 17 points in the second half. Even with their amazing comeback, the coach can still point out tons of mistakes the Cowboys must eradicate in order to take out the Kansas City Chiefs comeThanksgiving.
CeeDee Lamb must have a mistake-free game
More than beating Kansas City, Dallas needs CeeDee Lamb to have a mistake-free game for his own peace of mind. Two weeks ago, the Cowboys went into Las Vegas off their bye week with the best receiving duo in the NFL. Then, Lamb dropped a touchdown pass against the Raiders and he might have carried that drop into the Eagles game because he added more drops, including another touchdown pass, and now overreacting fans are asking what Dallas can get in a trade.
Lamb needs a clean game on Thursday; which is his norm following contests with multiple drops. He needs to get his typical 8-to-10 targets for around 74 yards and no drops or mental mistakes.
Improve the short-yardage offense
Short-yardage situations almost single-handedly cost Dallas the game against Philadelphia. It started by missing a 4th-and-3 on the opening drive, giving the Eagles the ball at midfield. They later had two other drives get into the red zone, inside the five-yard line, and scored zero points. They got stuffed at the one-yard line on their first red zone attempt, and then Tyler Guyton was called for a false start. The next play, Dak Prescott threw an interception in the end zone.
The second time, the game was tied 21-21, and Dallas had a chance to go ahead with under five minutes left. They started with a six-yard run to get the ball to the two-yard line, then ran for one yard, threw two incompletions, and were stopped again. If Dallas doesn’t drastically improve its short-yardage play, it will have no chance of beating the Chiefs.
Start fast on at least one side of the ball
The Cowboys’ first offensive drive was already mentioned above. They followed that up with a three-and-out and then a fumble and a red-zone interception. That’s three turnovers and a three-and-out to start the game on offense. This wasn’t a one-time occurrence; Dallas has had poor offensive starts all season.
The defense has improved since the trade deadline, but their starts have been horrendous all year. They gave up a touchdown on the first three Philadelphia offensive drives in both games. The New York Giants scored in three of their first four drives as well. The Bears and the Green Bay Packers each had two touchdowns in their first three drives. Every team Dallas has played has either scored a touchdown or kicked a field goal in their first two drives.
At least one side of the ball for this team has to play to their standard early, or the Chiefs and Detroit Lions will pull too far ahead early.
You can find Mike Crum on Twitter @cdpiglet or on YouTube at Across the Cowboys podcast
This article originally appeared on Cowboys Wire: 3 things Cowboys must fix to beat Chiefs includes strong defensive start
Reporting by Mike Crum, Cowboys Wire / Cowboys Wire
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
