The Dallas Cowboys have a serious problem defending the pass. When Dallas hired defensive coordinator Rob Ryan in January, the Cowboys thought that problem would be fixed. However, it was never more obvious than Sunday night when New York Giants quarterback Eli Manning shredded the Cowboys’ secondary for 400 yards and two touchdowns. On Tuesday, Cowboys cornerback Mike Jenkins said the team has a cancer in the secondary.
“It’s within. We know what the cancer is we just need to stop that ourselves,” Jenkins said. “Something we need to point out to ourselves. We know what it is. It’s communication, everybody else knows what it is. If you look at the tape and the film we’re all looking at each other with our heads chopped off. Once we get that together we’re going to be alright.”
Indeed, there’s a cancer within Dallas’ secondary, but it’s not just communication. Cowboys linebacker Keith Brooking said Tuesday it’s the players’ fault for their porous play and Dallas’ coaches aren’t to blame. Of course, nobody has called any names for these problems, but it’s individuals who are the cancer that plagues the Cowboys’ pass defense.
Cowboys cornerback Alan Ball simply cannot cover NFL receivers one-on-one. He’s not the only one; Terence Newman gave up more yards than any Dallas defensive back on Sunday and Orlando Scandrick wasn’t far behind.
The only defensive backs that have played well for Dallas this year are Jenkins and safety Abram Elam. He wouldn’t call any names, either, but simply said his teammates have to get better at their jobs.
“You don’t know the coverage and you don’t know what’s been called,” Elam said. “We know on the defensive side what’s the issue. We just know what to correct in-house. People on the outside, they see different things and have their own perspective but we just know together we have to play better as a unit.”
Cowboys owner Jerry Jones has to be aware of the source of the problem. Jones failed to complete a deal in the preseason that would have sent Newman to Arizona for rookie sensation Patrick Peterson and also failed to lure free agent prize cornerback Nnamdi Asomugha to Dallas. Regardless of what strings he has to pull this offseason, Jones absolutely has to make personnel changes in the Cowboys’ secondary.
Ryan is a phenomenal defensive coordinator and a great coach, but he’s not a miracle worker. Ultimately it comes down to the players on the field. If the Cowboys’ cornerbacks aren’t talented enough to cover NFL receivers, they don’’ need to be on the field. The same applies if they’re not smart enough to “communicate” or “know the coverages” like Jenkins and Elam said. Dallas indeed has a cancer in the secondary. However, there is a cure for this brand of the disease. It’s up to Jones to take advantage of it.
Follow Jeric Griffin on Twitter @JericGriffin
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[...] The Cowboys have a serious problem in pass coverage this year and the players are well aware of it. However, they all agree the answer is to simply play better; guys can’t miss coverages on critical plays and all Dallas’ defensive backs must make plays on balls in the air. Cowboys defensive coordinator Rob Ryan was so angry with his players following Sunday’s loss to the Giants he said he didn’t have an answer for their porous play. [...]
[...] The Cowboys have a serious problem in pass coverage this year and the players are well aware of it. However, they all agree the answer is to simply play better; guys can’t miss coverages on critical plays and all Dallas’ defensive backs must make plays on balls in the air. Cowboys defensive coordinator Rob Ryan was so angry with his players following Sunday’s loss to the Giants he said he didn’t have an answer for their porous play. [...]
[...] Dallas Cowboys Have “Cancer” in Secondary by admin on December 16, 2011 Dallas Cowboys Have “Cancer” in Secondary However, it was never more obvious than Sunday night when New York Giants quarterback Eli Manning shredded the Cowboys' secondary for 400 yards and two touchdowns. On Tuesday, Cowboys cornerback Mike Jenkins said the team has a cancer in the secondary. … Read more on Rant Sports [...]
The secondary having a cancer would intimate that it is alive. The secondary is dead.