The title of this article flies in the face of conventional wisd

om. To say “Cowboys defense as responsible for Amari Cooper trade as anything” seems a little absurd on the face. To be sure http://www.cowboyscheapauthenticstore.com/antwaun-woods-jersey-cheap , if the Cowboys offense wasn’t so abysmal, especially on the road, then Dallas wouldn’t have considered trading for Cooper. And it’s also true that the Cowboys want to have a fair and full evaluation of Dak Prescott, and without a weapon to complement Cole Beasley in the passing game, a consistent weapon, they probably felt they really couldn’t do that. So we can say, without hesitation, that the Cowboys offense was a big part of the reason the trade went through.So how does the defense play into this equation? Well, the Cowboys would have been unlikely to part with a first-round pick now unless they thought they were still a viable factor in the 2018 playoffs. They would have played out the string, saved that first-round pick and tried to build something in 2019 for Dak Prescott and take their chances. Instead, they went all in. And they went all in because they have a defense that is among the top units in the league, at least in some categories, and they are keeping this team in the playoff hunt. If the Cowboys can just muster up a decent offense, they have a future in the 2018 season. All of that is possible through the play of this defense. Whether you are a believer in conventional stats, volume stats, or advanced stats, when it comes to defense there is one number that reigns supreme. That is points allowed. The Cowboys are almost halfway through the season and they are second in the league in points allowed at 17.6 points per game. If your defense is keeping opposing offenses under 18 points a game, any offense of even average ability should make you competitive and a playoff contender. Only four offenses in the league score under 18 points per game, and surprisingly Dallas is not one of them. The 40-point explosion against Jacksonville moved them to 20 points scored per game, good for 26th in the league.The Cowboys defense isn’t a creator of big splash plays. They only have six turnovers on the year (two interceptions and four fumble recoveries) and that is tied for 24th in the league. So they don’t exactly win on turnovers, and that is one area that actually hurts the offense because they aren’t providing short fields. They are a very average defense on third downs, ranking 16th in the NFL with an allowed rate of 39.4%. They do a good job of making defenses earn those first downs on third down though Cheap Ezekiel Elliott Jersey , because while they are average on third down overall, they are third in the league by only allowing an average of 17.6 first downs per game. What they are very good at is limiting overall yardage (third in the league with 313.7 yards per game), yards per play (fourth in the league at 5.1 yards per play), and they really excel in the redzone. Dallas is second in the NFL by allowing touchdowns in the redzone at a rate of 36.84%, only behind their next opponent, Tennessee. Over their last three games, they have allowed redzone touchdowns at an astonishingly low 12.5% rate. The Cowboys defense is really limiting what offenses can accomplish against them. They could be even better by improving in some areas. They could help the offense, as mentioned above, by creating more turnovers. Along with that, their sack rate is slowing. They are still tied for eighth in the league with 19, but it hasn’t been as big a part of their game in recent weeks. They only have five sacks over the last three games. Incredibly, they are achieving all of this on defensewhile still allowing high passer ratings for opposing quarterbacks (26th in the league). There are things the Cowboys defense does very well, and things they need to improve on. With their front seven as healthy as it’s been in a long time, and Chidobe Awuzie recovering from his ankle issues, the unit as a whole might just be getting started. A healthy and in-football-shape David Irving should help enormously. The defense has kept the Cowboys season alive. They are the reason they are even in contention in a very average NFC East. There is still over half a season to be played and there is no doubt that the Cowboys still have a shot. Now they have added a weapon on offense in Amari Cooper, and the reason they did is because their defense has kept them alive.Dallas Cowboys hot topic: Is the offense really fixed? It came down to the last second. The Dallas Cowboys won their game over the Detroit Lions on a come-from-behind Brett Maher field goal as time ran out. It was glorious.More importantly, after some real offensive struggles in the first three weeks of the season, that winning kick came after a truly clutch two minute (and seventeen second) drive led by Dak Prescott and Ezekiel Elliott.This capped the best offensive performance of the season to date, where Prescott was able to move the ball and get a couple of touchdown passes and Elliott was simply on fire. Along with their contributions, the offensive line was generally very good, several receivers came through in the passing game, and there was not much to criticize about Scott Linehan’s game plan or play calling.So rejoice! The offense is fixed!Is it really fixed Youth Maliek Collins Jersey , though?Maybe something is missing... focusing specifically on that “maybe”. The truth is that the offense worked well for one game but with the exception of Elliott, who has been playing better every game of the year, none of the other elements listed above are exactly a given going forward.It was, after all, a game that seemed tailor-made for the Cowboys to win. The Lions came in with the unusual combination of being the best pass defense in the league and the worst at stopping the run. That plays right into the very identity of the Dallas offense. It is no surprise that Zeke would gain 152 yards running the ball or that the team would total 183 yards on the ground as a whole. What was a pleasant surprise was Dak having his best game of the year against what was the toughest pass defense he has faced. He was more decisive and accurate with his throws and took more shots downfield that were met with real success. After a marked lack of long plays in the first three games, the Cowboys had five that went over 30 yards. Four of them were passes with two covering most of the distance in the air. Matthew Emmons-USA TODAY SportsIf you were among those condemning Linehan for the failures of the first few games of the season, you have to give him credit for what he did in this one. He was throwing out of running sets, using a lot more motion and play action to give Prescott better situations and clearer reads, and he threw in some plays that have not been seen before... including the crucial 34 yard pass completion to Elliott to set up that winning FG. Elliott split out as a slot receiver and went deep, where Prescott delivered perhaps his best throw of the afternoon. Using Elliott like that is something armchair critics and the media alike have been demanding. Linehan delivered, and he did so when it had the biggest impact. The question of the season is whether or not Dallas can do it consistentlyIt’s all good. Now let’s see if Dallas can do it again against the Houston Texans. Like the Lions, the Texans enter the game as a one-win team that is fighting to keep shrinking hopes alive. They consider the Cowboys a big rival (largely a one-sided affair, to be honest), and have them at home for a Sunday night national game. They want this bad. At this time of year, every NFL team should feel that way about every game, of course.Here, courtesy of our old friend Patrick Conn, is a look at how the teams match up statistically.In a sense, this is a mirror image of the Lions game. The Cowboys were strongest on offense where they were weakest, and vice versa. But facing the Texans, it is strength against strength... and weakness against weakness.That means Dallas cannot rely on Elliott carrying them on his (quite capable) shoulders. They have to see a continuation of the offensive performance from last game, particularly on the passing side of things. It is a good test that they really need to pass.So will they? One good game is not really important. Being able to string them together is vital. The Lions game presented evidence that the passing game can be effective http://www.cowboyscheapauthenticstore.com/deonte-thompson-jersey-cheap , the running game is one of the best (with a league leading 5.8 yards per attempt), the offensive coordinator is not the incompetent that so many believe he is, and the team is getting better at putting points on the board. They still need to improve on third down conversions and red zone efficiency, but there was even some progress there. So what is it exactly that the Cowboys have to do more consistently?All of this brings us to a point of trying to figure out what the team did differently in week four from what they’d done prior to. It seems to come down to one simple thing. Allow me to present the explanation as given by someone whose football analysis and acumen far, far exceeds my own.This debate is far from over, but the Lions game looked like a very good argument for the previous offensive problems stemming from poor execution rather than coaching or even the talent level. Go back to that list of things that went right in the opening paragraph:Prescott’s execution was markedly better. Elliott’s level of performance was arguably the best for any player at any position in the league for this week. The offensive line was working well together with few missed blocks or assignments. The receivers mostly had a much better day catching the ball. There were still some drops, but they were not as egregious and fortunately did not turn into interceptions. A few of the catches were clutch.This recipe makes play-calling a lot simpler. It may be a mistake in the literal sense of the word, but it does not seem very likely that a long-time coach and offensive coordinator like Linehan would undergo a significant change to his style and approach in just one week. “Wrinkles”, maybe, but not anything pervasive. What can change quickly is player performance, especially when they have been making mistakes and missing assignments the way the Cowboys offense was the first three games. That can be cleaned up. The coaches can help both in practices and in what plays they call (such as how the inclusion of more motion aided Prescott), but most of that has to come from within the players. Photo by Ronald Martinez/Getty ImagesThe Cowboys got it mostly right for one week. Now they need to show they can do the same or even improve next week. It’s also worth noting that some of the members of the secondary need to make some improvements themselves after some errors cropped up in what had been a real strength for the defense. If they fail, the plays will start to go wrong. It is very difficult for the offensive coordinator to fix things during a game when the root is one or more players not doing their job. So the offense isn’t fixed, exactly. The solution is there, it just has to be carried through by the players. The running back and offensive line are talented enough to do a good job against just about anyone in the league. The quarterback is far less reliable, but can be very effective if he keeps his mind and mechanics all straight. The tight ends and wide receivers are the key, though. They are an unproven group outside of Cole Beasley. The rest of them have to be able to carry the load to keep the opposition from taking Beas out of the equation with double teams and stacking the box to limit Zeke’s damage. We saw them do that against Detroit.If they can do it again in Houston, we can start talking about a real, sustainable fix to the Dallas offense. And the prospects for the season will be considerably brighter.