Delusional 3-3 Dallas Cowboys deny issues, ignore problem points, and look the other way ahead of Week 8 clash vs 49ers

The Dallas Cowboys were gifted a full two weeks to sit in their rooms and just think about what they’d done after they gave up 47 points to the Detroit Lions and failed to reach the end zone for four full quarters in Week 6.

During their bye week, they told disgruntled fans they‘d be “looking in the mirror” to fix their problems, which include a nonexistent run game, a depleted defense that can‘t stop the run, a wide receiver core with no depth (and which former Cowboys quarterback Troy Aikman called “lazy”), a head coach who brought them to 3-3, and an owner/general manager who built the team and consistently refuses to look (pay) outside for help.

Delusional Dallas denies problems again

As the Cowboys now shift their focus from another embarrassing loss to Week 8’s new challenge of the San Francisco 49ers, here‘s just a short list of what’s happened since that Week 6 beatdown...

Oh boy. This is another case of the Cowboys' front office just looking the other way. There is no way we watched the same game and they came away with the conclusion that “no changes at all” is the answer. But this is Dallas, and this is Jerry Jones. And this is what they’ve been doing for decades. Let’s dissect these points a bit.

Cowboys need outside help but refuse to admit it

The first point is defensible. Firing McCarthy at this point in the season wouldn’t make much sense without another better solution in line. A trade, however, would make sense as they’re in need of depth at wide receiver and a running back who can average more than four yards per carry in a game. But okay, maybe the options out there weren’t worth it once they let Amari Cooper slip away (again). The rest of the points are just pure denial.

Let‘s start with the wide receiver unit. Led by CeeDee Lamb, when he’s covered, the Cowboys are left with very few options. As referenced before, Troy Aikman called the group “lazy” and that is difficult to defend after watching their loss to the Lions. In fact, Lions safety Kerby Joseph revealed that their defensive Gameplan was just “guard CeeDee” because literally no one else on the offense is a threat. And yet, McCarthy disagrees. “Troy’s statement in particular, I don’t agree with the word selection. There is definitely need for improvement in every position, not just one position that he commented on.” Well...can’t disagree with that last part.

Which brings us to Solaris' point. Solaris said this: “There is no doubt we will get the running game going. It‘s a young group. It‘s going to be ascending. I really believe we‘ll get better each week.” I mean, to his credit, it is hard to get much worse when you rank dead last in the league in both rushing yards (463) and rushing touchdowns (two) through six games. But where this false confidence in the run game is coming from, I cannot pretend to know. Rico Dowdle led the rushers against the Lions with a whopping 25 yards. He’s had no help from Ezekiel Elliott or Deuce Vaughn and Dalvin Cook just keeps chillin’ on the bench while the Cowboys refuse to elevate him from the practice squad for reasons we will never understand.

Cowboys in dire situation heading to Week 8

Now let‘s talk about the Week 8 Game against the Niners. Mike McCarthy stopped short of calling this Game a “must-win” but admitted it was an important Game. Technically speaking, even if the Cowboys lose, they still have a statistical chance at making the playoffs. Realistically, if they lose that Game, it’s all downhill from there. A win against the Niners, a team that has beaten the Cowboys for the past three straight seasons, would give them a boost ahead of their challenging schedule to follow. Another embarrassing beatdown, however, could unravel their season completely.

Jerry Jones his own worst enemy

Now let’s talk about Jerry - the most delusional of them all, or at least the one who pretends to be most in hopes that fans will keep falling for it and blaming other factors besides the 82-year-old owner and his poor decision-making. If anyone still thought Jerry Jones and his family cared about winning rather than just making money before, that idea was surely shattered after this offseason and a 3-3 start to the 2024 season, including three blowout home losses.

Jones prefers you focus on the three Super Bowls he won the team in the ‘90s, plus the fact that they are an $11 billion franchise and huge marketing success. But who do those last two things benefit? It’s not the Cowboys fans.

In a nutshell.

These days, Jones is complacent. He refuses to spend in free agency and instead relies on the draft and cheaper, less talented free agents. The $11 billion does not help them here as Jerry has spent less money on the Cowboys over the last decade than almost every other NFL team, ranking 30th in cash spending over the last three years. This isn‘t a new trend, but it does seem like Jones is being called out more than ever this season, and he‘s hating it, threatening to fire people he doesn‘t even employ for having the audacity to ask completely justified questions about the decisions he made that directly led the team to this point. For someone who refuses so steadfastly to give up the power and remain the GM with complete control, Jerry doesn’t take much responsibility for his own part in this mess.

And this is where the problem really lies. With Jones and his family controlling all the Cowboys' moves, they may remain title-less for more decades to come.