ARLINGTON, Texas — Micah Parsons sounded like he was at an all-time low. DeMarcus Lawrence sounded as frustrated as he’s been in a postgame locker room during his 11 NFL seasons. Understandably so, the Dallas Cowboys’ defense was awful again Sunday.
Late in the game, Fox cameras caught Parsons and Lawrence having a heated exchange on Dallas’ sideline that didn’t stop until rookie defensive end Marshawn Kneeland stepped in and defused the situation (Parsons downplayed it postgame, saying Lawrence has been a big brother to him and it was just frustration).
The Cowboys fought back to make the final score look respectable, but Dallas’ defense didn’t do enough in what ended up being a 28-25 win for the visiting Baltimore Ravens at AT&T Stadium.
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Lawrence described the Cowboys’ defense as playing hero ball. Parsons said players were trying to be Superman.
“We’ve got the guys to do it, so that ain’t the problem,” Lawrence said. “It’s just all about f—— doing it. We’ll get it done. … Once we get out of playing little league football and get back to playing pro football, we’ll be all right.”
The responses weren’t as colorful following last week’s 44-19 blowout loss to the New Orleans Saints, but the play on the field showed a lot of similarities. The story of that game was Saints running back Alvin Kamara having one of the best days of his career and quarterback Derek Carr looking like an All-Pro. On Sunday, it was Ravens running back Derrick Henry rushing for 6 yards a carry, totaling 151 yards and two touchdowns. And when he wasn’t getting whatever he wanted on the ground, reigning NFL MVP quarterback Lamar Jackson was gaining 6.2 yards per carry and completing 12 of his 15 passes while posting a 139.4 passer rating.
“Same thing (as last week),” Parsons said. “Right now, we just got people trying to be Superman. People just gotta own their jobs. We don’t need any Supermans. We just need 11 guys playing together.”
Dak Prescott: “We got to help (our defense). I know their standard and they don’t want to allow 28 points. But 28 points against an MVP player, an offense like that, that’s a game we have to score 30 in. We know it. We didn’t do it.
“… Us as players, we’ve got to be more… pic.twitter.com/TxFZJs7hgJ
— Jon Machota (@jonmachota) September 23, 2024
The run defense is clearly the biggest issue. The Saints rushed for 190 yards last Sunday. The Ravens were even better, finishing with 274 and three touchdowns on 45 attempts.
Lawrence said it was particularly frustrating because they had a good game plan but it was not followed on the field.
How do they fix the run defense?
“Play pro football,” Lawrence said. “Do what your coaches teach you to do. Play your gaps, play your blocks, stay in your gap. And I’m included in this. Just the small things that we got to get back to, and we’ll do it this week.”
There were areas that were slightly better than the week before. The Saints scored touchdowns on their first six possessions. The Ravens managed touchdowns on their first two, but Dallas forced punts on the next two. Baltimore then went up 21-3 after its fifth possession.
The final nail in the coffin looked to come early in the second half as the Ravens went 70 yards on five plays to open the third quarter. Despite that 28-6 deficit, Dallas’ offense eventually showed signs of life in the fourth quarter, scoring touchdowns on three consecutive possessions.
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Parsons, Lawrence and company had a chance to do their part in the final minutes, but they were unable to get off the field. The first opportunity came with 2:18 remaining. Facing third-and-6 from Baltimore’s 25, cornerback Trevon Diggs allowed just a little too much cushion on Baltimore WR Zay Flowers, who hauled in a 9-yard completion before being hit by Diggs.
“That was just shitty on my part,” Diggs said. “I got to make that play, regardless of what situation we’re in. That’s on me.”
Parsons added: “The game doesn’t come down to that third down. If we do what we’re supposed to do, we win that game.”
After using all of their timeouts, the Cowboys had one more chance. But on second-and-9, Jackson kept on a QB carry over left guard that gained 10 yards.
“I’ve never experienced something like this,” Parsons said. “It’s humbling. … Right now, we’re low as s—. … The person behind me has to trust that I’m going to do my job, and right now, that trust is not there.”
Cowboys coach Mike McCarthy called the team a “work in progress.”
“We need to clean our own house,” he said. “Our house isn’t where it needs to be right now.”
Cowboys owner Jerry Jones said his confidence in defensive coordinator Mike Zimmer remains “very high.”
What gives him confidence that the defense will get fixed?
“Because I’ve seen the players that are on the field do what they need to be doing to make it happen,” Jones said. “They just need to do it more all at the same time together.”
Cowboys owner Jerry Jones was asked about upgrading the roster, he said he doesn’t think that’s an issue. “I like our personnel.”
Jones when asked specifically about not going after Derrick Henry in the offseason: “We couldn’t afford Derrick Henry.” pic.twitter.com/lkQPFjJX9a
— Jon Machota (@jonmachota) September 22, 2024
No matter what is said, it’s difficult to believe right now that anyone has the answers. It’s one thing to lose a game, it’s another to get embarrassed at home for a second consecutive week, and really a third consecutive game, dating back to the ugly showing against the Green Bay Packers in January’s wild-card game.
Jones was asked if he’s worried about teams having a blueprint for beating the Cowboys.
“No. Not at all,” he responded. “The blueprint doesn’t worry me. Do I worry that teams will beat us on defense? Yes, I’m worried about that. You should. But a blueprint? That’s going a little far.”
If the defense isn’t going to have a better response to last week’s loss to the Saints, it’s anyone’s guess as to how they will respond on the road with another game in only four days.
“I think we have the guys to do what we need to do,” Diggs said. “We got talent from top to bottom. I’m not worried about that. We just got to do it.”
(Photo of Derrick Henry: Ron Jenkins / Getty Images)
