The Dallas Cowboys have been a disappointment for the better part of two-plus decades, but it’s difficult to think back to a single day that was worse for the organization and its fanbase than Sunday.
Aaron Rodgers’ heartbreaking comebacks and Dez Bryant’s controversial drops almost don’t compare.
The third-seeded Cowboys were eliminated from the postseason following a 23-17 defeat in the NFC wild-card game to the sixth-seeded San Francisco 49ers. Cowboys head coach Mike McCarthy and members of the team said it was a game they expected to win in front of their home fans at AT&T Stadium. They didn’t. And it’s because nobody beats the Cowboys like the Cowboys.
“Extraordinarily disappointed. Very disappointed,” Cowboys owner Jerry Jones said after the loss, per The Athletic’s Jon Machota.
It was followed by quarterback Dak Prescott, running back Ezekiel Elliott and McCarthy all sharing similar remarks.
“When you play for the Dallas Cowboys, you understand it’s Super Bowl or nothing. Having the team we have, having the brotherhood, the camaraderie, the full team talent, great coaches, we definitely underachieved,” Prescott said, per Machota. “And it sucks, point blank.”
McCarthy added: “This is going to sting for a long time.”
Want to know why that is? Because the 2021 edition of the Cowboys were as talented a team as Dallas has had in a long time. Perhaps 2016 is close, but that group had a pair of rookies in Prescott and Elliott. Even the ’14 Cowboys fail to compare.
Dallas finished the most recent regular season first overall in scoring and yards. They had a $40 million quarterback in Prescott, one of the best receiver corps — Amari Cooper, CeeDee Lamb and Michael Gallup — a pair of highly-skilled running backs in Tony Pollard and Elliott with a top-10 tight end in Dalton Schultz and a good-not-great offensive line. The Cowboys, who scored 500-plus points in the regular season, were only the second team to score that much and not get past the wild-card round.
The biggest thing that differentiated Dallas in 2021 was the opportunistic defense, led by first-year defensive coordinator Dan Quinn, who completely transformed that group after years of subpar play. Cowboys cornerback Trevon Diggs led the league in interceptions while Micah Parsons is a surefire Defensive Rookie of the Year and probably will get Defensive Player of the Year votes.
Those two, along with guard Zack Martin, gave the Cowboys three first-team All-Pro selections. Dallas was one of five teams to have three first-team selections. The Cowboys also were the first team in NFL history to feature a 4,000-yard passer (Prescott), a 1,000-yard rusher (Elliott), a 1,000-yard receiver (Lamb), a player with 10-plus sacks (Parsons) and a player with 10-plus interceptions (Diggs). All were drafted by the organization, and vice president of player personnel Will McClay.
“Well, I think this is a time that, when you get this combination of players together, you need to have success. Because we all know how it goes in the NFL,” Jones said, per Machota. “The whole thing is set up to take away from the best and add to the ones that need improvement. And personnel-wise, I think like we have one of the best.”
Elliott added: “This is the best team I’ve been on. It is disappointing. We hurt. It hurts all of us. We’re all hurting.”
The Cowboys’ best team since at least 2016, according to Elliott, did not make it out of the wild-card game. That’s terrible.
… Especially given the fact that the Cowboys lost, and were eliminated, because they were not prepared and undisciplined. It was almost like the story could have been written before the game was played — McCarthy failed to have the Cowboys ready for biggest game of the year and in turn the 49ers scored on three straight possessions to take a 13-0 lead before Dallas could even blink. The hosts had just eight offensive plays to that point.
McCarthy’s Cowboys led the league in penalties throughout the season (you think that would be addressed, right?) and then went out and set a postseason-record with 14 penalties. Dallas jumped offsides on literally the first play of the game, had a holding penalty negate a 32-yard gain on its second offensive possession and it continued with a head-scratching delay of game in the fourth and a defensive holding that earned San Francisco a fresh set of downs with 1:38 left in the game. McCarthy, time and time again, put his head in his hands and did nothing else.
Minor miscues turn into fatal flaws in the postseason. That’s exactly how it played out. The Cowboys now have committed 237 penalties for 2,041 yards since McCarthy took over prior to the 2020 season.
It also didn’t make it any better that McCarthy, Prescott and the leaders of the group spoke more about the officiating after the game than they did about the five sacks allowed, one interception thrown, mere 4.4 yards per play and single possession that reached the red zone. It portrayed a group that couldn’t account for its mistakes, which is disappointing in itself.
Jones reportedly will consider a head coaching change, although he did not offer much on the topic when asked Sunday. His son, Stephen Jones, an executive vice president, expressed confidence Monday that McCarthy will be back.
That will be tough to rationalize for Cowboys fans, who will be replaying the 17-yard designed run with 14 seconds left — that McCarthy agreed upon — for years to come. But Jones and the team certainly weren’t the only ones disappointed.
