Cowboys' Mike McCarthy Wishes He'd Been More Aggressive Passing in Loss to Cardinals

Dallas Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott threw 40 times during Sunday's loss to the Arizona Cardinals, but head coach Mike McCarthy wishes there were more during the early downs before the team was in comeback mode.

"I wish I had been a little more aggressive in the passing game on first and second down," McCarthy told reporters Monday when speaking about his team's 28-16 loss.

While McCarthy may regret not airing it out more, a reliance on the rushing attack wasn't exactly the problem for the Cowboys.

In fact, more runs might have led to a more favorable outcome.

That is because running back Tony Pollard was largely dialed in with 122 rushing yards on 5.3 yards per carry. Dallas as a team ran for 185 yards on 5.6 yards per carry, which is fairly effective when it comes to running the ball.

In terms of the aerial attack, Prescott was 25-of-40 for 249 yards, one touchdown and one interception. The pick was a particularly costly one, as it came when the Cowboys were at Arizona's 6-yard line and looking to cut the deficit to a single score in the final minutes.

Prescott was far from dominant, but the biggest issue for Dallas likely came on the defensive side.

After setting the tone during its first two games against the New York Giants and New York Jets, the defensive unit didn't force a single turnover, gave up 222 rushing yards and let quarterback Joshua Dobbs finish at an efficient 17-of-21 in the passing game in the loss to Arizona.

The defense couldn't get any key stops, Prescott failed to put the team on his back in the most important moments and the head coach is now questioning his own play-calling. The end result was one of the most surprising losses of the early NFL season.

Dallas will look to turn things around in Week 4 when it hosts the New England Patriots.