5 Corrections the Dallas Cowboys Must Make During the Bye Week

Believe it or not, the Cowboys aren’t that far off from a 4-0 start. The first game of the season against the Jets was in their grasp but Tony Romo threw a key interception toward the end of the game to end any hopes of a Cowboys victory.

This past Sunday he had an on-field meltdown against the Lions when he threw three interceptions, two that went for touchdowns, as the Lions roared back after being down by 24 points. Tony Romo shoulders some of the blame but football is a team effort and the defense and head coach Jason Garrett deserve some of that responsibility.

As the Cowboys take a week off to, err, decompress and prepare for the New England Patriots, there are a few things that the team should focus on moving forward. Maybe the running game isn’t utilized to its full potential or the defensive secondary still needs improvement.

A bunch of maybes as Dallas prepares to enter into the meat of their schedule.

Here are five things the Cowboys must do during their bye week.

Emphasize Running the Ball

The Cowboys rank as the 25^th-best rushing team in the league. They are 20^th in attempts and 25^th in yards per carry which shows Jason Garrett’s disdain for running the ball.

Felix Jones is one of the league’s most talented running backs and it seemed before the season started that he was on his way to a breakout season. But Garrett has used him sparingly and inefficiently to the point that it’s tough for him to gain any type of rhythm.

Against the Patriots, the Cowboys may have to eat clock and if we find that Garrett refuses to use Jones, Murray or Choice, then the problem may be with the coach and not the quarterback.

De-Emphasize the Pass

Again with the rankings we go. Tony Romo ranks eighth in the league in pass attempts and is tied for third in interceptions with five. Simply put, the Cowboys pass the ball way to much for a team with injured wide receivers and a young, inexperienced offensive line.

We get that Garrett believes that the pass will lead the Cowboys to a Super Bowl but a team needs wins in order to make it that far and the Cowboys are stuck with just two of them. They could have four wins instead of two, but with Romo’s mistakes and Garrett’s infatuation with the pass, Dallas is two down instead of two up.

While I believe that Laurent Robinson gave up on his route that led to a Romo pick, Tony still had two throws that he shouldn’t have made.

This is why, overall, Dallas should ease up on the pass and gear their offense toward a more balanced attack. 

Utilize the Pass...Against New England

In my last correction I said that Dallas should place a strong emphasis on the run and devalue the pass some. That was overall and while this may sound like a strong contradiction, it most certainly is not. Well, maybe a little.

Dallas should pass the ball against the Patriots. New England gives up the most passing yards in the league with almost 370 yards per game.

Jason should use Tony but in the right situations. If Dallas is up by 20 points, then run the ball instead of passing it to chew clock. Simple enough, eh?

We all know that Romo has no issue racking up passing yards as evidenced by his 1,273 passing yards. The problem is the decision-making on his part and the head coach. 

Get Healthy

Sounds simple enough, doesn’t it? The Cowboys have injuries at the wide receiver position, offensive line, secondary and in the backfield. Maybe with a healthy team Garrett’s play-calling is much simpler and Dallas isn’t depending on third-stringers to perform as first-teamers.

With a healthy Dez Bryant, Miles Austin and Felix Jones, the Cowboys will have a team full arsenal of weapons to unleash against New England instead of a team full of replacement players.

Incorporate DeMarco Murray and Tashard Choice

Felix Jones has only run the ball 56 times which is 20^th-best in the league. Choice and Murray, you ask? A combined 35 attempts.

Murray is a rookie and may be struggling to learn the playbook or with blitz pickup. That will improve in time but with his speed and agility, Garrett should try to incorporate him into the offense more.

Tashard Choice is another animal, as team owner Jerry Jones has stated in the past that Choice has issues with special teams. Not sure what the means for his position, but Choice has proved in the past that he’s able to shoulder the running load for Dallas.

Due to Felix’s injury, Garrett should try to get both backs involved more with screens, draw plays, playing Murray in the slot or maybe even the Wildcat. Anything to get these talented players on the field as Dallas’ offense obviously has efficiency issues.