While Dak Prescott was not having a good season before his hamstring injury, there's reason to believe the Dallas Cowboys' offense will turn things around next year with a healthy Prescott and hopefully a new play-caller.
That optimism does not extend to the defense. Brought in to produce more overall consistency and resistance against the run, Mike Zimmer has ran into the same problems his predecessor, Dan Quinn, had over his three years as defensive coordinator.
While Zimmer's defense put up a good fight in Week 9 against the Falcons, similar issues reared their ugly head and ultimately led to another letdown performance. They missed an astounding 13 tackles and allowed a 146.3 passer rating in coverage, per Pro Football Focus.
Zimmer was asked specifically about Darnell Mooney's 36-yard touchdown on 4th-and-3 that put Atlanta up 14-3 in the second quarter. There was seemingly a miscommunication in the Cowboys' secondary and Mooney found himself wide open.
Zimmer proceeded to throw his players under the bus.
Mike Zimmer blames Cowboys players for blown coverage on Falcons touchdown in Week 9
Zimmer is right that the Cowboys were in man coverage. Trevon Diggs threw his hands up in confusion as Mooney broke free up the right sideline. It's unclear if Diggs felt that he was picked or if someone blew their assignment.
Diggs had been matched up against Falcons No. 1 receiver Drake London until that point, while rookie Caelen Carson had Mooney. However, replay shows Diggs lined up across Mooney before the snap, so perhaps he expected Carson to follow Mooney after the pick play.
Regardless, it is a weak look that Zimmer didn't make a single mention of his coaching. That wasn't the first time in the presser that Zimmer ducked accountability. Remember the second third down of the game when Dallas has 10 players on the field?
"What happened was we had five personnel groups going into this ballgame, and the Falcons went on the ball on that one and one of the guys didn't go in," Zimmer said.
ESPN analyst Dan Orlovsky was left dumbfounded by the play when reviewing film and pointed out that nobody account for running back Bijan Robinson, who picked up the easiest first down of his career.
Poor execution within Dallas' defense has been prevalent all season. While the players have to perform, is it not on the coach to have his subs ready? Zimmer dropping blunt and care-free quotes to the media while his fails to carry out basic coverages and game plans won't stop folks from questioning the buy-in within the Cowboys' locker room.
And it certainly won't have Cowboys fans clamoring to return in 2025.
