State of the Cowboys as they enter the 2013 offseason

2010: 6-10

2011: 8-8

2012: 8-8

No Playoffs in the last three seasons.

Three straight third place finishes.

Two straight years losing the final game of the season with the NFC East title on the line.

Horrible game management from the head coach at times. Receivers running the wrong routes.

There was Confusion on defense at times, while also getting the team into large deficits and as well as surrendering leads.

That pretty much sums up the Dallas Cowboys over the last few seasons. Of course with all of that Jerry Jones figured that changes were needed within. Running backs coach Skip Peete was let go and so was special teams coach Joe DeCamillis to go along with defensive coordinator Rob Ryan. Of course there is also the question whether an offensive coordinator will be hired so that Jason Garrett can focus on being just the head coach. I’ve read reports that Garrett won’t be letting go of the play calling and I’ve also read reports that Garrett is open to doing anything in the best interest of the team.

My opinion is that letting Rob Ryan go was the right move. I understand that he did a decent job in 2012 after losing starters on defense like Sean Lee, Bruce Carter and Barry Church. But the fact is that between last season and this season there were countless times were the defense looked confused. Players seemed like they didn’t know where to line up. Players were seen pointing at each other as if they weren’t sure of their assignments. Not to mention the many times that Ryan admitted that he had horrible game plans as his defenses time and time again could not hold leads or were even beaten soundly over the course of the last two seasons.

On the other side of the ball is how Jason Garrett calls a game. From a fans point of view his play calling is horrible most of the time. His game management is even worse. At times it seems as though he has no game plan at all. He just seems to pick plays off of his play sheet randomly. Maybe he just has two much on his plate as far as being the head coach and offensive coordinator. Let’s not forget that Tony Romo should not have to tell his receivers were to line up. These are not new receivers and they should know what they need to do when the play is called.

Now that the Cowboys are into the offseason the questions about this team have multiplied. How many more coaches will be let go? Now that Monte Kiffin is the new defensive coordinator, does the team have the right personal to make the switch to the 4-3? How long before players catch onto the new defensive system? What about the Cowboys list of free agents like Anthony Spencer, Felix Jones and Mike Jenkins? The Cowboys are $18 million over the salary cap at this point. Where do they get the money to pay for any of these players or any outside free agents? Do they franchise Anthony Spencer again and pay him over $10 million in 2013 if they cannot get a long-term deal done or do they just let him walk? They also have to deal with the second part of the $5 million cap penalty from last season. If all their key free agents leave due to lack of money, then they are dealing with even more depth issues. Do they sign Tony Romo to a contract extension as he goes into the final year of his contract? Knowing that they have the 18th overall pick in this year’s draft, do they select the best player on the board or trade down to get more picks?

With all the unanswered questions regarding this Cowboys team, I guess it’s not fair to look ahead to 2013 and who the Cowboys will be playing, but let’s do it anyway. Outside of their divisional games, they have home games against the Packers, Vikings, Rams, Broncos and the Raiders. Then they have to travel to play the Bears, Lions, Saints, Chiefs and Chargers. As many of us do we can run down the list of teams and say this is game is a win and that game is a win. Fans can also say that the Cowboys will have no trouble with the Rams or Chiefs. But remember one thing about this Cowboys team over recent seasons, they make nothing easy.

What’s my point to all my rambling in this article? Well, with all these questions how can Cowboys fans expect anything better than another 8-8 season in 2013? With the recent history of the Cowboys I would think that none of what I’ve mentioned in this article will be easy to address and the 2013 season will be a difficult one. I really hope I’m wrong, but at this point I really don’t think so. This team just might have to deal with getting worse in order to start getting better. That is a horrible thought, but it also could be a realistic thought.