Dave Halprin of Blogging The Boys answers our questions
With the New York Giants playing the Dallas Cowboys on Thursday night at MetLife Stadium, it is a fast turnaround not only for players, but for those of us who cover the team. So, here at Big Blue View we are already on to Dallas.
Our ‘5 questions’ this week is with David Halprin of SB Nation’s Blogging The Boys. Halprin and I are SB Nation long-timers, and have probably done more of these together than any other duo in the company.
Let’s get to this one.
Ed: A 1-2 start with Dallas losing back-to-back games at home and playing poorly on defense? What is going on?
David: On defense, we have a few issues that are coming together to create a very poor unit. First was a change in coordinators from Dan Quinn, who preferred a lighter, faster defense that was very aggressive in going after the quarterback. Mike Zimmer’s scheme wants bigger players that make the run defense a priority, with disguised blitzes and coverage to confuse the offense. It doesn’t appear the Cowboys have mastered it yet. There is also a major issue with the defensive tackles who are regularly getting blown off the line of scrimmage opening huge holes in the middle of the line. This also creates a lot of traffic for the linebackers to negotiate on run plays, leaving the middle of the defense vulnerable. We also have some ‘hero ball’ going on. For example, defensive ends are crashing in toward the middle on read-options and other plays instead of playing their assignment, leaving the edges completely open. Add that all up and you have a run defense that has totally collapsed.
There are other elements of the Cowboys’ game that need improvement, better play from the offensive line, better play from the WR group. But nothing really matters until they get the run defense fixed. Both the Saints and the Ravens spent most of their time just running the ball and grinding the life out of the Cowboys.
Ed: The Cowboys have won six straight and 13 of 14 games against the Giants. Does this feel like a week where the Giants might be able to reverse that trend?
David: It does feel like that. Recently we always felt that the game against the Giants was a gimme twice a year. And the record, as you state in the question, confirmed that. But there is nothing guaranteed about this year’s Cowboys team. It is entirely possible they will go to New York and lay a big egg. I still think the Cowboys have the edge in overall talent along the roster, but with the way they have been playing the last two weeks, nothing is certain. The Giants could absolutely win this game, especially if they can take advantage of the Cowboys run defense.
Ed: If you could take one player off the Giants’ roster and put him in the Dallas lineup who would it be? Why?
David: Easy. Dexter Lawrence. As noted above, the Cowboys defensive tackles have been terrible this season. Lawrence would actually give us a weapon in the middle.
Ed: What is the story with the Jordan Phillips injury? The Giants thank Dallas for playing him in two games before putting him on IR, by the way, since that meant the pick swap became official.
David: The game against the Saints was full of defensive tackles getting pushed five, even seven yards off the ball with no resistance. Jordan Phillips was one of the main culprits in that horror film. So soon after that, the Cowboys designated Phillips for IR with a wrist injury. We even joked internally that the real injury was to his ego and pride. Soon after the transaction was announced, Phillips told a local reporter that there was nothing wrong with him physically but that he had to do what the team wanted. From the outside, it certainly feels like the Cowboys took what was probably a minor injury and turned it into an IR trip mainly because Phillips was failing on the field and they needed his spot to add Carlos Watkins at the position. I’m not sure they will ever bring him back, we expect a release transaction to come in a few weeks.
Ed: The Giants will win Thursday because? The Giants will win because?
David: The Giants will win on Thursday if they can generate a strong running game on offense, and avoid putting Daniel Jones in tough positions against the Cowboys pass rush. The Cowboys are built to play from ahead, they want to make teams one-dimensional on offense so they can unleash their pass rush, and give opportunities for their ball-hawking secondary players. Both the Saints and Ravens flipped that script by running the ball on Dallas, getting leads and then just grinding them to dust. The other key element is to do everything you can to take CeeDee Lamb out of the game.
The Cowboys will win on Thursday if they can get their offense cranked up early and actually put some touchdowns on the board instead of settling for field goals. Until the fourth quarter of the Ravens game, the Cowboys were kicking way too many field goals. They have to get better in scoring touchdowns to win. They also need to, no surprise, figure out a way to slow down the opposition’s run game. I can’t stress enough how the Cowboys poor play against the run has doomed them the last two weeks.
