← Locked On Cowboys - Daily Podcast On The Dallas Cowboys
Locked On Cowboys - Daily Podcast On The Dallas Cowboys
Cowboys' Offensive Line DECIMATED by Injuries | Jets' Pass Rush Ready to Pounce
00:31:11
The Dallas Cowboys face a crucial test against the New York Jets in Week 5. Despite offensive success, the Cowboys' defense has been shockingly ineffective. Meanwhile, the Jets seek to snap a four-game losing streak.
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Foreign.
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Prices and participation may vary jets coming off four straight losses to start to start the season Cowboys coming off a tie who's going to win Sunday when the jets take on the Dallas Cowboys at MetLife Stadium? Let's break it down on today's Lockdown NFL Crossover.
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You are Locked On NFL Crossover part of the Locked On Podcast Network. Your team every day.
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Welcome on in Cowboys fans and jets fans. I am John Butchco, the host of Lockdown jets alongside Marcus Mosher, the co host of Lockdown Cowboys. We're here to get you ready for Week 5 action as the Cowboys visit MetLife Stadium to take on the New York Jets. It's Crossover Thursday here on the Lockdown Podcast Network and you should know that Crossover Thursday is presented by Prize Picks. Download the Prize Picks app today and use code LOCKDOWN NFL to get $50 in lineup after you play your first $5 lineup. Well Marcus, great to chat with you. Very rare AFC NFC game where these teams actually met two years ago. So last time these teams played it was Week 2 of 2023. It was Zach Wilson's first start after Aaron Rodgers's injury and the Cowboys won that game in a laugher. Last time These teams made MetLife Stadium actually some overlap. It was 2019. The jets had a first year coach Adam Gase. They started 0 and 4. They looked completely lost and they shocked the NFL by winning that game. Not to say that's going to happen again this time. But anyway, how are you doing and let's get started. You know what are the big stories going on in Dallas right now?
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Well, the big storyline is the Cowboys just are trying to figure out how to feel about a tie. Like in some ways they played really well against Green Bay. You felt like, you should have won that game. But the defense also didn't really stop Green Bay at all in the second half. Green base scored on every single possession in, in the second half. And in overtime, you might feel lucky that you got a tie against the team that a lot of people think could be a Super bowl representative in the nfc. So it's, it's a lot of like, okay, we feel good, but we feel kind of bad because we didn't get a win. And now they enter the part of their schedule where if they're going to be a playoff team. I was going to say contender, but they're not a real contender. A playoff team, you've got to start picking up some wins. They play the jets this week in New York. They play the Panthers next week in Carolina. If you want to be relevant at all, you've got to win these two games. And unfortunately, we've seen this version of the Cowboy team kind of lay some eggs on the road. You know, against Chicago this year, that was a game that they were favoring. We thought they were going to go in and win. That one didn't happen. We'll see if it happens. Against the Jets.
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What are the overall vibes around this team? You know, kind of zooming out a little bit. I know it's a one, two and one start. I know you have new coach this year and Brian Schottenheimer, a former jets offensive coordinator who not very popular in the fan base during his time here. Obviously a very dramatic off season that ended in a big trade. Just kind of wondering what the pulse is around the team and around the Cowboys fan base at the moment.
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I gotta say, this is probably the weirdest time ever to be a Cowboy fan because you have most of the fan base that's upset with Jerry Jones because of the Micah Parsons trade. Right. They feel like they traded away their best player in his prime and they didn't get enough. And not only that, you gave them to one of your biggest rivals in the Packers. On the other hand, you've got Dak Prescott playing at an MVP level. Like, I don't think that's too strong to say, like, he is playing the best football of his career. The offense is way better than anybody anticipated. They've been without multiple starters, including CD Lamb, Tyler Booker, Cooper, Bibi, Tyler, Guyton. And yet they still are putting up 40 points in some of these games. So you feel like, okay, maybe you've got the right coach to that can take this offense to the next level. But the front office is so bad and the defense is absolutely horrendous that you just don't know how to feel. And I think honestly these next two games, the jets and the Panthers are going to help answer a lot of questions about where the Cowboys are at as a franchise right now.
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Well, the jets are at a very different point from the Cowboys. They're off to an 04 start, which is disappointing. I don't know that it's entirely unexpected. I was hoping the jets would be better this year and a couple of these games could have gone either way. I mean, I think the jets were competitive in three of the four games.
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I mean, the Steeler game is one they probably should have won.
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Yeah, I would agree with that. You know, they got blown out by Buffalo. Week two, Week three against Tampa Bay was a wild game. They were down 20 in the fourth quarter. They actually took the lead briefly before losing out. Last field goal. Then I guess the Miami Dolphins, I mean, they were in the game, but they kept making the self inflicted error. Big story around the jets right now is just overall frustration because I'll tell you, Marcus, I don't think this jets team is that talented by NFL standards. I think if you ranked this jets roster versus the rosters of the other 31 teams in the league, it would come in pretty low. But I don't think the big reason the jets are losing this game, these games is necessarily a lack of talent. I think jets are just making a lot of mistakes. Lots of penalties and dumb penalties, you know, personal fouls, not getting set at the line of scrimmage on big passing downs.
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Well, can I, can I ask you something, John? Because one of the things I'm struggling with right now is you look at this jets defense and you see a lot of big names, right? You see Quinn and Williams, you see Sauce Gardner. We know they've had some injuries at linebacker, but this is, this is a defense with like Will McDonald who had a lot of flashes in week one. Harrison Phillips is the guy, you know, that the Cowboys were hoping to trade for. And you don't understand why the defense is this bad. Whereas like on the Cowboy side, I mean they're worse than the jets on defense. But it's understandable because they don't have all pro players like Quinn and Williams and Sauce Gardner. They also don't have a defensive minded coach like Aaron Glenn. Why has this defense gotten to be this porous?
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I have three reasons for you. Number one, the big names are not playing up to their standard. Sauce Gardner had a great week one Against Pittsburgh really shut down DK Metcalf. In fact, all of that Cap's production came against somebody else. The rare the the jets had Gardner's shadow Metcalf. The handful of plays Gardner did not guard Metcalf. That was when DK put up his production. Quinn and Williams, he played really well against the run, but he hasn't been an impact guy as a pass rusher just yet. So that's number one. Number two, there have been issues implementing this new scheme. I've talked about it on lockdown Jets. It seems like there's a lot of confusion, particularly in the secondary about assignments. I don't know if things are being communicated effectively, but you see guys who aren't really sure where they need to be. There's a lack of communication. Guys are not switching when they should be. There's, there, there's just all these, all these issues where it just seems like something is out of sorts in, in the secondary. And I, I, I think that the, I think the scheme has, the guys are still learning the scheme and it's clear that they're not entirely comfortable with it right now. And you're just seeing a lot of breakdown, see guys run into each other, guys not calling out, rub routes, pick plays. It's just a mess right now.
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Number three, I was gonna say the corner. Seems like it's an issue outside of Sauce as well. Like they're struggling to find that other guy. Whether it's Brandon Stevens or Michael Carter in the slot. It seems like that's been the another big issue in this defense.
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Absolutely. Yeah. My number three is that while there are big names like Sauce, Gardner and Quinn and Williams, there are also a lot of guys who really should not be in starting level roles who getting big snaps on this defense. Brandon Stevens was one of the big additions this off season. They signed him for Baltimore as a corner. It left a lot of people scratching their heads in the jets fan base. Left a lot of analysts who just follow the NFL in general scratching their heads. Stevens has been a guy who really struggled in Baltimore. It has been ugly so far this season. Jets have also had some injuries. So you have guys like Michael Clemens getting big snaps. Michael Clemens is a guy who at best is like a number four defensive end who you play maybe 10 snaps a game and he's not a guy who's going to produce a lot. He's a guy who maybe won't kill you unless he, you know, commits the, he's tendency to commit the big penalty.
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He's a little bit of a hothead. He's very similar to Sam Williams who. The Cowboys are going through the same struggles right now at defensive end.
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Yeah. So. And then they've suffered some injuries again, like there is top end talent but there is zero depth. And so Quincy Williams is out who was an all pro linebacker two years ago. His backup, Marcelino McCrary Ball is out with an injury. So now you have Kiko Maloa who was a day three rookie starting at linebacker. And you look across the defense, lots of guys who, Tony Adams, who is a decent depth player but should not be a starting safety in this league. So the top, the high end, the top end talent for the jets is good, but the lower tier starters are guys who really should not be playing starting roles in this league. And I think that that's what's getting exposed on this defense. And it's been ugly. I mean there's no question about it.
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Now you would hope when you're, when you hire a defensive minded head coach that they can cover up some of the lesser players. And that's again, that's why you hire somebody like Aaron Glenn. It's, this is not anything new for him. When he was in Detroit last year, they had at point 10 defensive linemen that were out and yet that defense found ways to be successful. Has it been, I mean, I'm assuming it has been very discouraging that he hasn't been able to get those same results in New York.
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Yes. And there's a bit of mystery about how much Glenn is hands on and how much he's delegated to the coordinator he hired, Steve Wils. You know, I, whatever is, whatever they've been doing has not been working. And it's been, you know, it's been, it hasn't just been that like the, that they've struggled. It's been how sloppy they've been, how many blown assignments that they, they've had. Just. And what's frustrating is that the 2024 jets were a really sloppy team. Lots of penalties, lots of just not smart football. Glenn came in here. The first thing Glenn said and he was vocal about this all off season was we're going to play more disciplined football, we're going to play smarter football and it hasn't happened yet. You know, maybe it'll start happening going forward. Jets fans certainly have to hope so. We'll head here on our crossover Thursday edition of the Lockdown jets and Lockdown Cowboys. We're going to talk about the biggest matchups. We'll talk about jets offense versus Cowboys Defense, jets defense versus Cowboys offense. That's ahead here on our Locked on crossover episode. Our crossover Thursday edition of Lockdown jets and Lockdown Cowboys is brought to you by FanDuel. The NFL season is here and FanDuel is making sure you're ready for kickoff with a can't miss offer because right now new customers can bet just $5. And if your bet wins, you'll get $300 in bonus bets to use across the app. FanDuel fits however you'd like to bet, player props, building a same game parlay or even jumping in live as the action unfolds. It makes every game more exciting, whether you're watching your team or just keeping an eye on your fantasy lineup. It's quick, easy and the best way to add a little bit more energy to Sundays. And looking ahead to this Sunday Cowboys coming to MetLife Stadium to play the Jets Dallas a two and a half point road favorite if you've been watching the jets all year, that's no surprise. You would expect the jets to be home underdogs to the Dallas Cowboys. So are you ready to play? Download the FanDuel app now by visiting FanDuel.com to get started. That's FanDuel.com to place your first five dollar bet. Today's lockdown crossover is also brought to you by Wayfair. When you think game day, you may not think Wayfair, but you should. Because Wayfair is the best kept secret for incredible and affordable game day finds. Wayfair everything you need to get your space ready for the season. Whether you're tailgating outdoors or cheering from your living room, what's best about Wayfair is the selection. Wayfair has unique finds and options for every budget so you can show off your team spirit without overspending. Delivery is fast, free and hassle free, which is a lifesaver when you need something in time for kickoff. From outdoor essentials like folding chairs and patio heaters to indoor must haves like TV stands and servewear, Wayfair has it all in one place. Wayfair is your trusted destination for all things game day. From coolers and grills to recliners and slow cookers, Shop, save and score today@wayfair.com that's W-A-Y-F A I R.com Wayfair Every style, every Home It's Crossover Thursday here on the Lockdown Podcast Network. I'm John Butchco, the host of Lockdown jets alongside Marcus Moser, the co host of Lockdown Cowboys Getting you ready for Week 5 action. Dallas Cowboys coming to MetLife Stadium to take on the Jets. One of two trips by the Cowboys to MetLife Stadium this season because of course the Cowboys are the NFC East. They also take on the Giants each year. Marcus, let's talk key matchups. What do you have your eye on in this game?
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I don't know if I really want to have my eye on this matchup, but it's the jets offense against the Cowboys defense. And John, I don't know if your listeners know, but the Cowboys defense is awful. And awful is actually maybe too nice. It's the worst unit I have ever seen in my life. They did not force the packers to punt in the second half. In an overtime, the Bears scored, I think on their first six possessions against Dallas. Russell Wilson threw for 450 yards and three touchdowns and he was benched. Two weeks later he averaged 11 yards attempt. This defense is pitiful and I think the concern is in this game, even Justin Fields, who is not maybe a franchise level quarterback, can come into this game and have a ton of success. I was actually googling Justin Fields highest passing yardage total in the NFL in a single game. I think it's 335. Wouldn't be surprised if he gets it. But I think the bigger concern for me is how do the Cowboys handle this run game because if I were the Jets, I would try to run the ball 40 times in this game. Let Fields handle it 10, 12 times, give it to Breeze hall, give it to Isaiah Davis and just try to limit the number of possessions in this game because you're going to have success moving the ball. The Cowboys have a bend, but don't break defense, but they break on almost every single drive. So if you could put together these 10, 12, 14 play drives, you're just going to limit the number of times that your defense is on the field. That is terrifying for Cowboy fans.
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You know, you say it's the worst defense you've ever seen in Dallas. It's almost like a challenge to the jets because the jets defense is up there this year. Year it has not been very good. You know, I, I think that what you said though makes sense because it kind of plays into what the jets offensive identity is. The jets want to run the ball on Monday night against Miami. They ran the ball 13 of the first 14 plays. Now, a little caveat. There were a couple designed passes where Justin Fields took off on a scramble. But this is jets team that wants to run early and often. So that could very well, could be the type of thing that, that they look to, they look to get going. I think that the, they very well could be running the game plan that you suggest. I'm going to give you my first matchup. Garrett Wilson versus Duron Bland. Garrett Wilson is the jets number one receiver and he's had three seasons in the NFL. He's been over a thousand yards three times. And Marcus, I probably don't need to tell you the jets quarterback play has not been that great during Garrett Wilson's time in the NFL. Even last year with Aaron Rodgers, who, you know Aaron Rodgers, obviously a four time MVP of future first ballot hall of Famer. Aaron Rodgers did not play at a super high level for the jets last year and he was the best quarterback who's who Garrett Wilson has ever had. Garrett Wilson's off to the best start of his career. He's really the, the one option and really the only option through the first four games. Now there was a, there was a guy I'm going to talk about a little bit later who may have stepped up against Miami and maybe kind of sliding into the, the number two role in the jets offense. But he's the only reliable guy the jets can throw to on the offensive side of the ball. So defenses know that they have to key on Garrett Wilson. But Garrett Wilson's still been getting numbers. He's through the first four weeks. He's on a 1300 yard pace. So jets passing game runs, runs through Garrett Wilson even though they're a run first team. Look, it's the NFL. Jets are not running the wishbone here. We're not, you know, a triple option team.
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Jets might not be a bad idea this week, honestly, but go ahead.
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Yeah, well, I still, I still think the jets are going to throw the ball. So I think Garrett Wilson's going to, you know, Garrett Wilson is going to be an important guy.
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Can I try to name all the quarterbacks that Garrett Wilson has caught passes from?
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Let's see.
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Justin Fields, Tyrod Taylor, Zach Wilson, Aaron Rodgers, Joe Flacco, Mike White. There was a Tim Boyle game in there, a Trevor Simeon and I think, I think I'm missing one, but I think I got them all. It's, it's not a great list.
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I think you might be right about that. I think Trevor Simeon was the one that I was expecting Trevor Simeon to be the one that tripped you up. But yeah, yeah, it's been rough.
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But I do think you're right to highlight this matchup because Duron Bland has been dealing with A foot ankle injury. He just got back on the field last week against Green Bay and Green Bay went at him and as you would expect, like, that's a guy that's coming off an injury. Cowboys are hopeful that he'll be better here in week five. Trayvon Diggs has been very up and down now. I do think he played better against Green Bay, but again, he's really more of an off cornerback, off man cornerback that you want sitting in zones. The Cowboys have paid a lot of money for their two cornerbacks, Diggs and Bland. They're hopeful that this is like a matchup they can exploit. You know, you look at the receivers outside of Garrett Wilson and nobody really scares you. I think Alan Lazard was the only receiver for the jets to catch a pass last week. This is a matchup. The Cowboys have to win if they want to win this game. And based on just what we've seen over the last couple weeks, whether it was Luther Burden or Romeo Dobbs or Roma Dunze or Blake Neighbors or Wandale Robinson, I don't feel all that optimistic about it.
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Do you have a second matchup?
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Sure. I mean, I'm really curious to see how the jets offensive line, really their interior offensive line handles the Cowboys defensive tackles. Because the pass rush has been rough for Dallas this year. Right. They're hoping Jadavian Clowney can be better than he was last week. They have Martian Neal and they have Donovan as a Rocku. But the strength of this team is OSA Digizua and Kenny Clark. Those two guys have to provide the pass rush. They've got to be able to stop the run. And I think if you're going to get the Jets a little bit, it's their interior offensive line. Armand Menbu has been fantastic at right tackle, but how do they handle Like Josh Myers at center, Tipman at right guard. That's one of the matchups that I'm curious to see because if the jets, if the jets are able to block those guys up front, they're going to be able to run the ball all day. If the Cowboys want to win, they're going to have to force the jets to get into some of these third and long situations and make Justin Fields pass. Keep an eye on the interior offensive line and defensive line here.
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You know, great minds think alike. I almost went with that as my second matchup because I, I agree with everything you just said. I think that that is an absolutely critical matchup. But the second matchup I went with was Quinn and Williams versus the interior of the Dallas offensive line because I know the Cowboys have been a little bit banged up on the interior. As I said earlier, Quinn and Williams is playing the run really well this year. He rushed the passer very effectively against Pittsburgh Week one. He's been kind of quiet since then. And like I said earlier, the jets secondary has been a bit of a mess in recent weeks. So if the jets have any chance of slowing down this Cowboys offense, it has to be from the pass rush. And, you know, Jermaine Johnson's status is up in the air. He's missed the last two games with an ankle injury. Will McDonald, the first round pick from a year ago, he's been up and down this year.
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He's not really a run defender. He's more of a pass rusher as well.
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Yeah, absolutely. So really, the guy who's got a, who's got to take this game over is Quinn and Williams. You know, I think especially the jets are going to want to get him matched up against Brock Hoffman, TJ Bass, you know, try and take advantage of the backups the jets, the Cowboys have in there. And I always think like when you have an offensive, when you have offensive line injuries, it's kind of a double whammy in a way. It's not for any other position because at any position when you put a backup in, usually it's not as good as the starter. But on the offensive line, it especially hurts because the offensive line is so much about chemistry and continuity that it's really tough to just put guys in there. Jets have experienced that a little bit this year with Elijah Vera, Tucker going down and Joe Tippman moving to guard, although I think they've handled it relatively well. But I think Quinn and Williams, if the jets are going to pull the upset here, this has to be a game where Quinn and Williams gets like two, two, two and a half sacks. Yeah.
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And we should also mention Tyler Guyton. The Cowboys, a left tackle, he suffered a concussion on Sunday. Now the Cowboys think he's going to be able to make it through protocol? I have my doubts. And that means you could have potentially three new starters this week and it would be a seventh round Picket left tackle, a first round picket left guard. Undrafted free agent. Undrafted free agent. Undrafted free agent. That's a matchup. The jets have to win if they want to slow down Dallas.
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All right, well, you've heard the big stories around these teams. You've heard the big matchups ahead here on our crossover Thursday edition of Lockdown. Jetson locked on Cowboys. We're going to talk ease to victory. What do the jets need to do? What do the Cowboys need to do? That's ahead here on the Lockdown Podcast Network. Today's Crossover Thursday edition of Lockdown Jetson Locked on Cowboys is brought to you by Game Time. The NFL season is back and honestly, there's nothing better than being in the stadium surrounded by fans cheering on your team. But let's be honest, getting tickets can be a hassle. Between queues, login screens and prices jumping at checkout. It's frustrating. That's why I use Game Time, the app that gives the advantage back to fans. Game Time is fast, easy and backed by the Game Time guarantee. You'll always get 100 authentic tickets delivered on time and at the best price. Plus all fees are included. So the price you see is the price you pay. Marcus I've used Game Time on a number of occasions myself. I've told this to Lockdown jets fans, but I'll tell this to you and Lockdown Cowboys fans. My family always goes to San Diego for Christmas because that's where my brother lives. There's about two years ago we were going to the Holiday bowl and my dad had bought tickets for some of us, but not all of us. My nephew says I want to go to the game. I pull out my phone, I'm like I got this. I got a got a great ticket on Game Time for an affordable price. Just one of many times I've used Game Time and I love that they give you the all in prices because you don't have to worry about hidden fees. You know the price before you buy. So download the gametime app, create an account and use code lockdown NFL for 20 off your first purchase terms apply again that's promo code locked on NFL L O C K E D O N N F L one word with no space for $20 off swipe tap ticket go download Game Time today. You just realized your business needed to hire someone yesterday. How can you find amazing candidates fast? Easy use Indeed With Indeed sponsored jobs, there are no monthly subscriptions, no long.
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B
It's Crossover Thursday here on the Lockdown Podcast network. I'm John Butchko, the host of Lockdown jets alongside Marcus Mosher, the co host of Lockdown Cowboys. All right, Marcus, it's time to talk keys to victory. What's your first key for the Dallas Cowboys? Boys?
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A
The first one is just do your job right. Like I think I'm gonna diss the Jets a little bit here. I think the Cowboys are the more talented team, they're the more disciplined team. We've seen that the jets have really racked up the penalties. They're prone to fumbling the ball. Now, Fields has not turned the ball over himself a ton, but as long as you don't make the back breaking mistakes like the defensive holding call on third and 11 or jumping offside to the false start, I do think the talent will ultimately win out here. And for the most of these games, like if you just go across the league more often than not the better quarterback, usually their teams end up winning these games. And then Dak Prescott again is playing some of the best football of his career. So avoid those big penalties. Don't play outside of yourself. If the Cowboys can do that, I think they'll be just fine.
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B
Oh, that's a perfect segue to my first key for the jets. And, and you have to cut out the dumb plays. And I was about to say the same thing you did. The Cowboys are the better of the two teams now in the NFL, if you're the less talented team, you can win. You know, the talent gap in the NFL between the worst team and the best team is really not that big. This is not Alabama versus, you know, Northwest Idaho State.
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A
You know, I watched the Titans last week, we might disagree on that one, but. Sorry, Tyler.
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B
So the point is like in college, like there, you know, the college, like one team, what can be so much better than the other? You can play poorly and you can play really badly and lose. If you're the better team in the NFL, anybody can beat anybody. You know the old saying, any given Sunday, but if you're the lesser team, you can't make dumb mistakes. And the jets have played the first four games as dumb as any team I've ever seen. They just make, don't just take terrible mistake after terrible mistake. A personal foul that ends the drive. The jets move the ball well against Miami, they just kept committing the penalties at the worst possible time. Things like fumbling, things like fair catch on the three yard line. I mean these are, these are the mistakes you can't make. If you want to be a superior Dallas team. So first thing for the first key for the jets is just play smart football. So how about you, what's, what's your number two key for Dallas?
- [26:29]
A
It's win the special teams battle. And this is something that the Cowboys did well last week against Green Bay. They blocked the extra point that they returned for two points. That's a three point swing. Cavante Turpin had a big return at the end of the game to set up the go ahead touchdown. Brandon Aubrey, one of the best kickers in the league, he was clutch all game long with the kickoffs. In a game in which the Cowboys defense is going to struggle to get stops, you have to win the special teams battle. And that's something that for the most part the Cowboys have done this year. Keep an eye on their special teams unit because a lot of times they can swing games. If they have a poor game in this one, it's going to be awfully hard for the offense to overcome that unit as well as the defense.
- [27:09]
B
My number two key for the jets might be familiar to jets fans because I think I've used this key the last two, three weeks. The jets have to simplify their coverage. They have to figure out this coverage scheme because there are just too many busts in the secondary. I mean, there was a, there was a play on a third down against Miami where they had nobody assigned to Tyreek Hill. I mean, essentially like it was the easiest completion of two attack of Violo's life. It's a third down play. He's going to look to his number one receiver and nobody's covering him. And that was seemed like it was by design by the coverage the jets ran. But there were also just breakdowns. I mean, there was one, one play where Hill caught a pass because Sauce Gardner thought he thought he and Tony Adams were switching and Adams didn't switch. This system right now just seems like it's confusing guys. So the jets need to simplify things. They need to get everyone on the same page. And even if you're running more basic coverages, it's better to run a coverage you can execute than a complex coverage you're going to bust. So I think they just have to adjust what they're doing on the defensive side of the ball.
- [28:10]
A
And for the Cowboys, the last thing the offense has got to start fast. You cannot have one of these games where it takes you 2, 3 possessions to get points on the board. This happened against Green Bay last week. Like they got down early in this game and Then you know, they're really fighting all game long to get back in it. Against a Jets team that's coming off a Monday night game on the road, you have to start hot. You've got to go down in the first couple drives and get points, even if it's just field goals getting something on the board. Because I do think this jets team, some of the quotes you're hearing out of the locker room aren't great. If you can get that 100 lead, 140 lead, maybe things can start to roll downhill for you a little bit. But the longer you keep the jets in this game, the more that they're going to believe that they can steal it. Don't let that happen.
- [28:53]
B
Yeah, I've seen this happen. I've. I've got a lot of experience watching bad jets teams, and one thing I've noticed is when the jets have a bad team and they're able to pull an upset, it's when the other team gets off to a slow start, momentum starts to build, and the jets start to believe. So I think that that's. That's a great point that you make. My third key for the jets is continue to get Mason Taylor involved. You know, I mentioned earlier that Garrett Wilson is the number one receiver on this team. And through the first three weeks of the season, there really was no second option. In week four, we started to see a second option emerge. It was a rookie tight end, Mason Taylor, who got off to a slow start, which is not surprising. Tight ends, a tough position to transition to in the NFL. Taylor's not a finished product. He's actually the son of hall of Fame defensive end Jason Taylor and the nephew of hall of linebacker Zach Thomas. So, you know, a guy who's, you know, got great family ties to the NFL, but it started to feel like he was coming on against Miami, and it also started to feel like Justin Fields was getting comfortable throwing him the ball. And we know that for the jets, every team's coverage scheme is going to be focused around taking away Garrett Wilson. And Garrett Wilson's been so good that he's still been able to produce despite that so far this year. But you still want to have somebody who can give Garrett Wilson a break. So Mason Taylor stepping up, I think, I think is important. I think his continuing. Him continuing to kind of grow in his role in this, this offense type of thing. The jets need. Jets can run the ball. Jets have a number one receiver. What they're lacking is a quality target beyond Garrett Wilson. If Mason Taylor can be that Guy, it could take this jets offense to a better place.
- [30:27]
A
And just for a prediction real quick, this game makes me really nervous. If you're a Cowboy fan, you just came off an emotional Sunday night game that went into overtime. They played a bunch of snaps in that one. You now you're going on the road playing a noon kickoff for them, a 1pm kickoff. Cowboys have historically struggled in these kind of games, so I'm not saying that they're going to lose, but this is the type of game that should make you very, very nervous. I actually, I'm going to pick the jets to pull off the upset in a, let's say 27, 24 game. Be, be cautious of this one, Cowboy fans.
- [31:02]
B
I, I would pick the Dallas Cowboys, but I, I think, I think that, I think it's gonna be a high scoring game just based on these defenses, which, the way these things go is like this is gonna end up being like a 10, 7 game because it'll be the one game where these defenses finally play well. You know, it's. The NFL has a way of throwing curveballs at us. You know, just when you, whenever you, you're sure of something's going to happen in a game, the opposite usually happens, I find. So I wouldn't be surprised if this was, I think it's gonna be a high scoring game. But would I be shocked if like this game out of nowhere is like a defensive struggle? No. I think the jets are gonna be competitive in this one though. I think that this is. I'm not ready to pick the jets to win. I need to see the jets close out of the game before I'm ready to pick them to win. But I think that this jets team, there's a lot of just negative feelings around them. I feel like this is, this is the type of game where maybe they sneak up on Dallas and at least give him a scare. So I think, I think we're kind of on the same page. This might be, this is a rare Locked on episode though where we're picking the other, we're picking the other team.
- [32:00]
A
Shows you our confidence at our respective teams. Right?
- [32:03]
B
I, I've been a part of a few of these before, which I, I think when you're a Jets fan, you, you never pick the jets. But yeah, I think, I think you're absolutely right. Mark is great chatting with you as always. I wish we could do this more often. I had a great time. I wish. You know, unfortunately the AFC NFC teams don't only meet every couple years, but it was great chatting with you.
- [32:23]
A
Same as well.
- [32:24]
B
All right. And jets fans and Cowboys fans, be sure to tune into Locked on Jetson Locked on Cowboys. Tomorrow you're on the lockdown podcast network. Our motto is your team every day. We're here every day. Monday through Friday, Marcus will be back on lockdown Cowboys. I'll be on lockdown. Jets will preview this week five game between the jets and the Cowboys. We'll chat that a prime members, you.
- [32:52]
A
Can listen to this locked on podcast ad free free on Amazon music. Download the Amazon music app Today. This is Fire TV's College Football Kickoff. I'm Drake Toll alongside North Carolina and Dallas Cowboys wide receiver Jesse Holly and.
- [33:08]
B
The hall of Famer Gary Patterson. We're previewing the biggest matchups in college football with unmatched insight.
- [33:13]
A
And I know a little something something that's exactly right, coach.
- [33:16]
B
Every Thursday right here on Fire TV.