Dallas Cowboys CRUMBLE Under Pressure | Lose to Detroit Lions In Heartbreaker!

Summary

Locked On Cowboys – Episode Summary

Episode Title: Dallas Cowboys CRUMBLE Under Pressure | Lose to Detroit Lions In Heartbreaker!
Hosts: Marcus Mosher, Landon McCool
Date: December 5, 2025
Game Discussed: Cowboys vs. Lions, Cowboys lose 44-30

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Episode Overview

In this emotionally charged episode, Marcus Mosher and Landon McCool break down the Dallas Cowboys’ crushing Thursday Night Football loss to the Detroit Lions. Described as both a microcosm of the Cowboys’ season and a pseudo-playoff game, the hosts analyze how Dallas once again came up short under pressure, plagued by unforced errors, questionable coaching, passive defense, and disastrous special teams play. The show offers candid reactions, critical player evaluations, and a blunt outlook on the Cowboys' rapidly dwindling playoff chances.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Game as Season Microcosm (02:26)

• Landon McCool: “This game was sort of a microcosm for the larger season right where the Cowboys dug themselves a hole too deep for them to climb out of. Right. They just made too many mistakes." (02:29)
• Cowboys looked unprepared for Amon-Ra St. Brown’s full health, struggled to contain Jahmyr Gibbs.
• Defensive struggles resembled the team’s worst early-season form before trades and bye week.

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2. Big Game Jitters & Unforced Errors (03:50)

• Marcus Mosher: “This had a big game atmosphere … some Cowboys, not all, but for some, this game felt a little too big and a little too fast.” (03:53)
• Notable gaffes included:
  • Dak Prescott’s risky backward lateral.
  • Jake Ferguson fumbling on third and long.
  • George Pickens’ costly fumble near the goal line.
• Team lacked sharpness and composure in critical moments.

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3. Explosive Plays & Execution Problems (04:50)

• Both teams produced big plays, but Detroit executed theirs efficiently while Dallas created chaos: backward passes, sacks, and self-inflicted wounds.
• Issues went beyond penalties to fundamental execution and situational awareness.
• Young players (Ravel, Nate Thomas) singled out for struggles, but veteran defenders like Kenneth Murray also criticized for poor play.

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4. Coaching Decisions Under the Microscope (06:31)

• Marcus Mosher critiqued the coaching staff, especially OC Brian Schottenheimer:
  • Failure to maximize scoring on end-of-half possessions.
  • Playing it safe (settling for long field goals) rather than aggressive fourth-down attempts.
• Key Sequence (07:02): “A 4th and 3 from Detroit’s 37... you’re better off just going for it... Instead they settle for a 55 yard field goal and six plays later, Detroit … kick[s] a short field goal. It's little moments like that where games are won and lost.” (07:02)
• Questionable game management on strategic decisions such as not taking a safety to flip field position.
• Schottenheimer’s play calling praised in spots but overall seen as insufficient given key mistakes and lack of supporting cast efficiency.

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5. Superstar & Key Player Performances

CeeDee Lamb’s Dominance, Injury (12:35)

• CeeDee Lamb was unstoppable early: “Six catches for 121 yards, almost all of it in the first half... You wonder what this game would have looked like if CeeDee stays healthy.” (12:35)
• Hosts lamented lost offensive potential after his injury.

George Pickens’ Disinterest and Penalties (14:45)

• Marcus Mosher: “Five catches for 37 yards on nine targets... two penalties, including a face mask call... Just looked disinterested.” (14:45)
• Noted poor effort, timing on routes, and lack of impact after CeeDee’s injury.
• Landon McCool: “On those plays Pickens was not running at full speed and he needs to be. … They were putting incredible efforts to stop Pickens specifically.” (15:38)

Supporting Cast Disappears

• Ferguson performed poorly, supporting receivers contributed little.
• Offensive rhythm disappeared after early success, especially once leaning on backups.

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6. Defensive Meltdown (17:17 - 21:46)

• Lions amassed 408 yards, averaging 7.2 yards per play.
• Struggles included:
  • Losing the edge repeatedly, allowing big outside runs (David Montgomery, Jahmyr Gibbs).
  • Jared Goff carved up the defense with quick, efficient throws.
  • Lack of pressure in the passing game, especially missing impact from DEs like Clowney.
• Landon McCool: “They got completely just outclassed physically. … Add on top of that a rotating array of terrible older linebackers…” (19:27)
• Inability to stop a depleted Lions O-line was especially frustrating.
• Lack of urgency regarding injured starters—questioned holding out players like Trayvon Diggs with playoffs on the line.

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7. Special Teams Disaster (24:30)

• Coverage units called “awful.”
• Stat: Cowboys surrendered 282 return yards (25:08, 28:36).
• Detroit consistently achieved excellent field position via returns, neutralizing strong performances from punter Brian Anger and kicker Brandon Aubrey.
• “One of the worst coverage units I’ve seen for a team that did not score like a return touchdown.” (24:30)
• Coaching (Dick Sorenson) directly blamed for failures in scheme and discipline.
• Ironic downside: Aubrey’s reliability made coaches too comfortable settling for long field goals over aggressive plays.

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8. Playoff Prospects and Team Outlook (29:17)

• Cowboys now 6-6-1, sitting 17th in NFL standings.
• Playoff odds "down to 10%"—winning out only gives a 46% chance.
• Marcus Mosher: “The division is basically over at this point. You’re not winning your division.” (29:38)
• Hosts expect organization to keep playing to win but anticipate a possible pivot to youth development over playoff hopes.
• Defensive coordinator future openly questioned: “Are you gonna risk rolling the dice once more with the defensive coordinator … that man, it’s hard to trust at this point.” (22:18)

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• [02:29] Landon McCool: “This game was sort of a microcosm for the larger season right where the Cowboys dug themselves a hole too deep for them to climb out of.”
• [03:53] Marcus Mosher: “Some Cowboys, not all, but for some this game felt a little too big and a little too fast.”
• [07:02] Marcus Mosher: “It’s little moments like that where games are won and lost. And I don’t think Brian Schottenheimer did a very good job today.”
• [12:35] Marcus Mosher: “You wonder what this game would have looked like if CeeDee Lamb stays healthy.”
• [14:45] Marcus Mosher: “Just looked disinterested. And again, Pickens has been awesome this year … Just a very, very weird game from him.”
• [19:27] Landon McCool: “They got completely just outclassed physically. … Add on top of that a rotating array of terrible older linebackers…”
• [24:30] Marcus Mosher: “That's, that's nice. This is one of the worst coverage units I've seen for a team that did not score like a return touchdown.”
• [28:36] Marcus Mosher: “The Cowboys gave up 282 return yards in this one.”
• [29:38] Marcus Mosher: “The division is basically over at this point. You're not winning your division.”

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Timestamps for Important Segments

• 02:26–03:50: Game as a microcosm, early mistakes, team unpreparedness.
• 03:50–06:20: Cowboys’ mistakes under pressure, lack of composure, player gaffes.
• 06:31–08:47: Coaching decisions, Schottenheimer’s conservative play calling, critical end-of-half errors.
• 12:35–13:11: CeeDee Lamb’s explosive first half, impact of his injury.
• 14:45–16:45: George Pickens’ struggles, effort questions, execution lapses.
• 17:17–21:46: Defensive collapse, Lions’ offensive success, Cowboys’ failed adjustments.
• 24:30–28:36: Special teams breakdown, field position impact, coaching blame pinned on Dick Sorenson.
• 29:17–30:26: Playoff odds discussion, likely season trajectory.

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Conclusion

This episode delivers blunt honesty and frustration with the Cowboys’ inability to meet the moment against Detroit, dissecting mistakes at every level—from coaching and preparation to player execution. The hosts highlight how the special teams’ failures, defensive regression, and lack of poise in key moments contributed to a loss that likely shifts the Cowboys’ season from playoff contention to evaluation mode.

Transcript

[Tyler Rowland]

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[David Harrison]

Podcast network your team every day.

[Tyler Rowland]

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[David Harrison]

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[Marcus Moser]

The Dallas Cowboys lose a heartbreaker in Detroit. We'll break it down next.

[Lana McCool]

You are Locked On Cowboys, your daily.

[Marcus Moser]

Dallas Cowboys podcast, part of the Locked On Podcast network.

[Lana McCool]

Your team every day.

[Marcus Moser]

Welcome back to the Lockdown Cowboys podcast, part of the Lockdown podcast network. Your team every day. We'd like to thank you for making us the number one sports podcast network. Today's episode is brought to you by fanduel. If you want to be right in the middle of the action this season, visit FanDuel.com and place your NFL Live bets all season long. Welcome back. I am your host, Marcus Moser. He is Lana McCool. And on today's show, we're breaking down the Cowboys 4430 loss to the Detroit Lions on Thursday Night Football. L. Let's just jump right in. What? Give me your thoughts.

[David Harrison]

Yeah, I actually, I did a short video right after the game for. For Locked On. Honestly and I. I think that I kind of summed it up is that this game was sort of a microcosm for the larger season right where the Cowboys dug themselves a hole too deep for them to climb out of. Right. They just made too many mistakes. They just, they, they. And it. And honestly, the game looked a lot like the pre. You know, bye week pre Quinn and Williams trade version of The Cowboys where it took the Cowboys a while to kind of get. Get going a little bit on offense and then you know, the defense was not able to stop Detroit at all. Like honestly once a month Saint Brown was made active for the game. It changed the whole angles of everything and he wasn't even the least bit like slowed down by that ankle injury. And the Cowboys didn't look at all prepared for it. And that combined with the fact that they could not manage to not get blocked down on the edge, which allowed Gibbs to just absolutely go crazy, it really flipped the change, the tenor of this, of this whole game. And by the time the Cowboys kind of finally woke up and. And started fight back, it was too late. And, and the defense really, honestly never really did anything enough to kind of put the Cowboys back into this game.

[Marcus Moser]

This had a big game atmosphere. I mean all week long we've been talking about it being a, you know, kind of a pseudo playoff game. And I think Dallas had a lot of jitters in this game. Like you could feel the anxiousness, whereas I think Detroit came out excited and you. They were flying to the football and even on the kickoffs, I mean they, they were making big plays on kickoffs, which we'll get to it a little bit. But yeah, it just felt like for some Cowboys, not all, but for some this game felt a little too big and a little too fast and even, I mean even guys like Dak. I think Dak overall played really well. But you had Dak like throwing the ball way behind the line of scrimmage on a lateral on one play. You had Jake Ferguson trying to get extra yards on third and 25 and fumbled the ball. You had George Pickens, who we'll get to in a little bit, fumbled the ball at the two yard line. It just for whatever reason there was just this team was not sharp really in any facet.

[David Harrison]

Well, it, you know, ultimately if you remember when we talked right before the, the. The game when we our game, our gave game preview, like I said that the Cowboys both teams would be able to produce big plays and ultimately both teams did produce a lot of big plays. But I, I felt like the difference was going to be that the Cowboys were going to be able to do it in course of their offense and safely and that was just not the case. It was actually the opposite. The, the, the, the. The. The Lions were the ones who were efficiently able to create explosive plays, generate explosive plays. The Cowboys were also creating explosive plays. But you're right, they also were throwing it backwards and Dak was taking a nine yard sack instead of just throwing the ball or you know, it's. There was definitely moment after moment where the Cowboys were, you know, shooting themselves in the foot. And it wasn't always just penalties this time and we won't even talk about penalties because honestly I will turn red and fall down dead. But, but it didn't matter. Like it wasn't like ultimately the game changer necessarily. I mean certainly some of them were, but. But ultimately the ones that really mattered were ones that the Cowboys did commit and that they, you know, that they were guilty of. So, you know, I just. You're right. And it felt like, you know, we know the names of the young guys that were really kind of struggling tonight. Ravel, I think Thomas were the two that were specific. Nate Thomas, to be clear. The two ones that can, specifically the young guys that really, really struggle. But it wasn't just them. I mean Kenneth Murray was still Kenneth Murray and, and like that was a problem. And Logan Wilson maybe was slightly better, but not that much better.

[Marcus Moser]

So not noticeably. No.

[David Harrison]

It just felt like the, the, like the defense at this point felt as like kind of hapless as they did like you know, the pre. Quinn and Williams trade.

[Marcus Moser]

Yeah. And I, let's talk about the coaching stuff because it, to me this is a coaching staff that felt like they were coaching in a big game for the first time. Whereas Dan Campbell and their crew, they kind of, they just knew how to push all the right buttons. And I'll start with Brian Schottenheimer because Cowboys scored 30 points in this game. They left a lot of points on the board and there's even some situations like the Cowboys have been really good at, like these end of half situations where you get points and then you know you can get points right out at halftime.

You had a. Was a 4th and 4. Sorry, 4th and 3 from Detroit's 37 yard line. There's 55 seconds left and Detroit has one timeout left at that spot. You're better off just going for it and trying to milk the rest of the clock. Maybe you score a touchdown, but you got to come out of that drive with a field goal. And the Lions not getting possession again or, or a touchdown and the Lions not getting possession again. Instead they settle for a 55 yard field goal and six plays later, Detroit doesn't even have to burn a timeout and they get down there to kick a short field goal. It's little moments like that where games are won and lost. And I don't think Brian Shotenheimer did a very good job today.

[David Harrison]

I think, I think you're right. If we're split, just to split the job real quick of, of what he does, like as a head coach, those decisions. I agree. Like, I think he made some poor decisions there. You know. Do you want to talk about like the, the choice on this, on the safety? Do you want that whole.

[Marcus Moser]

Yeah, I mean, that's, that's a little bit more strategic where, okay, so on the, the Dak Prescott safety one on fourth down, you could theoretically snap the ball out of the end zone, take the safety, kick off with Brandon Aubrey and get better field position. Yes, you're giving up two points, but what Cowboys ultimately did was punt from their own end zone. Detroit got the ball, Cowboys 38 and scored like three plays later. That's some strategy that we could discuss. But I think there's some things like.

[David Harrison]

Yeah, more, more obvious. Right.

[Marcus Moser]

Like fourth and three at the end of the game after the Jake Ferguson penalty that we're not going to get to, but go for it. Right. You're going to need two scores anyways. It's much easier to get a field goal. You're right down in there, you know, in, in, you know, where, you know, you could score a touchdown. Kicking a 25 yard field goal really doesn't do all that much for you.

[David Harrison]

All right, I lied. I'm gonna talk about them real quick. Listen, there were two, there were two penalties in this game that did hurt. And I, and let me, let me back up because I was gonna finish with Brian Schottenheimer on the offensive coordinator, play caller side of things. I do think he called a good game. There were moments where like, they were having to consistently battle uphill with the personnel that they had on the field. Considering Hutchinson was beating Thomas Pretty or Steel. Right. Honestly, pretty regularly. They were having a hard time protecting Deck. They were having a hard time moving people off the ball in the run game consistently. I, I, I think that they were able to kind of do some things. I think that they got hampered by the fact that there were two very terrible penalties, offensive pass interference penalties, both of them that were awful. And I think that that certainly hurt their chances. But that also doesn't excuse, like, the inefficiency that this team showed early in this game. Because ultimately before, you know, I don't know, right before halftime, right after halftime, when Flournoy started catching the ball a little bit more or they started targeting him a little bit more, it was only CD Lamb who was really kind of be efficiently beating his man and getting open and producing. And Dak was trying to get him the ball at times and ultimately that's what where he got hurt going up for one of those, those balls. It's, you know, it just felt like the, the superstars on your team were, were actually there and ready to show up. It felt like, you know, some of the supporting cast that had been really solid the last few weeks, you know, turned back into pumpkins at midnight.

[Marcus Moser]

Yeah, let's talk about George Pickens, who's one of those superstars that did not show up in week 14. We'll talk about his performance next.

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[Tyler Rowland]

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[Marcus Moser]

Welcome back to the Loton Cowboys Podcast. We'd like to thank you for making us your first listen of the day. We'd also like to thank you for making us the number one sports podcast network. I want to start with CD Lamb because it's really unfortunate that CD got hurt this game because he was on pace to have a monster performance they could not cover him. Six catches for 121 yards, almost all of it in the first half on eight targets. He had another target down the field where he was wide open that just missed him. Yeah, it's a bummer because this could have been. You wonder what this game would have looked like if CD Lamb stays healthy.

[David Harrison]

Yeah, it was. I mean, and, you know, like you said, even. Even the times when he wasn't getting the ball, you know, I was what, man? I. Again, the Amazon Next gen view. I. I always love it when the Cowboys are playing those games because you just get to watch it from a different angle, which is the best angle?

[Marcus Moser]

I.

[David Harrison]

Above and behind. And there were so many times when you got to see CD kind of completely breaking ankles and that can't get it to him because of the pressure or for whatever reason he gets the ball to another. Another guy. You know, there were. There was a lot. I mean, we talked about meat left on the bone. Right? There was a lot of meat left on the bone on CDs side where he was able to get open and. And just Dak wasn't able to get it to him or it was late or whatever it was. But yeah, and that's the unfortunate thing, is that clearly, you know, Detroit made incredible efforts to. To stop CD Lamb and to stop Pickens. And CD was able to kind of still break through a little bit. Pickens obviously struggled, you know, to kind of get over the. The double coverage, the shell coverage that they were playing on both sides and. And you just were waiting for them to try to take advantage, right. To get the ball to. Eventually they did Flournoy or. Or to Turpin, and Ferguson was the other guy. Right. And because Ferguson had such a poor game or just was, you know, beat up and then just made a bunch of poor decisions at certain points, it just. It felt like the. The offense was inflated Right. And. And somehow Detroit was also able to, while playing show coverage, stop the Cowboys run game, which, you know, that, that felt like a lot like 20, 24, to be honest.

[Marcus Moser]

Let's talk about George Pickens because this game, five catches for 37 yards on nine targets. He also had two penalties in this game, including a face mask call, which was a huge penalty to put the Cowboys back on 1st and 25. Just looked disinterested. And again, Pickens has been awesome this year. He's had so many great games. But there were a couple times there was a comeback route where he jogged through his route in the first. I think it was the first drive of the game. Dak tried to throw him a slant. Pickens had no interest in running over the middle of the field. I don't know what it was with him, but this was not a good showcase game for him.

[David Harrison]

Yeah, I mean, it certainly was some of that, but it wasn't. I think people are trying to make fetch happen here a little bit too with the picking stuff because the two penalties, the face mask one, it wasn't like the classic pickets grabs.

[Marcus Moser]

No, it wasn't malicious or anything like it was.

[David Harrison]

He wasn't even looking like he was, you know, it was behind him. And, and then the, the offensive pass interference was absolutely nonsense sense. He was even trying to get skinny between the two defenders when you watch the tape. And they still called him for offensive pass interference because they're playing with 5, 8, 185 pound corners, for God's sake. So yeah, I don't disagree that on those plays Pickens was not running at full speed and he needs to be. I also think that, you know, a lot of what was going on with Pickens was because they were putting incredible efforts to stop Pickens specifically.

[Marcus Moser]

There was also a drive where he didn't play at all. It was in the. It was after CD Lamb got hurt. The receivers for the entire driver, Ryan Flournoy, Jonathan Mingo and Kevonte Turpin. They ended up scoring on that drive. That was the play that Flournoy caught the. The touchdown. But a weird game. There was also a play that Dak. I think this one was when the Cowboys were down by 14 late. Dak threw the ball down the middle of the field and it looked like it was close, but there just wasn't a lot of effort there. Again, he's had a really good season. Just a very, very weird game from him, basically in, in every direction, from everyone.

[David Harrison]

To be honest. This is a terrible game for Several different people, obviously Pickens being the most high profile of those people. But yeah, just, just an awful game. It's just that guys, you know, were, I guess, due. I didn't know that we needed to be due for this sort of thing. I thought that we were past this. But honestly, that's the kind of main takeaway here, is that it feels like this, this. It. This team just isn't ready for this yet. Right. Like they're. They need another, another year. They need a little bit more talent on defense, but. And maybe definitely a new special teams coach for sure.

[Marcus Moser]

Yeah, we'll get to that in a second. Let's talk about the Cowboys defense in this game, because there was 12 drives in this game. One of them was the final drive of the game. 408 yards for the Lions. They averaged 7.2 yards per play in this one.

They didn't run the ball particularly well early in this game. They got a couple big runs late. David Montgomery had a 35 yard run. Gibbs had a, a nice little touchdown run at the end. But they could not stop Jared Goff.

[David Harrison]

Yeah, and, and Jared Goff was incredibly efficient, was getting the ball out of his hands quickly and honestly not even that quickly at times. Like the Cowboys were not able to kind of break through despite the injuries in the middle of this, of this offensive line. The Cowboys weren't getting the pressure that they had gotten previously, you know, inside and, and you know, they were missing the Clowney who had gotten some of the most sacks the Cowboys had gotten in the last few weeks. It felt like the Cowboys in the last two weeks had gotten by with, you know, middling to less, less than average, to be kind defensive end talent because they were getting so much from their defensive tackles. And I think that they did still get some nice pressures at certain times, but it just wasn't enough to make up for the loss of Clowney. And you know, Ezraku being one person and ultimately James Houston is a great high effort guy and who can get there, but you know, he is ultimately an undersized pass rusher who was cut by the Lions at one point and isn't quite the caliber that you need to kind of close out games like this.

[Marcus Moser]

We talked about Matt Eberfluss and his job security earlier this week. This is the third time the season the Cowboys have given up 40 or more points. And even last week, I mean, they gave up 28 to Kansas City. They had two quarters where they got stops. But that's a Chief's offense that has not been Particularly great all season long. It just doesn't feel like. It felt like for a couple weeks they were making progress. Then again they played the Eagles and the Raiders, two offenses that are not playing particularly well right now. I, I don't know how to feel about this defense. It feels like we're right back to where we were, you know, pre acquitted Williams trade. And that's incredibly depressing.

[David Harrison]

Yeah, I mean it just felt like, I don't know if I think that they, you know, were missing assignments like they were previous, like earlier in the season, but they got completely just outclassed physically. Right. I mean, they were just being pushed around, especially on the edge. They were not able to continue maintain the edge. And look, that's where they were beat up a little bit. And Sam Williams, you know, ultimately had a good game as a special teamer and, and it made a play at, at, you know, I think at a certain point with a hurry or a tackle for loss, if I'm not mistaken. So, but you know, look, he's, he's still Sam Williams. And I think that they were getting, you know, they're putting an extra body out there on offensive line and they were crashing down on the Cowboys defensive ends. Cowboys didn't really have an answer for it. And then you add on top of that a rotating array of terrible older linebackers who couldn't, you know, who kept on getting themselves blocked. That Kenneth Murray video is just going to be, it's going to make people's eyes bleed. To be honest.

[Marcus Moser]

I'm just so frustrated with this defense. I mean the, the Lions are really beat up in this game. Like they had multiple line, offensive line guys out in this game. Both their tackles missed practice this week with shoulder injuries. And listen to this from the, this is from the 6th minute on mark in the second quarter, this is what the Lions did. Touchdown, field goal, touchdown, blocked field goal, field goal, touchdown, touchdown. End of game. Like the only stop you got was a blocked field goal, which they, I mean, it was a short field goal.

It was just a. I, I, again, I don't know what to say. It's just an awful, awful performance. Performance.

[David Harrison]

Yeah. I mean, just certainly nothing like what we saw the last few weeks. They've crashed down to earth. And look, I mean, ultimately Revel is a rookie, you know, corner who is starting his, what a second game, I think is a starter, you know, and.

[Marcus Moser]

It looked like it, I mean he.

[David Harrison]

And it looked like it. Right? Yeah, exactly. So, you know, every time that anyone asks, like, ask us, like is Trayvon Diggs gonna even play when he comes back? Like, this is why we say, yeah, probably they'll at least rotate him because, you know, these guys are still young and. And they. They. It's. Look, he needed to stay out there, take his lumps. But at the same time, like, not maybe at the cost of the game. It would have been nice to have Trayvon out there.

[Marcus Moser]

Yeah. And I know there's been some people speculating that maybe the Cowboys are being a little bit too cautious with their injuries. Guys like Trayvon Diggs who practiced all week, and I know in an ideal world, you'd like to give them, you know, 10 days to get ready for this game, but your playoff odds are now down to 10%. Like, it's very, very unlikely this team makes it to the playoffs. According to the Athletic, even if you win your next four games, you only have a 46% chance of making the playoffs. At some point, you just need these guys to be out there and play. And you can't worry so much about if a guy is 100% healthy.

[David Harrison]

Yeah, you've got 10 days from this point on. So it's going to be about, like, you know, correcting what you can, and then you're going to have an evaluation to make at the end of the season as, like, you know, are you gonna risk the rolling the dice once more with the defensive coordinator, you know, for another season of trying to rebuild a defense from scratch instead of carrying on some sort of continuity? Or are you gonna roll the dice with the defense coordinator? That man, it's hard to trust at this point.

[Marcus Moser]

Yeah. All right, let's talk about the Cowboys special teams, because they were awful. Well, outside of Brandon Aubrey, who was really good as always. We'll talk about that unit next.

[Lana McCool]

Guys, thanks for helping me carry my Christmas tree.

[David Harrison]

Zoe. This thing weighs a ton. Drew, Ski, lift with your legs, man.

[Tyler Rowland]

Santa.

[Marcus Moser]

Santa, did you get my letter?

[David Harrison]

He's talking to you britches.

[Marcus Moser]

I'm not.

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[Marcus Moser]

Welcome back to the Locked on Cowboys Podcast. We'd like to thank you for making us your first listen every single day. For your second listen, check out the Locked On NFL podcast. Two shows every single day. One in the Morning with Tyler Roland, one in the Afternoon with Tony Wiggins. Available wherever you get your podcast. All right. L. Let's talk about the Cowboys coverage units because that's what we're really talking about here. They were awful in this game. And again, that's, that's nice. This is one of the worst coverage units I've seen for a team that did not score like a return touchdown. Like they consistently perform well or perform below par in this one.

[David Harrison]

Yeah, I actually had it pulled up here. The, The Cowboys got seven kick returns and they gained 176 yards on those kick returns, including one that was actually a pretty decent return. Right? The Lions got eight kick returns and they got 261 yard returns. And, and look, the cat. The Cowboys were already kind of getting their butts kicked up and down the field on both sides of the ball early in this game. To lose the hidden yardage aspect of this and, and penalties included. Honestly, I, I mean the penalty thing, I don't even know what it is. Like, it's probably even honestly because like it was just such a bad call game on both sides. But the, the kickoff and the, you know, hidden yardage on special teams outside of, you know, the blocked Kick, which was obviously a huge play. Even on punt returns. They really, really were struggling, I'm sorry, punt coverage. They were really, really struggling to kind of, to, to, you know, kind of get things going there as well and get well.

[Marcus Moser]

And I got the number on that one.

[David Harrison]

Yeah.

[Marcus Moser]

Brian Anger actually had an unbelievable. It was a 62 yard punt, but they ended up returning at 21 yards. So that's a net of what, 41 yards? Right. So Detroit had the ball at their own. Was it their own 35, 36 yard line. And it's like you have your punter does everything possible to get you out of a bad spot and you're just. Your coverage units can't do anything.

[David Harrison]

And that's what I think makes me the most frustrated about Sorensen specifically is that, look, you've got two of the best at the business, pundit and kicker on your team, right? And, and you're completely screwing up an aspect of their game by not having the. Either not calling the right thing or not having the coverage correct. And here's where I get really, really mad is they gave up a 40. Was it a four, 49 yard return or.

[Marcus Moser]

Right after the field goal? Right after the Cowboys cut the field, it'll cut it to a one score game late. Yes, that one.

[David Harrison]

That was basically, I mean, the end of the game at that point, right? Like, I mean, like the reason why.

[Marcus Moser]

Is because it's all Detroit needed to do is get one first down and they were in field goal range, which makes it a two score game. The game is over.

[David Harrison]

Yep, that's right. It was crazy. Like, and, and I can't. And my point is, is that they had been struggling all game long with this. Just kick the ball out of the end zone, man. Man, just, just kick the ball like you could, like for the last. I think I could be wrong. I don't know the numbers, but for the last, I think three kicks they had crossed the 35 yard line on the kickoff return. Just kick the ball out of the end zone at that point, like it's, it's just ridiculous.

[Marcus Moser]

Well, not only that, it saves you time, right? Because you, you don't have these long returns. Maybe it buys you another play. I mean, who knows? It just, it was an awful unit. And this is why Dick Sorenson didn't end up lasting very long in San Francisco as a special teams coordinator because his coverage units were awful. Now I gotta say, they did block a field goal or how to say Brett Bar. Brandon Aubrey made every field goal, including a 63 yarder. Although I'm starting to wonder. Wonder. Brendan Aubrey is almost too good for the Cowboys in the sense of he's hurting them. He's actually hurting them.

[David Harrison]

He's trying too many kicks, you know, because they're relying on him too much.

[Marcus Moser]

Yeah, they feel a 55 yard field goal is a given and that's why you don't go for it on 4th and 3. So I do wonder if he's actually hurting them a little bit. But that's a, a big brain conversation that we can have at a different time. This is a really bad job by their special teams and a lot of these games are decided by special teams. The Cowboys gave up 282 return yards in this one.

[David Harrison]

Yeah, it's. And, and it wasn't the difference in the game because this is a blowout really, but it was a, a factor into why this game was so wildly out. Out of proportion portion. Right. And, and I think even without, even if we had equal kind of return yardage, the lines still win this game. But again it's just, it's just really endemic of the kind of thing that you can't have in these sort of games. Right. You can't have stupid mistakes and blown coverage stuff. You can't give away easy yards to a good team because they will make you pay for it. And, and ultimately they really made the Cowboys pay for it.

[Marcus Moser]

Really quickly before we go, the Cowboys are six, six and one right smack dab in the middle of the league right now. 17th best record. Where do they go from here?

[David Harrison]

Well, I mean, look, I mean you know, it's, you said it like they have to win out basically to even have less, just under less than a coin flips chance to, to make the playoffs.

[Marcus Moser]

And the division is basically over at this point. You're not winning your division.

[David Harrison]

Division, you know, unless, unless Philadelphia absolutely craters. But even then like you know, I don't think it's, I don't know if it's possible. So yeah, I think for the Cowboys they're gonna have a long 10 days. We're gonna come back next week and I think that the team is going to tell us what the tenure of like how they're playing and how they're preparing. They're going to prepare to win all these games. They're going to try to win all these games. I, I think you know, where we know if maybe they're kind of leaning, you know, leaning into youth is where, is where the, the kind of not tanking will become but maybe the. Okay it's more important that we prepare our young players for next season than, you know, try to reach for some on on impossible chance at making the playoffs.

[Marcus Moser]

We'll know pretty well where the Cowboys stand in terms of making the playoffs after Week 14. Once these games all play out, teams like the 49ers and Seahawks and, you know, packers all win, it's gonna be really hard for the Cowboys to get in. But I don't think that's going to change Brian Schottenheimer's philosophy. I think they're going to want to try to go out and win games. We'll see if they can get back on the right track in week 15. That is it for today's show. We want to thank you for making Loton Cowboys your first listen every single day. Download the podcast wherever you get your podcast. We are free and available on all platforms. Follow Lenon on Twitter @mccoolbcb I'm @marcus Underscore Moser. We'll see you right back here on Monday.

[David Harrison]

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[David Harrison]

NFL fans, I am Brian Peacock and that is Matt Williamson, host of the NFL Six Pack, part of the Locked On Podcast Network. Your team every day NFL Six Pack.

[Marcus Moser]

Brings you the latest NFL news and.

[David Harrison]

Analysis and breaks down all of the weekly action a six pack of takes daily on the playoff pushed in the 2025 season. Or if your team's in draft mode. Yeah, we'll hit that, too. All right here every day on the Locked on podcast network, the NFL Six Pack. Subscribe on YouTube or everywhere you get your podcasts.