The Musers The Podcast: Cowboys Weekly Edition (vs. Jets)

Date: October 2, 2025
Hosts: George Dunham & Bob Sturm (Cumulus Podcast Network)

Episode Overview

This week’s Cowboys edition delivers classic Musers chemistry and offbeat wit, focusing on the Cowboys following a wild 40-40 tie against the Packers and looking ahead to their matchup with the Jets. George and Bob break down the rollercoaster state of the team, especially the dazzling offense and the leaky defense, debate NFL overtime rules, relive some Cowboys trivia, and dissect Dak Prescott’s exceptional play. Defensive woes, flashes of hope, and the haunted history of Meadowlands visits set the tone for a pessimistically optimistic but distinctly Dallas discussion.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

Cowboys Trivia: The “Dallas Steers”

• [02:01] Bar Trivia: Bob shares a story about being asked what the Cowboys’ original name was during bar trivia.
• [02:26] George: “I think answer A is what you’re looking for.”
• [02:56] Bob confirms: It was the Dallas Steers, but notes the historical ambiguity about whether this name was ever officially used in newspapers contemporarily.
• [04:45] Bob: “Can you imagine a parallel universe where you are rooting for the Dallas Steers every week?”

NFL Overtime Rules & The 40-40 Tie

• [05:33] George: Quips that the tie is “like soccer” and reflects on how strange it is for NFL fans.
• [05:59] Bob: “I don’t think ties should exist... I just feel like the NFL should be right there, there’s no reason you can’t play until somebody scores.”
• [07:28] George: Shares a listener suggestion about overtime: if the first team scores, the second team has the same amount of time to respond.
• [08:41] Bob: Prefers a system closer to the college model, questions the “three-hour window” excuse.
• [09:30] Bob summarizes: The tie is a fitting metaphor for the Cowboys’ season: “Number one offense and the number 32 defense.”
• [09:54] Bob: “On one side of the ball you feel pretty great and on the other side... it’s trash.”

Coaching, Quarterback Play, and the Schottenheimer Effect

• [10:18] Bob: “The two most important positions on a football team are head coach and quarterback. And I feel that in 2025, the Cowboys are getting much better than average from both of them.”
• [11:35] Praises offensive coordinator Brian Schottenheimer for handling personnel adversity (injuries, off-field distractions) and still engineering a 40-point explosion.
• [12:21] George: Observes Schottenheimer’s flexibility (“Let’s smash the ball — okay, that’s not working, let’s spread the field”) and how the game plan helped neutralize Green Bay’s best defensive player.

Dak Prescott’s Best Game?

• [12:58] Bob: “Given what is critically said about him... Pound for pound, given what he had to work with and given the problems right in front of him... Dak is the single reason [Micah Parsons] didn’t have 3-4 sacks.”
• [14:15] Notes Dak’s underappreciated command of the offense, using high-level pre-snap reads, protection setting, and improvisation.
• [16:04] George: Revisits the relentless scrutiny of Cowboys QBs—Staubach, Aikman, Romo, and now Dak.
• [16:50] “Our friend Troy says it comes with the dinner.”
• [17:49] Bob: “If doing this in September was really easy, wouldn’t everybody do it?... Maybe the way to break it down is you get the extra money here because of all the extra blame you’re going to take as well.”

Stats Highlight

• [19:57] Cowboys QBs with “40 points, 400 yards, 0 turnovers” games:
  • Dak Prescott: 8 times
  • Other legends (Staubach, Aikman, White, Romo): 1 each
  • Don Meredith: 2 times
• George: “That’s a great number.”

New Weapons: Javonte Williams & George Pickens

• [23:18] George: Praises the ground game and Williams’ surprising early success, including “second in the NFL in success rate of runs.”
• [24:03] Bob: “Williams runs like every play is the most important play of his life... Pickens has been so good and I think he’s only going to get better... those guys are hard to find.”
• [26:41] George: Pickens on a three-game touchdown streak and “having fun here too.”

The Defensive Mess — And Flickers of Hope

• [29:16] George: Asks if it’s “ridiculous to say this was a better performance than we saw against the Giants and Bears?”
• [30:06] Bob: “They’re the worst chunk play defense in the league right now through four. A remarkable ineptitude festival and it has to stop.”
• [31:30] Admits the secondary looked more organized, thanks partly to Duron Bland’s return.
• [33:02] Bob: Pinpoints linebacker play as “quickly becoming the big target on the whiteboard for opponents.”
• [34:18] Expresses hope for rookie Shamar James, but admits the early returns were underwhelming.
• [35:07] George: Notes “better line play,” especially from Ezraku and Clowney.

Defensive Draft Failings

• [39:10] Bob: Outlines Cowboys’ defensive draft woes: Of 26 defensive picks since 2021, only a handful have emerged as “solid starters or better.”
  • “When we talk about why does the defense stink... Calvin Joseph, second rounder, Nayshaun Wright, third rounder, Chauncey Golston, third rounder, of course, Mozzie Smith would like to have a conversation here...”
• [41:39] George: Points out Cowboys are “31st in points, 32nd in net yards” on D.

History-Making Split: #1 Offense, #32 Defense

• [42:06] No clear NFL precedent for a team being first in offensive yards and last in yards allowed after four weeks; “big 12 Cowboys” begins trending as a nickname.
• [43:55] By the numbers: Top ten in most offensive categories, bottom ten (even dead last) in most defensive categories.

Looking Ahead: Jets Preview & The Meadowlands Curse

• [50:18] George: “There are places in the NFL that just kind of give me the creeps. And the Meadowlands playing the Jets is just one of those.”
• [51:00] Cowboys haven’t won at Jets since 2003; their last matchup in New Jersey was a loss in 2019.
• [52:06] Jets: “They do have a solid defense and they have a quarterback who can run. Does that scare you?”
• [53:08] Bob: Expresses belief in Justin Fields’ talent, but recognizes the Jets fanbase’s deep exhaustion and ongoing quarterback woes.

The Most Beaten Down Fanbase?

• [55:20] “Since Joe Namath... they’ve had one winning record [in the last decade+].” Cleveland and the Jets vie for title of most “beaten down.”

What’s Next for the Cowboys?

• [46:06] Six-game stretch: Jets, Panthers, Commanders, Broncos, Cardinals, Raiders.
  • Bob: “When the game starts, I’m going to sit down thinking the Cowboys can get a win today, all six times... Have coach, have quarterback, will travel.”
• [48:37] George: “I would go, I don’t know what the percentage, 60-40 sounds good in my head” (on how to split cap dollars between offense and defense).

Strategies for the Defense

• [62:07] George: “Let’s put it at two. Two stops a half and I think you win.”
• [62:14] Bob: “If your choices are a slow death or a fast death, maybe do the one that gives you a chance at making a play... You’re the 32nd best defense. Try literally anything else right now.”
• [64:24] George: “Look like the 22nd best defense in the league and I think you’d be okay in most of your games.”

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• Bob Sturm [05:59]: “In the National Football League, [ties] feel wildly unnecessary. Baseball doesn’t have ties and we ask why. ... It’s un-American, they might say in Bull Durham.”
• George Dunham [16:50]: "Our friend Troy says it comes with the dinner. You’re expected to be good. You’re expected to be a champion."
• Bob Sturm [30:06]: “They’re the worst chunk play defense in the league right now through four. … Remarkable ineptitude festival.”
• Bob Sturm [62:14]: “If your choices are a slow death or a fast death, maybe do the one that gives you a chance at making a play ... You’re the 32nd best defense. Try literally anything else right now.”
• George Dunham [65:17]: “Hot Fried Georgie Player of the Week from the Green Bay game. We got to go with Dak, don’t we?”

Key Segment Timestamps

• 02:00 — Bar trivia and the “Dallas Steers” discussion
• 05:33 — Processing the 40-40 Packers tie and overtime rules debate
• 10:18 — Schottenheimer, Dak, and coaching decisions
• 12:58 — Is this Dak’s best game ever?
• 19:57 — Cowboys QB stats (40-400-0 games: Dak record)
• 23:18 — Ground game and Williams/Pickens breakout
• 29:16 — Defensive bright spots (Bland, Houston) and chunk play woes
• 39:10 — Defensive draft analysis: why the unit is in disrepair
• 42:06 — Historic split of No. 1 offense, No. 32 defense
• 50:18 — Cowboys’ Meadowlands and Jets history
• 55:20 — Jets as “most beaten down” fanbase, NFL ownership’s role
• 62:07 — Musers’ prescription: if this D can get two stops a half, the Cowboys can win

Final Thoughts & Tone

The Musers’ familiar, light-hearted tone contrasts with the gravity of their Cowboys analysis: elite offense let down by a historically porous defense, with a meta awareness of the perpetual criticism swirling around the Dallas quarterback. Fans are treated to banter, stats, self-acknowledged “delusional” optimism about winnable games ahead, and the hope that just a little defense could make all the difference. In classic Musers fashion, the show’s conclusion is tongue-in-cheek but delivers real insight for DFW sports fans and Cowboys faithful everywhere.

Next Week:

• George promises a historian on the Dallas Cowboys Band
• Follow-up on “the deal with the Steers”
• Cowboys-Jets postgame and midseason outlook

Hot Fried Georgie Player of the Week: Dak Prescott
Most pressing question: Can the league’s best offense survive with its worst defense—and will two stops per half really be enough?