Aikman Calls out the Cowboys: “The Routes are terrible.”
There is currently an interesting flip between generations. The stars of the '80s and '90s are rallying against today's players' current status.
I've seen clips of Chipper Jones discussing this, but now I'm also seeing Troy Aikman mention it.
“I think the routes are terrible,” Aikman said on 1310 The Ticket in Dallas. “I think they run terrible routes. And I’ve thought that beyond this year. I think CeeDee (Lamb) has got to improve in his route running. As a quarterback, if you’re not certain where guys are going to be consistently, it’s hard to play the position. That’s what I see.
“I see guys lazy coming off the line of scrimmage. Sometimes they run, usually if they do, it’s because they’re anticipating they’re going to get the football on that play, but if they’re not, they don’t. And it all ties together. I’m not impressed with that part of it.”
A couple of observations here:
He calls out CeeDee Lamb
He’s protecting the QB
He’s obviously a great football mind so there must be validity to what he is saying.
Here's what I'm taking away in totality: The offense isn't clicking for some reason. It may be a scheme, buy-in, or talent issue.
Statistically, they are not where they need to be.
12th in yards
17th in points
2nd most turnovers
And 19th (!!!) in yards per play!
It's an average offense that turns the ball over. It's not ideal in the modern NFL.
But I don't like what I see in the CeeDee/Dak relationship. Something feels off with the connection and I don’t like that.
When you are a team that is as star-heavy as Dallas is, they must operate at an elite level. It reminds me of some of the modern Big 3 teams in the NBA. If it works, it's fun. But you are one injury or one disagreement from missing the playoffs.
Is that Dallas? We will see.
The windows in the NFL are small, and the Cowboys might be slamming shut. These next few weeks will tell us a lot about the future of the Cowboys.
And let's be very real here: The rest of the NFL loves beating the Cowboys. The Lions schemed two Tackle touchdown opportunities!
Will they be able to respond? I wouldn’t bet on it. Playoffs are possible, but more than that seems unlikely.