The Dallas Cowboys lost their week 6 matchup to the Arizona Cardinals by a score of 38-10. The Cowboys couldn’t get anything going on offense and struggled to move the ball. Their defense once again allowed 30+ points and couldn’t stop Kyler Murray.
The Cowboys are now 2-4 on the season, but still remain atop the NFC East. Here are some key takeaways from their week 6 matchup.
The Cardinals came into this matchup with the Cowboys struggling to force any turnovers. Through their first five games, they only had three turnovers (an interception and two fumbles).
However, Arizona doubled their turnovers against the Cowboys in week 6.
The Cowboys gave up the ball on four separate occasions.
On back-to-back possessions, running back Ezekiel Elliott fumbled on consecutive touches. Both fumbles set up excellent field position for the Cardinals.
Then three drives later, Andy Dalton threw his first interception of the season. The pass was intended for rookie wide receiver, CeeDee Lamb.
Dalton would throw his second interception of the game soon after. At the end of the third quarter, Dalton was looking for Amari Cooper on a slant when Arizona’s superstar safety, Budda Baker, stepped in front of the pass.
The Cowboys currently rank last in the NFL in giveaways. They have thrown six interceptions and fumbled nine times through the first six games. The next team that has given up the most turnovers is the Minnesota Vikings at 12.
The Cowboys also rank last in the NFL in turnover differential. They currently have a -12 turnover margin in large part to their offense giving up the ball.
One of the only bright spots for the Cowboys in their week 6 loss was rookie CeeDee Lamb.
It seems like Lamb will produce no matter who the quarterback is. In college, Lamb had Baker Mayfield, Jalen Hurts and Kyler Murray under center at Oklahoma. In each of those seasons, he produced at least 800 receiving yards and seven touchdowns.
CeeDee Lamb (Image Courtesy of Sports Illustrated)
Now with Dalton under center, the targets still favored Lamb. He was targeted 10 times which brings his season total to 50. His 50 targets rank tied for ninth in the NFL.
He finished the game with seven catches for 64 yards. In a game where Dallas wasn’t producing anything on offense, Lamb was still able to get involved.
On the season, Lamb has 36 catches for 497 yards and two touchdowns. He ranks tied for ninth in receptions and seventh in yards.
With his seven catches in week 6, Lamb made history. He is the only rookie since 1950 to record at least five catches in each of his first six career NFL games.
Early on it’s looking like Lamb is the real deal and the Cowboys got a steal selecting him 17th overall.
Mike Nolan’s reign in Dallas is close to being over. Through the team’s first six games, they have given up 36.3 points per game.
Their defense looks all out of sorts and the blame can be pointed towards their defensive coordinator, Mike Nolan.
Although all the blame can’t be on Nolan, the players say otherwise.
As the Cowboys’ defense is on pace to be one of the worst in NFL history, they need to do things differently. Whether it be to fire Nolan or sign a veteran player like Earl Thomas or Eric Reid, the Cowboys need to add some type of spark to that defense.
As for their game against Arizona, Dallas’s defense started off strong. They forced three straight Cardinals punts on their first three drives. In that span, Cardinals’ quarterback Kyler Murray was 3/10 for 12 passing yards.
However, after that, Murray would soon catch fire launching two touchdowns to Chrisitan Kirk including one for an 80-yard touchdown.
As solid as the Cowboys front seven was supposed to be, they have been everything but solid.
They allowed 261 rushing yards to the Cardinals including 164 yards to Kenyan Drake and 74 yards to Murray. The Cowboys also gave up a horrendous 7.45 yards per carry.
On the season, the Cowboys now rank 31st in the NFL in rushing yards against per game (173.3). They also rank 31st in the NFL in yards per carry against (5.1).
The Cowboys defense has been historically awful this season and Nolan should be on the hot seat fighting for his job against Washington in week 7.
Featured Image Courtesy of ClutchPoints
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