The Dallas Cowboys struggled mightily in Week 15 against the Buffalo Bills. However, head coach Mike McCarthy concedes that their run defense was the main reason for the loss.
The Cowboys were defeated 31-10 by the Buffalo Bills, who dominated the rushing assault. Look at Josh Allen’s stats to get a better idea of how much the home team thrived on the ground. Despite the fact that the 27-year-old quarterback threw for only 94 yards, they were able to easily defeat America’s Team.
The Bills’ running offense was led by James Cook, who rushed for 179 yards and one touchdown on 25 carries. He gained more yards than the Cowboys’ entire rushing output combined, despite Dallas only gaining 89 yards on the ground.
The Cowboys’ performance was extremely humiliating. They didn’t challenge the Bills at all, and they paid the price for it.
McCarthy, predictably, was dissatisfied with his team’s performance, particularly their run defense. Sure, Dak Prescott’s performance didn’t help matters, as the quarterback failed to throw a touchdown pass and even threw an interception. Nonetheless, if they had been able to slow down the Bills, it would not have been a blowout.
“They got on our nerves a lot. I know (defensive coordinator Dan Quinn) and the guys were blown away by Cooks all week. They fared better than we did. They broke our defense, broke tackles, and won the bend-back battle. “It’s just all the little things that we’ve been good at,” Dallas Cowboys coach Mike McCarthy said, according to Jon Machota of The Athletic.
“There’s no question, we got to be better. They ran the ball way too effectively. … All three phases didn’t get it done, starting with me. We needed to put points on the board for our defense. Our defense needed help today. And we didn’t give it to them.”
Mike McCarthy Also Critical of Dallas Cowboys’ Road Problems
For what it’s worth, Mike McCarthy didn’t forget to stress how much trouble the Dallas Cowboys have on the road.
The club is still undefeated at home (7-0), but they are 3-4 on the road. Dak Prescott and Micah Parsons, as well as their head coach, are well aware of their issues.
McCarthy said that they need to figure out why they are having trouble on the road as quickly as possible. After all, such a trend does not bode well for their postseason hopes.
“We did not play well. We play so well at home and there’s just too big of a gap in our road games. … We got to be much better on the road, regardless of what’s in front of us and all the other conversations. There’s too big of a gap between home and away,” McCarthy added.
When looking at their road woes, the Cowboys should perhaps start with their run defense. As Machota noted out, aside from Sunday’s defeat, their two other bad losses this season occurred on the road against the Arizona Cardinals and the San Francisco 49ers, both of whom gave up a lot of rushing yards.
