Cowboys' Mike McCarthy explains controversial decision on the most important play of the game vs Texans
The Dallas Cowboys lost to the Houston Texans 27 to 10 in a game where the offense never got going beyond a 64-yard catch-and-run touchdown between Cooper Rush and KaVontae Turpin. As has been the case all year long, there are many reasons why the Cowboys lost and it can't be watered down to one play […]
The Dallas Cowboys lost to the Houston Texans 27 to 10 in a game where the offense never got going beyond a 64-yard catch-and-run touchdown between Cooper Rush and KaVontae Turpin.
As has been the case all year long, there are many reasons why the Cowboys lost and it can't be watered down to one play or moment. However, a couple of pivotal moments stand out: The offense's failure to score after going for it on fourth and two from the Texans' eighth-yard line and Tyler Guyton's disastrous play in which he allows a strip sack and later fumbled the ball himself for a Houston scoop-and-score.
The latter has caused no controversy: Everyone agrees it was a terrible play from No. 60.
But the decision to go for it on fourth and two turned out to be a pivotal moment in the game, I'd argue it was the most important play of the game. The Cowboys could've cut down the score to 20-17 with a touchdown or, alternatively, to 20-13 had they settled for a field goal. Either way, things would've gone from a two-score game to a one-score game.
Many have criticized the Cowboys' decision to go for the touchdown, noting the team should've taken the points. However, it was the right call for one overwhelming reason. Sure, people love to toss out the word "analytics" when discussing fourth down decisions but let's forget about that for a second.
You're down by ten. You need a touchdown at some point in the game to get back into it. Your quarterback is Cooper Rush and he happens to be playing behind an offensive line that has been a problem all season long. What would you rather bet on, getting two yards on a play? Or the offense getting all the way into the red zone once again and scoring a touchdown later on? I'm picking the former all day every day.
Cowboys head coach Mike McCarthy seems to agree.
"It's fourth and two, had the right play there, we got the coverage we needed, it just wasn't clean on the outside, it got flushed, we had a chance in the over route, it was a clean play," McCarthy told reporters about the play call. "We needed seven there (…) that's a go for it situation, I felt good about the call."
Personally, I like the decision but would argue the play call was questionable. The Cowboys have tried to compensate for their questionable pass protection with several "sprint out" plays, where they ask the quarterback to move with the pocket. Rarely has it worked out and sure again, on Monday night, it didn't.
Later in the game, the Texans scored on Rush's strip sack, and with a 27-10 score at that point, hoping the offense could mount a comeback was a lost cause. It was a big blowout at AT&T Stadium, but had the Cowboys scored on fourth and two, I wonder if it wouldn't have gotten out of control as it did.
"It's frustrating for everybody, it's frustrating for players, frustrating for coaches, it's disappointing for the fans," McCarthy said about where the Cowboys are at through 11 weeks. "We're not playing well enough, (…) coaching well enough."
