Cowboys legends Troy Aikman DeMarcus Ware aim pointed criticism at teams effort leadership in 2020
the 2020 season after being deleted from the Week 13 contest between the and . The question is, will the Cowboys do the same, because one of their legends believes he saw them give up at some point during the 33-17 mashing at the hands of reigning league MVP . Now owners of a 3-9 record and failing to have won two games in a row all season, the team is drawing a mountain of criticism from its own legends, the most recent being Troy Aikman and , who are both disheartened at
Jason Kidd Jersey what they're witne sing in 2020.Aikman, a living legend in North Texas and Hall of Famer who led the Cowboys to three Super Bowl wins during the dynasty of the 1990s, often pointed at concerns over the team's effort and execution on Tuesday night -- to the point he eventually found himself at a lo s for words."I mean, I don't know," he said, befuddled at what he was witne sing from a defense that allowed 294 rushing yards. "I just don't know where this organization -- where they go. There are just so many things that have to be addre sed this offseason."The Ravens fell just six yards shy of posting two 100-yard rushers in the game, Jackson having 94 yards on the ground himself with another two pa sing touchdowns to help seal the Cowboys fate. One of the more backbreaking of his runs came on fourth-and-2 from the Cowboys 37-yard line, when he tore off a 37-yard rushing touchdown that saw linebacker turn into a spinning dreidel.Run this like I'm LAMAR JACKSONTOUCHDOWN | ProBowl VoteTune in: Baltimore Ravens (@Ravens) "That was 100% me," Vander
DeAndre Jordan Jersey Esch said of the play. "That was on me. I read the play right off the bat, and I should have just fit my a signment."Once the Ravens had the lead, they never looked back, and the end result was embarra sing enough to and replacing them with the versus the , a clear me sage the team is falling from grace with the league's front office, as it relates to the product being put on the field.The Cowboys did make it competitive in the first half against the Ravens, going into halftime with only a seven-point deficit, but the wheels began to come off in the second half and their night was -- the club eventually going through the motions defensively after seemingly coming to the conclusion mentally they weren't going to be able to stop the Ravens rushing attack. So by the time Jackson was seen laughing at (with) Cowboys defenders after big runs and running back J.K. Dobbins hammer the nail into the coffin lid with a TD run punctuated by him yelling out, "Easy money!," it felt evident Dallas was mentally already on the plane ride home.Asked about Aikman's criticism and the overall lack
Steve Nash Jersey of effort and execution, head coach Mike McCarthy responded."I would say our finish was not good enough, clearly," he said in his morning after media addre s. "Definitely I saw spots during the game. I think it's something. ... We didn't finish very well, that's for sure."Aikman isn't the only one questioning the effort, particularly in the second half, as mentioned. Ware, a future Hall of Famer who set franchise records in his time with the Cowboys and ultimately retired as one after winning a Super Bowl with the , was a bit more blunt than Aikman -- asking where the leadership is in the team's locker room and on the sideline."I go back to during the offseason, you know when new coaches come in they usually establish some type of mantra, some type of character of the team," Ware told CBS Sports' 'The Jim Rome Show' following the Dallas lo s at M&T Bank Stadium. "I don't see a lot of that this season. So that marries with leadership as well. When you have a defense give up that many yards in the run game, either it comes down to the guys not knowing what to do, the scheme they're running -- not in the right place with the personnel -- or it's one of those things like, 'Is there a want to?'"It'
James Johnson Jersey s that mentality of, 'Let's own the trenches. Let's make big plays on defense and score touchdowns on offense.' Where is that mentality at?"Ware believes the Cowboys slowly gave up as the second half wore on."At the beginning of the game, you can see that they stuck with them a little bit," he said. "Right? Where there were still some ups and downs. And then that second half, it's like they came out and they were like, 'OK, well, we lost the game.' Even though they were down 14-17 -- only by three. I really don't know what that mentality is, but that goes towards, to me, the leadership of the team."There is much to figure out in Dallas and while there are justifiable reasons for their struggle to win games -- i.e., having upwards of $60 million on injured reserve, that list including the likes of , , and more, along with the lack of a true offseason for McCarthy and his staff to install their footprint with both incumbent and incoming players -- none of that justifies effort i sues. And until that matter is resolved, execution won't be either, seeing as you
Freddie Gillespie Jersey have to want to play in order to make a play."We've still got four more left and we can go out there and turn this thing around," Vander Esch said. "But then again, there's enough talking about it -- we have to go do it."They haven't been able to thus far, and at least two legends are wondering if they're even actually trying.