Cowboys vs. Bengals: Coach Change with Mike McCarthy and Kellen Moore for QB Cooper Rush?
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FRISCO - The Dallas Cowboys are ready to feel the (Cooper) Rush. Frankly, they have no other choice. But they do have choices at to the involvement of head coach Mike McCarthy in his Kellen Moore-led offense.
There's no use arguing over whether the Cowboys (0-1) did enough to address their passing situation beyond Dak Prescott. The medically unthinkable has happened to the Dallas franchise quarterback and they'll have to work through a considerable part of the season without him, starting with Sunday's Week 2 visit from the defending AFC champion Cincinnati Bengals (3:25 p.m. CT, CBS).
But that doesn't rule out ways to be smarter and better - certainly for the coaching staff. And on Friday, head coach Mike McCarthy offered a subtle hint of what might change.
Amid claims from Tampa Bay that they sort of "knew coordinator Moore's plays,'' McCarthy, speaking here inside The Star, said, "We're going to take a lap today through ... maybe longer than we normally do.''
Translation? No, McCarthy is not taking over the play-calling that contributed to a the putrid 19-3 loss in Week 1. But getting more involved? Spending more time in the room and on the field at Moore's side and in his ear?
Yes. It seems so.
McCarthy at the same time insists this isn't about any shrinking of belief in Moore, 34. Said McCarthy: "My job is to make sure all three coordinators are teed up to be successful. That's something that is a bright light ... I make sure Kellen knows that I'm there. ...
"The most important thing is to not overreact. (But) I gotta do a better job, we all gotta do a better job. He's in Year 3 now, I've seen him grow. ... I have great confidence in him for Sunday.''
But ... one more thing from McCarthy: “Let’s be honest: In Kellen’s time as a coordinator, he’s been able to play very, very aggressive. But we’re in a phase right now (without Dak) that we’ve got to be a little smarter in certain situations.
"That’s all part of growing as a play-caller.”
"Be smarter''? Yes. That's a thing.
Dallas also has great confidence, all say, Cooper Rush, a lingering prescience in the Dallas system since 2017, is slated to make his second NFL start. His stay in the opening 11 is destined to be longer than the single-game cameo he made last season.
Debate has rightly reigned over the passing depth ever since Prescott was removed from the Cowboys' listless 19-3 loss to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers that wrapped up the NFL's opening Sunday. Should they have provided Rush with stiffer competition beyond fellow incumbents Ben DiNucci and Will Grier? Having made their bed, would it have been worth calling San Francisco about Jimmy Garoppolo or Cam Newton out of gridiron unemployment? Heck, even a bid for Big Ben appeared to be in the cards.
As the ball snaps, however, Rush is the Cowboys' best option as they enter their most desperate hours for a variety of reasons ...
M-V-Prescott
Including any Cowboy not named Micah Parsons amongst the early 2022-23 MVP race would be foolhardy after Sunday's outing and that includes Prescott. That's not to say Prescott is permanently incapable of holding the franchise quarterback role ... long-term health permitting, it's way too early to make that call.
But the Cowboys didn't lose on Sunday because they lost Prescott. Whoever's starting at quarterback won't be able to (at least fully) solve the Cowboys' ever-prevalent penalty problem, nor will he be able to solve the defense's propensity to give up yards in bunches, particularly on the ground: Leonard Fournette picked up where Raheem Mostert and Deebo Samuel left off last postseason, earning six yards a carry in Tampa Bay's win.
The backup quarterback's simplest objective is to avoid being the reason his team falls if/when his number is called upon. But, as Prescott has learned the hard way far too often, it's often a team effort that decides ball games.
Don't Care How, They Want It Now
Let's lay an uncomfortable truth on the line: tanking is pathetic, a hopeless, cruel tactic of defeatism, one that requires professionals to sow rewards ... ones hardly guaranteed ... that they'll never get to reap. It's particularly dumb to do so in the NFL, where hardly anything is guaranteed, even for those who crack the bracket. How many recent trendy would-be champions (i.e. the 2017-18 Jacksonville Jaguars) have seen their sweet little postseason runs end with a chorus of "They'll be back in no time!"?
There could be some temptation for the Cowboys to go that route if Prescott is sidelined for an extended period, but Dallas at least puts up the image of a proud franchise, one that's reluctant to embrace any form of rebuilding and even more wary to publicly admit it.
Make no mistake: even if its offseason moves suggest otherwise, Dallas is going to do what it can to win games. Rush is the best player that allows them to do that. The Cowboys, the only winless team in the NFC East, have dug themselves quite a hole in just a week and can ill-afford to waste any time teaching a newcomer the offense.
Besides, at this point in time, Rush has yet to prove he isn't worthy and/or capable of being entrusted with the backup quarterback's role. The Central Michigan alum became something of a primetime folk hero with a 325-yard, game-winning touchdown relief effort in Minnesota last season. Sure, it's not realistic to expect those numbers over a multi-game basis. But let's not act as if they're going into this experiment completely blind, a la the doomed 2015 season, where the doomed quarterback hydra of Matt Cassel, Brandon Weeden, and current offensive coordinator Kellen Moore failed to pick up the slack of an injured Tony Romo.
On Top of All That, A Controversy?
One must approach any gridiron problem in Dallas with the knowledge that the mere ripple effects of any decision are the equivalent of tidal waves elsewhere. It's part of a bit of a "Dallas tax" to pay, one where interest increases with each passing year without a championship.
Simply put, Rush is the safest option the Cowboys have because of everything he can do and everything he can't. Dallas has enough to worry about right now ... do they really need to add a $14 million quarterback controversy to the mix, which is exactly what would happen if they added Garoppolo to the fold. It took only a handful of passes for Prescott to capture the hearts of America's Team and initiate an unintentional coup of Romo's role.
Mentally and financially, the Cowboys can't afford to raise the heat on Prescott: short of a contract restructure, a guaranteed $31 million kicks in next season, thus almost necessitating preparing the scenery for what could be the ultimate do-or-die season for what will be a 30-year-old Prescott.
Rush is capable enough until proven otherwise and, barring uncanny deja vu, allows Prescott to peacefully reassume his duties upon a clean bill of health. Boys will be Boys, so you can be sure not everything will be perfect. But this is the ranch Dallas has made for itself. It's time to ride or die with Rush ... possibly both.
Either way, he's what's best for the team moving forward, bringing a small sense of moderately assured security no outside option ever could. And that leaves the change to come not in the players ... but maybe in the way these players are coached.
Geoff Magliocchetti is on Twitter @GeoffJMags
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