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The Good, the Bad, and the Dalt... Against the Arizona Cardinals...

Yes, I will still be doing these segments... just replacing "Dak" with "Dalt."

The Good: There wasn't a lot here... and what was good was limited...

1. Defense in the 1st Quarter: They came out first, forced a three and out and forced some punts early on. Now, maybe some of that was Murray being out of touch with his receivers or being too amped as the ESPN announcers commented on... but still the defense was able to get off the field early in the game and that should be what the defense does.

2. Special Teams: They weren't great... but the field goal attempt that was missed was a long one, and it isn't as though they missed a chip shot... So for making one field goal... they get a token spot in "the good" category.

The Bad: Just about everything seemed to go wrong in this game...

1. Slow Start: The defense started out fairly well in the first quarter and that set the Cowboys up for shots to get the offense going and score points, and that would be a good thing. It would be something that would be needed to give the Cowboys a "pick-me up" after Dak got hurt last week. Instead, the offense gained about 1 yard on its first drive, went three and out on its second drive, and then after finally getting a first down on its third drive... fumble...

2. Turnovers: As has hurt the team through the course of this season... turnovers remain a problem, be it two Zeke fumbles or two Dalton INTs. All of these turnovers turned into points and set the Cardinals up for their first touchdown of the day... and their second... and so on.

3. Line Play: Granted the offensive line is aging and has been banged up all season... and they didn't get any help when losing Martin to an injury in the game... but given Dak's injury and the expectation that the team would try to run more to protect Dalton and give him time... that didn't show up. And more often than not, Zeke had few holes to run through and Dalton was having to dodge defenders that went unblocked and narrowly avoided giving up a safety early in the game.

4. Defense in Quarters 2 Through 4: They came out well in the first quarter... but after that it was the same old defense. The receivers were misread and thus left guys open... allowing for big plays. The guys we've extended couldn't keep pace with Murray in the open field despite being in a good enough position to at least keep him out of the end zone. And then to add insult to injury took a simple running play in the 4th Quarter to the house while trying to run out the clock...

The Dalt: I suppose one could argue that he was shaking off rust... and that's possible. But that shouldn't be an excuse, particularly if winning is your goal. And in that, Dalton didn't show much. He didn't start the game well, had two INTs, and his lone touchdown of the game came late and well after the game was lost. If Dalton wanted to overtake Dak's spot... or audition for some other team in need of a QB to come get him... I don't think he did himself any good with what he showed tonight.

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