FRISCO, Texas -- Frustration has removed the collective filter for the Dallas Cowboys defense after a 1-2 start to 2024.
Dallas lost consecutive home games in the same way the last two weeks: by getting steamrolled on the ground. The Alvin Kamara-led New Orleans Saints ran for a combined 190 yards in a 44-19 victory in Week 2, and the Derrick Henry-led Ravens rushed for the most yards in a single game this season (274) in a 28-25 Week 3 win.
That led to four-time Pro Bowl edge rusher DeMarcus Lawrence airing out his frustrations in a pointed way Sunday, saying Dallas is "playing little league football." Irritation from getting punched in the mouth for a second week in a row at home still remained in the Cowboys locker room a day later. Dallas veteran cornerback Jourdan Lewis specified what's causing the emotional disconnect on Monday: the details.
"You got to be detailed. We got to see how we can stop people. At the end of the day, this shit is about us stopping people," the Cowboys' eight-year veteran said. "That's just what it is. We got to be credible, f---ing accountable every single play. That's 60 minutes of football. It doesn't matter who we play. We got to go there and be detailed in the play. It doesn't matter who we play in this NFL. If we're not doing that, shit, anybody can beat us. … So that's how you win in this league. Everybody's good in this league. It's the details that make you different."
Head coach Mike McCarthy concurred, lamenting some of his offense's early penalties -- a holding call and two false starts --- derailing their opening drive, which ended in a punt.
"Continued mistakes are the things that you have to definitely eliminate, especially if it's the pre-snap penalties," McCarthy said Monday. "I mean to start the game the way we did, hell, I mean that's a kick in the ass. ... We're going to have some bumpy times. That's part of just where we are as far as new defense young players playing, but we need to be better."
If Dallas doesn't start playing more professionally, the 2024 season will get more uncomfortable than it is now ahead their "Thursday Night Football" matchup at the New York Giants in Week 4.
"You can't be detailed if you don't go to work every day and act like it," Lewis said. "You have to practice how you play. You have to practice every day like it is your last day -- it's Thursday, Sunday, Monday and you're about to play a game. Until we do that, it's going to be the same old thing."
