The Dex 68 yard TD

[Blue and Gold]

and meanwhile:

 

[jjab360]

Like you said... FUBAR.

That play was just an epic fail on so many levels.

 

[Robocop]

I believe McCleod had an option of picking coverage to step up and cover the cross or drop back for Bryant and he made the wrong choice. you see the head ref Blakeman staring right the fuck at Langford!! stop everyone please stop i cant keep blowing up every time i check out the forum. this was such a blatant conspiracy against the Rams its ridiculous.

 

[Faceplant]

Just another example of our undisciplined defense getting burnt by miscommunication. How long has this been going on??? I swear they look like the flucking keystone cops out there half the time. We need to start drafting smarter players.....

 

[RamzFanz]

Hold? Look two pics up from that. He get twirled to the ground. It was a horrible missed call with two officials looking right at it.

If he doesn't hold, that ball may never have been thrown. If it's called, it comes back.

 

[Mojo Ram]

This was a 1st and 10 am i right?

I'm no coach, but why would JJ cut loose on Dez knowing that the only other help available at all(deep or intermediate) was McLeod? JJ knew that the Rams sold out vs the run and lost....so stick to your guy one-on-one. I mean, JJ was already in position and covering Dez stride for stride. I understand the idea behind the "pass off" when routes dictate your coverage....but at that point i would think that JJ should just stick to HIS GUY and forgo any deep help...and hope that McLeod can just cover the rest of the field from deep in, which would include the WR crossing underneath.

Not sure i can fully blame McLeod here, and i don't know exactly what the coverage called for.
I'm open to any interpretations though.

 

[thirteen28]

It was a bungled coverage for sure and a good playcall against our defensive playcall, but ... if Langford doesn't get blatantly held - or if even ONE of TWO officials right there who could have easily seen it calls the penalty, it's all moot. Without holding, Langford at minimum interferes with the throw and makes it virtually impossible to throw a clean strike to Dez ... or he gets a sack. And with a properly called penatly, the play comes back.

I'm not happy about the blown coverge/miscommunication, but I'm even more pissed now looking at the last two pictures and seeing that there are TWO officials there who refused to throw the flag. Helen friggin' Keller could have seen holding on that one.

 

[RhodyRams]

the blatant hold/facemask happened right in front of Romo, and one of the refs jobs is to watch the QB.


Dammit, thought I was over this shit already

 

[Dodgersrf]

Not just a hold, but also a hands to the face. Wtf.

 

[thirteen28]

the blatant hold/facemask happened right in front of Romo, and one of the refs jobs is to watch the QB.


Dammit, thought I was over this crap already

The other guy obvoiusly thought his job was to protect the QB.

If anyone needs a nail gun right now, call me - I'm spitting nails mad right now.

 

[Dodgersrf]

Great job as always B&G. I love these film breakdowns!

 

[12intheBox]

JJ takes the under to take away that route - if Romo throws it to Dez off that break - JJ is there - maybe for the pick. I don't blame JJ - that's how you play it if you have help over the top.

 

[ZigZagRam]

That's play's not on Jenkins. It's on McLeod for abandoning his obvious responsibility on that play.

Inexplicable and not the first time he's done it.

 

[ZigZagRam]

Just another example of our undisciplined defense getting burnt by miscommunication. How long has this been going on??? I swear they look like the flucking keystone cops out there half the time. We need to start drafting smarter players.....

Unfortunately you can't draft 4-year veterans. Young players are going to make these mistakes, and my biggest gripe about this past offseason is that they didn't bring in any veteran leadership in the secondary.

A veteran FS would make a huge difference on this team.

 

[Blue and Gold]

Some people hate J

That's play's not on Jenkins. It's on McLeod for abandoning his obvious responsibility on that play.

Inexplicable and not the first time he's done it.

Some people hate Jenkins for whatever reason (maybe no so much on this board) and will take every opportunity to blame him. I remember the long TD in STL on MNF where he nearly stopped that play, and had he not slipped he would have, but it was not his coverage, it was a domino affect and left him doing someone else's job . . . .oh well

 

[A55VA6]

Looked like to me that Jenkins was in zone coverage and he comes up to eliminate the crossing route. McLeod was supposed to play deep on Bryant but bit on the crosser leaving Bryant wide open.

McLeod made a big mistake on that play.

 

[Mojo Ram]

I'm not picking on JJ guys. Just throwing out scenarios.
I agree that JJ was likely doing what he was supposed to.

But...schematically...
Why wouldn't JJ just stick to his man there? Its 1st and 10 and the entire field has been compromised due to a bad defensive call. Dallas was in max protect so just let your safety handle the other guy while your LB's retreat back in to help.
Switching Dez off to your deep safety gives the QB a window. McLeod cant run with Dez anyway.

 

[jrry32]

This was a 1st and 10 am i right?

I'm no coach, but why would JJ cut loose on Dez knowing that the only other help available at all(deep or intermediate) was McLeod?

Two reasons:
1. Dez is running a post route which will lead him straight into McLeod; and
2. Williams is crossing wide open over the middle and about to head into Jenkins's zone so Jenkins is going to be able to position himself to undercut the route and pick it off if Romo goes there.

JJ knew that the Rams sold out vs the run and lost....so stick to your guy one-on-one.

Not man coverage, it's not his job to stick to him one-on-one.

I mean, JJ was already in position and covering Dez stride for stride. I understand the idea behind the "pass off" when routes dictate your coverage....but at that point i would think that JJ should just stick to HIS GUY and forgo any deep help...and hope that McLeod can just cover the rest of the field from deep in, which would include the WR crossing underneath.

In the context of the coverage responsibilities, this doesn't make sense. Dez's route leads him straight to McLeod. Terrance Williams is wide open. If Janoris hands off Dez to McLeod, he can set himself up to undercut the only option that Romo has on the play. Which means that Romo either has to eat it/throw it away or he throws a pick trying to get it to Williams.(keep in mind that Romo's deep ball has been really bad this year and has been hanging in the air due to his back injury)

Jenkins forgoing deep help is a bad move. McLeod is in better position to defend a deep ball because Dez is going to have a step on Jenkins once he makes his cut for the post due to Jenkins's position in bail technique.

Not sure i can fully blame McLeod here, and i don't know exactly what the coverage called for.
I'm open to any interpretations though.

McLeod doesn't deserve full blame. E.J. Gaines blew his assignment. He was supposed to cross with Terrance Williams. If he had done that, McLeod has no reason to come down and try to pick-up Gaines's man. However, in the context of who was supposed to cover Dez Bryant, that's squarely on McLeod. Jenkins did exactly what you're supposed to do on that play. McLeod didn't. He tried to cover for Gaines and ended up exposing us even worse because he didn't communicate to Jenkins what was happening.

 

[ChrisW]

I'm not picking on JJ guys. Just throwing out scenarios.
I agree that JJ was likely doing what he was supposed to.

But...schematically...
Why wouldn't JJ just stick to his man there? Its 1st and 10 and the entire field has been compromised due to a bad defensive call. Dallas was in max protect so just let your safety handle the other guy while your LB's retreat back in to help.
Switching Dez off to your deep safety gives the QB a window. McLeod cant run with Dez anyway.

I get what you're saying, but don't fault the guy for playing is responsibilities.

I mean FS should have that covered over the top. I just don't see how Rodney can tunnel vision so much that he lets Dez run free. You would think a point of emphasis during practice would be to focus on where Dez lines up on every play. He had to know where he was.

 

[ZigZagRam]

If McLeod is playing his coverage correctly, the QB doesn't have a window because McLeod would have a good chance of a pick on a throw of that distance as he'd be running in on the ball. He can't run with Dez but given the huge cushion in the zone coverage, he wouldn't need to run with him.

JJ probably broke off coverage because he had zone responsibilities as well on the play and figured McLeod would be there over the top, which he was until he decided whatever it is he decided to do to take himself out of the play.