Garrett must go
As a Washington Redskins fan, I have been tortured by my team with poor play, bad front office decisions and low performance from high priced free agents for the better part of two decades. But even as I think about how bad my team has been, I feel even worse for the Cowboy fan base and it’s mostly due to their head coach.
Jason Garrett has been the full-time head coach for the Dallas Cowboys since 2011. During that time, Garrett only has two playoff victories to show for it, even though his teams have had excellent talent on offense and defense for the better part of his tenure.
My team has shown little promise over the past decade, except for one or two seasons, but it has to be hard for Cowboy fans, because they come into most seasons thinking they have a chance to not only make the playoffs, but to also make it to the Super Bowl.
It must be heartbreaking for Cowboy fans to have such high hopes at the beginning of the season, to only fall short in the end. To know that your team should be a playoff contender every year to only see them go 8-8 has to be one of the most frustrating things to endure as a sports fan. My Redskins normally show their true colors early in the year, so my hopes are usually crushed by week 8. My nerves would be shot if I had to deal with the up-and-down performances the Cowboys display every year under Garrett.
Since Garrett has taken over, Dallas has never lived up to their full potential in any season. For some reason or another, they always seem to fall short when it mattered most. There are multiple reasons for the shortcomings of the Cowboys, but most of it falls on the shoulders of head coach Jason Garrett.
It amazes me how Cowboys’ owner Jerry Jones has allowed this pattern of mediocrity to continue as long as it has. Jones is notorious for wanting excellence out of his coach and team. I’m not sure why he didn’t realize what Garrett was after he went 8-8 his first three years as full-time head coach.
Jones has fired coaches for less, so I am not sure why he is waiting so long to pull the trigger on firing Garrett. Although it was for different reasons, he let go of two hall of fame coaches in Jimmy Johnson and Bill Parcells for seemingly less and they won more.
This was supposed to be the year that Dallas was supposed to dominate the NFC East. Many predicted them as the division champion and even Super Bowl participant. At the time this article was written, Dallas was hoping that Philly loses to the New York Giants and they can beat my Redskins to even get in the playoffs. Once again, they are fighting to finish 8-8 on the year, the epitome of what Garrett has been with this team.
Some games it seems Garrett knows exactly what he is doing, while in others he looks to be in over his head. Bad play calling on offense and defense, lack of motivation and an inability to win the big game are some of the major issues that have plagued Garrett throughout his career.
Take this season for instance. The Cowboys have one of the best quarterbacks, running back and receiver combinations in the league. Couple that with one of the best offensive lines and a competent defense, the Cowboys should be one of the best teams in the conference, but they aren’t. You don’t win games on paper; you win them on the field and Garrett has not put his players in the best situation to be successful.
Jones doesn’t have the luxury of wasting any more years his top talent has left. Dak Prescott, Ezekiel Elliot and Amari Cooper and all young Pro-Bowl level players, but how long will they stick around stuck in mediocrity?
I personally hope Garrett sticks around, because I know somehow, some way, he will mess things up. But all jokes aside, I expect Jones to fire Garrett sooner rather than later. Jones likes to make a big splash, so I anticipate the next head coach for the Cowboys will be a well-known one. All I know is the Jason Garrett experiment has run its course.
