Saints, Alvin Kamara serve Cowboys ‘unacceptable’ humble pie, but team ‘can’t wait to see the film’ to improve

ARLINGTON, Texas — The Dallas Cowboys defense entered Week 2 against the New Orleans Saints riding high following their 33-17 domination of the Cleveland Browns in Week 1.  

Week 2 served as a complete 180 as Dallas was flat-out embarrassed, 44-19, a contest in which the New Orleans offense became the fifth team since 2000 to score a touchdown on each of their first six drives to start a game. The 35 points allowed in the first half were tied for the most in Cowboys history, matching a 1998 matchup at John Elway’s Denver Broncos and a 2004 showdown with Donovan McNabb’s Philadelphia Eagles. Dallas’ defensive performance also contributed to the second-worst home opener defeat under owner Jerry Jones (since 1989), trailing only a 41-14 loss against the Eagles in 2000, per ESPN.

“Unacceptable,” Cowboys Pro Bowl cornerback Trevon Diggs said postgame when talking about the defensive performance. 

After the Saints marched 80 yards on a seven-play touchdown drive that was capped by a five-yard touchdown by five-time Pro Bowl running back Alvin Kamara, New Orleans’ next two touchdowns came on explosives. Its next drive was just one play: a 70-yard, play-action passing touchdown from quarterback Derek Carr to wide receiver Rashid Shaheed.

Four plays into the drive after that, Kamara took a checkdown off a play-action screen pass from Carr 57 yard to the house to put the Saints up, 21-6, with 9:30 left before halftime. 

“For sure humbling, can’t give up big plays and start to start the game off like that. Got us on our heels,” Cowboys linebacker Eric Kendricks said postgame on Sunday. “Got to come out faster. Obviously, we have to stop the run later in the game. I think we all played a part in it on defense. So it’s a good piece of humble pie for sure.”

Four of the six touchdowns in a row came from Kamara, the player Cowboys three-time All-Pro edge rusher Micah Parsons called “the main focus” of Dallas game preparations throughout the week. He tore the Cowboys defense to shreds with 115 rushing yards and three touchdowns on 20 carries, an average of 5.8 yards per carry, and 65 receiving yards on two catches, 57 of which came on the catch-and run score. On that play, he was untouched all the way into the end zone. Kamara totaled 180 yards from scrimmage to go along with the four scores, which now ranks as the most scrimmage touchdowns ever in a Saints road game. 

“We have to use our hands and feet,” Parsons said. “We got a guy like Kamara. We’re not tackling well. We’re arm-tackling. We’re trying to pull a guy down. We got to be aggressive, we have to create penetration and do a much better job tackling. I’m trying to ride the guys, get everyone to calm down. ‘Let’s focus. ‘We’re here. This is adversity. We need to hit this wall.’ We need to get better. … There’s a lot of things that I believe that need to get fixed.”

Stopping the Shanahan tree scheme

On Wednesday, Diggs called the Shanahan tree offense “annoying” because of how deceptive the scheme can be. Teams running that offensive scheme — Kyle Shanahan’s San Francisco 49ers and Matt LaFleur’s Green Bay Packers — have eliminated Dallas in each of the last three postseasons. The last time the Cowboys played at AT&T Stadium prior to Sunday, they were pummeled, 48-32, by the Packers in the NFC wild-card round in January. For the first game back at home since that day, they faced Saints offensive coordinator Klint Kubiak, who served as the 49ers’ passing game coordinator last season and then rung them up for 44 points Sunday.

“Yeah, it’s not necessarily confusing, it’s just you have to be on your toes,” Diggs said. “You have to be on your Ps and Qs because they can run it, play-action and then when they [are] passing the ball, they’re max-protecting everybody. So we’re not getting any [pass] rush. You’re just out there just, you know, this is unacceptable. I’m not going to make any excuses but you know, it’s unacceptable. We ain’t come to play today.”

Their same issues with the scheme centered around under center formations, zone-blocking and play-action passing cropped up again on Sunday against New Orleans in a major way. Because of that scheme, Dallas (2023-2024) is now only the fifth team in the Super Bowl era (since 1966) including the postseason to allow at least 44 points in consecutive home games. That’s not a fun club to be in. 

“I feel like you look around the locker you can sense it,” Kendricks said. “Obviously everyone is disappointed. We didn’t want that, especially at the home opener. The NFL will humble you like that. This isn’t the first time I’ve been a part of that. We got to make a stand. We got to come back to work tomorrow. Obviously, let it hurt for a little bit. I think that’s a good thing. Put it in our rearview and work toward the next.”

A week ago in Cleveland, Dallas led the NFL with six sacks, co-led the league with two interceptions and ranked third in quarterback pressure rate as a team (42.9%). The Cowboys’ production Sunday in those same areas included one sack, one interception — on a tipped pass off Saints wide receiver Chris Olave’s hands that was picked off by Cowboys safety Donovan Wilson — and a 23.5% quarterback pressure rate. 

How did the Saints nullify Parsons, who racked up a sack and co-led the NFL with 11 quarterback pressures in Week 1, and the Cowboys pass rush? By scheming up blocking techniques the All-Pro had never experienced before. 

“They did a great job schematically,” Parsons said. “Everything was short. Everything was quick, and if it wasn’t, it was max [protect], two-man routes. … Instead of having a lineman block me in max protection with a chip, they sent a chip with a lineman and sent a running back to cut. I was going through a maze almost. I thought that was creative, a new way. Things I didn’t see. Now this is an opportunity for me to see a creative look I haven’t see before and get better from it.”

The Shanahan tree isn’t a puzzle the Cowboys alone have to solve. Parsons pointed to the New York Jets, who have registered a top-five total defense in both 2023 and 2022, struggling to continue Shanahan’s 49ers in a 32-19 Week 1 loss on “Monday Night Football.”

“I wouldn’t say us. I think it’s everyone,” Parsons said. “Look at the Jets, they had trouble defending it when they played. The Jets are a great defense. They were top five the last two years. I think [Kyle] Shanahan put together a nice scheme. He’s evolved. … He’s one of the best offensive minds in the game besides [Sean] McVay. Those are the two most talented OCs and head coaches that I’ve been around. Being around McVay [in training camp joint practices] I could tell. I just think it’s about what he’s invented and guys are trying to catch up, trying to catch up. … He’s created creaks and gaps where he’s been able to manipulate schemes and make things look a certain way and come back in other ways. So shout out to Kyle because he’s been doing a great job with that team. …. When [Christian] McCaffrey [is] out, Jordan Mason went for a buck 50 [147 rushing yards in Week 1], so shout out to him. But overall, as DCs and defensive minds, we just got to be better.”

Now, Parsons can’t wait to turn the film on.

“Everyone is going to say they did their job and everything was perfect right now, but the film tells all,” Parsons said. “I can’t wait to see the film. I don’t know who was out of what gap [in the run game]. I know for the guys when I turn the film on, I want to say ‘No. 11 was giving his all.’ That’s all that matters. Then, we’re going to continue that standard. I got a job. I owe these guys. I owe my family a certain level of ball. I don’t think I helped to the best of my abilities today.”