One of the keys to having a good drive is how well a team executes on first down. Most Cowboys fans have noticed for many years how anemic we tend to be on first down plays, especially running the ball.
Yesterday at the end of the third quarter, the Fox broadcast posted a graph that illustrates this in a very clear way:
- Cowboys on first down plays: 15 plays for 29 yards.
- eagles on first down plays: 17 plays for 117 yards.
That’s a graphic example of putting your team in bad spots on 2nd and 3rd down. This is exactly what influences our third down conversion rates. Yesterday it was 6/15 on third down conversions and most of them were on 3rd and long situations. When your team is constantly in 3rd and 7 or more, this league is brutal.
So far this season, Mike McCarthy’s offense is digging too many holes on first down.
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