ARLINGTON, Texas – One minute, you're looking up the longest field goals made in NFL history.
Then you're researching the most rushing yards allowed by the Cowboys in a single game.
And then you start counting how long it's been since the Cowboys scored a touchdown.
And before you can even blink, you're starting to talk about the biggest fourth-quarter comeback in team history?
That's how crazy this game turned out to be. The Cowboys made a furious rally in the fourth quarter, giving them an actual shot to pull off what would've been a miracle. And since Baylor-Colorado already occurred on Saturday, it's hard to think there would be two in one weekend.
But the Cowboys didn't get the win because they were unlucky. They didn't win the game because they just can't run the football.
It's really not that hard to figure out why the offense is struggling so much, and why that's affecting everything else happening.
Don't get me wrong, everyone on the team not named Brandon Aubrey has some problems here. The defense is getting gashed to no end and can't stop the run. I could just as easily turn this column into a "can't stop the run" piece, and it would still work.
But to me, the biggest issue for this team is being so one-dimensional on offense. Not until the game got completely out of hand did the Ravens defense back off and play a softer coverage, allowing the Cowboys to get back in the game.
But it sure wasn't because of the running game.
The Cowboys totaled just 51 rushing yards – for the entire game.
In comparison, the Ravens rushed for 55 yards – in the first quarter alone. Then went for 56 yards – in the second quarter alone. Then there's 122 yards in the third quarter before a 41-yard fourth quarter when the Ravens barely had the ball. But when they needed to run out the clock, they did.
The Cowboys needed to run the ball early in the game and just couldn't do it.
This committee-approach isn't working right now. Again, I'm not sure why Dalvin Cook isn't ready to play, or why they don't think he's ready, or just what's happening there.
Maybe – and this is a theory I came up with last week – the plan is to bring Cook in this week since he should be fresh when everyone else is playing on a short week against the Giants on Thursday.
Either way, whether it's Cook or trading for someone else, the Cowboys have to figure out how to give this running game some life.
It doesn't help matters when one of the big names in free agency – Derrick Henry – ripped off 151 yards and two touchdowns. The Cowboys didn't get a free agent running back other than Royce Freeman, who was cut after camp. They didn't draft a running back at all.
The plan was to go with a combination of Ezekiel Elliott, Rico Dowdle, Deuce Vaughn and Hunter Luepke. So no one should be super surprised that it's not working out here after three games.
Like I said before, this isn't the only problem. There is no finger-pointing going on with this team because the defense has all kinds of issues and the offense is also out of sync.
But there's got to be more to this running back situation. Zeke only got three carries for six yards. For someone that is supposed to be the best pass protector, it doesn't make sense that he's not on the field even more, especially when your quarterback threw the ball 51 times.
I'm not saying "more Zeke" is the answer to the problem. But if he's only getting a handful of touches (three carries and two targets), doesn't play special teams and he's the third running back on the field, it really doesn't add up.
Then again, what did add up on Sunday? The Ravens ran all over the Cowboys – until they didn't. The Cowboys couldn't move the ball at all – until they did.
The Cowboys somehow had a real shot to win the game – until they didn't.
This game certainly isn't easy to figure out. At least we won't have to wait very long with another game coming up in four days.
Then again, not sure that's long enough to fix this running game.
