ARLINGTON, Texas — It's another bone-rattling loss for the Dallas Cowboys, their second in a row and it drops them to 1-2 on the season, having now been blown out at AT&T Stadium by the New Orleans Saints in Week 2 and finally waking up both offensively and defensively in the fourth quarter against the Baltimore Ravens, but it was too little, too late.
They'd lose their most recent contest with a 28-25 final score that saw Dak Prescott and the offense score three touchdowns in the final quarter, the special teams recover an onside kick and the defense rediscover their ability to get off of the field on third down.
That was until they didn't, because with one final chance to hold Lamar Jackson and Co. to give the ball back to the offense for a shot at winning the game, Jackson was able to convert and effectively end the Ravens' fourth-quarter collapse and avoid an 0-3 start to their season.
For the Cowboys, it's about soul-searching heading into a short week headlined by a trip to face the New York Giants on Thursday Night Football, and three of the team's defensive leaders spoke about the current state of affairs with only a few days to prepare for their division rival.
And there were no punches pulled by DeMarcus Lawrence, Trevon Diggs or Micah Parsons.
DeMarcus Lawrence
On how the game started:
"Yeah, a terrible start. Uh, you know, it all falls on the shoulders of us as the defense. It doesn't matter how much willpower you have at the end. If you don't start good, most likely, you're not gonna finish good, so the outcome is the outcome. Only thing we can do is go and review it and get better from it.
On the current level of frustration:
"Yes, it is frustrating. I mean, of course it's fustrating. If you don't love the game, it won't be frustrating, but I know the men in this room love the game, and that's why you saw the difference in the second half of cleaning up our mistakes [from] the first half. We just gotta put it all together, come together as a team and get back on track."
On what the most frustrating part is:
"Having a game plan but not following into the game plan. It is just small things, so once we get get out of playing ittle league football and get back to playing pro football, we'll be all right.
On how to fix the run defense:
"Play pro football. Do what your coaches teach you — to play your gaps, play your blocks, stay in your gaps. I'm included in this, you know? I'm not discarded from this at all. It's just a small things that we've gotta get back to doing, and we'll do it this week.".
Trevon Diggs
"[Unacceptable. We waited too long to fight. I feel like in the beginning, everybody had the right mindset, but at the end of the day, it's about going out there and doing it, you know."
On the run defense:
"We just need more hats to the ball. It's the little things we need to clean up. If somebody gets out of their gap, a big hole is gonna be there, and the rest is history. It's small things we've gotta fix. We've gotta keep working on it. I feel like everybody is on the same page, now. It's just all about executing and doing it."
On finishing the game strong:
"I mean, we should have been like that for four quarters, you know? We're not supposed to wait until the fourth quarter, nine minutes in the game to turn it on. … I think that we've got the guys to do what we need to do. We've got talent from top to bottom, so I'm not worried about that. We just gotta do it.
On the short week with divisional matchup looming:
"I feel like we should still feel it. I feel it for sure. When Monday comes, Monday comes and when we need to focus on the next team, we're gonna focus on the next team, but, we've gotta feel this burn. I hate losing. I don't like losing."
On the Ravens' third down conversion that ended the comeback:
"Yeah, that was the sh-tty on my part. I gotta make that play. Regardless of what situation we are in, at the end of the day, I've gotta make that play. They want me here, so I'm supposed to show up when it's time, so that's on me."
Micah Parsons
On guys playing hero ball during the two losses:
"I think, right now, we've got people just trying to be Superman. People just gotta [handle] their own jobs, bro. I don't even ever want to be Superman. We don't need Supermans at all. We just need 11 guys playing together and, right now, it's just not in unison."
On what the disconnect might be on defense:
"I mean, we're preaching something all week, and everyone's in the locker room saying we're going to do what we got to do and everyone's going to be accountable. .. [It shouldn't have] come down to the third down [in the waning seconds]. We do what we're supposed to do, we win the game. It's just, like, at what cost are we just going to keep doing this to ourselves?"
On if the Ravens showed anything unexpected:
"[They did] exactly what I expected. Motion 42, they're going to run to 42. I mean it's plain as day. We know when it's true pass because those guys is in damn near four point stance coming up to the ball. So it's just like at what point are we just going to knuckle up and just play?"
On his confidence going forward in the team to get back on track:
"My confidence is with the organization. We've got to get it right. You know what I'm saying? This is a winning organization. I'll uphold that standard, but at the same time, everyone has to uphold the standard; and I think I'm confident in my faith, and I just think we're being tested right now. I really believe we're being tested. It has to come together. It's humbling. When you're at your all-time high, God will always have a way to put you back down and, right now, we're low as sh-t, and everyone has to feel strong within faith and say, 'At what point are we going to trust? Trusting God, trusting ourselves, trusting the team, trusting the framework of the defense?"
On the solidarity of the locker room after a two-game losing streak at home:
"We've just got to stick together. This is a hard test. Like I said, this is the point when your faith gotta be the strongest, right? When everything isn't going right. We thought we were good in Cleveland and you came back, and back to back crushing losses. This is when your faith is tested the most. It's in the scripture, bro. It's always the test,man.And at one point you've just got to rise and say, 'I will not fall.'"
