(Editor's Note: Time to check the mail! The DallasCowboys.com staff writers answer your questions here in 'Mailbag' presented by Miller Lite.)
What do you feel is the cause for these fourth quarter meltdowns? – Robert Bass/Palmdale, CA
Patrik: Each collapse carries a different reason, in my humble opinion. In Rio, it was due to a first-time defensive coordinator who admittedly wants that final defensive call back and who would "not call" that again in that situation. It goes from there, to be honest. Because while that was a coaching mistake, the monumental collapse against the Arizona Cardinals was due to the offense not taking advantage of a great defensive effort through mostly three quarters and, eventually, that defense lost focus and effort — so blame both side of the ball for that one.
That said, it looked as if lessons from the recent past were mostly learned in the win over the Colts. That contest felt eerily like deja vu in the making, but the defense clamped down after a couple chunk plays gave the Colts hope, the offense found an explosive play and delivered a touchdown (not a field goal) on their final drive and, to match serve, the defense sealed the deal with pressure on the QB and a nail-in-the-coffin interception. Now, it's about putting it all together, and hopefully sooner than later.
Tommy: I think there have been different reasons in different games. Against Baltimore, the Cowboys couldn't find a touchdown on a goal to go sequence at the end of the game to take a touchdown lead and likely win the game, and the defense allowing the Ravens to get into field goal range on one play. Against the Buccaneers, it was back to back touchdown drives out of the half, being dominated in the time of possession battle and costly turnovers. And most recently against the Cardinals, it was the defense not being able to find a stop on four straight possessions and allowing 28 second half points after Arizona shifted to Gardner Minshew at quarterback. The common factor among those games has been the defense not being able to get stops in timely moments, but Dallas' offense has had opportunities to put games away and haven't been able to convert. Against Indianapolis, both were able to close strong: A go-ahead touchdown on offense and game sealing turnover. That's what Dallas had been lacking in their previous contested matchups.
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