Even if it hadn't been the latest in a series of losses that have escalated from frustrating to horrifying, Sunday's utter embarrassment against the Packers would have been the kind of game that got people talking about making a coaching change. Given that it is the fifth straight loss for a team that had high expectations going into the season, however, you have to wonder if Jerry Jones isn't about to backtrack on last week's contention that Wade Phillips will finish the season.
He hinted at a change after the game when he ominously announced that there are many people who are going to "suffer and suffer consequences," and now Albert Breer of the NFL Network is reporting that there will be a meeting between Double J and the coaching staff at Valley Ranch later on Monday.
Let's hope that meeting brings an end to the Phillips era. The coach gave you all the reason you needed when he spoke to the press after the game.
"We looked like a bad team, with bad coaching. That's the way we played."
It's not the way you played, Wade, it is what you are.
No responsible owner can stand up after these eight weeks and say that they are okay with what has happened. Jones has to know that he cannot sell his customers on spending their time and money on their product while simultaneously refusing to admit flaws in his franchise.
At this point, the problem isn't that the Cowboys don't play hard for Phillips, it is that they don't bother playing for him at all. That's not something that can be accepted, no matter how much the blame for the situation goes beyond Wade to the other coaches, the players themselves and, of course, the owner who put this whole mess together.
Firing Phillips is largely symbolic, but it is a symbolizes the fact that someone is actually paying attention to what's going on in front of their eyes. The change is not something that is going to fix anything in this lost abomination of a season, but you can't just stand back and watch a nuclear meltdown happen without trying to contain the damage.
This shouldn't be difficult for Jones. He has painstakingly built up the Cowboys brand since the moment he took over the franchise and he has maintained a steady hand on the rudder through some rough seas. None are as rough as the ones he is in right now, however. Every week is taking a bigger chunk out of that brand and leaving his beloved franchise in tatters.
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Put Joe DeCamillis in charge and let him kick a little butt for the last eight weeks. You might not win any more games than you would by not making a change, but you'll see who shows up and fights. At the very least, that will help you figure out which of these players deserve to be back next season and that's about all there is to play for over the final eight weeks of the year.
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