Famous 20th-century philosopher Michael Gerard Tyson probably said it best when he plainly stated, “everybody has a plan until they get punched in the mouth.” Tyson, a savant of fisticuffs and the most feared pugilist of his generation, spoke from experience. Not as the man with the plan, but rather the puncher, hellbent on destroying said plan.
In Week 15 against the Bills, the Cowboys found themselves on the receiving end of that prose. And like the man with the plan in which Tyson once spoke, everything fell apart once that first punch landed on their jaw.
In a game which was eerily similar to the Week 5 disaster in San Francisco, things got ugly fast in Buffalo and all of the Cowboys’ presumed strategy flew right out the window the moment the first punch landed. Dallas played timidly on both sides of the ball. The game plan was a mess; game management was nonexistent. The offensive line couldn’t protect the QB, the QB couldn’t find the WRs, the defense couldn’t tackle, run fits weren’t filled, foolish penalties ruled the day, and effort was shamefully absent.
The Bills scored touchdowns on three of their first four drives and at no point did it appear Dallas was up to the task. The game would end with a score of 31-10 but to those who watched, it likely felt far, far worse.