The Dallas Cowboys continue to stumble. In the aftermath of yet another disappointing loss, this time to the Arizona Cardinals, Brian Schottenheimer’s comments clearly hinted at what he thinks went wrong, as he didn’t hold back.

The message from Schottenheimer on Monday was pretty clear. “Really good job on first and second down… with 5 sacks… Biggest problem on defense was third down,” he said, according to a twitter post shared by Reporter Sydney Staples on X, bringing up the moment that proved to be the turning point. He didn’t say Matt Eberflus‘s name, but that’s understood-the implication was clear that the defensive lapses fall under the DC’s watch.

Logging five sacks and constant early pressure, Dallas simply fell apart on the important downs. Backup quarterback Jacoby Brissett calmly dissected Dallas’ zone looks.

Coming in as clear favorites against a team on a five-game skid and relying on a veteran backup QB, the Dallas team wilted instead of asserting control. Arizona dictated the pace, keeping them on the field and physically wearing them down. That’s a glaring indictment for a team with supposed playoff aspirations, and one Schottenheimer was clearly done sugarcoating.

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This isn’t an incident in isolation: The Dallas defense currently ranks 31st in both points and yards allowed, which has been enough to prompt Schottenheimer to take over defensive meetings himself, a rare step for a head coach. “You get his insight,” Eberflus said. “Not only in that meeting, a defensive meeting or a unit meeting, but also just talking in the office together. I think that’s really important to soak that in.”

But with the frustration building, Jerry Jones is not budging, yet. The owner of the Cowboys doubled down on confidence in his defensive coordinator while making an appearance on 105.3 The FAN. “Coach Eberflus has been a high-end coach,” owner Jerry Jones said.

“He was a really top coordinator throughout his stay in Indianapolis, where it got him the head job in the NFL, which we all know is difficult. And then he had really good defenses in Chicago.” Well, one thing of which Jones was crystal clear is this: nothing’s changing now, which simply means the Dallas Cowboys are continuing to roll with Eberflus.

However, now we can clearly see the frustration in the Cowboys camp.

”I’m disappointed,” says Brian Schottenheimer amid Week 9 loss

Brian said, ”I’m disappointed. It’s the inconsistency that keeps getting us… In terms of this team’s fight and work ethic, I never questioned that.”

Dallas had a promising opening drive to the Arizona 4-yard line, but a dropped pass and a decision to go for it on fourth down resulted in a sack. Especially in the second half, it looked like the Cardinals controlled the game as they wished. This loss stings more because the Cardinals themselves were not having a great campaign. At 3-5, they have struggled against other teams, with their last loss against the Packers.

Meanwhile, the Cardinals executed cleanly: Brissett took advantage of soft coverages. The Cowboys have now lost five games, many due to the same unforgiving weaknesses. Now only the future will tell where this frustration among the Cowboys locker room ends.