ARLINGTON, Texas – One moment you’re watching the longest field goals ever made in NFL history.

Then you examine the most rushing yards the Cowboys have allowed in a single game.

And then you start counting how long it’s been since the Cowboys scored a touchdown.

And before you can blink, you’re talking about the greatest fourth quarter comeback in team history?

That’s how crazy this game got. The Cowboys mounted a furious fourth-quarter rally that gave them a real chance to pull off what would have been a miracle. And with Baylor-Colorado already on a Saturday, it’s hard to imagine two in one weekend.

But the Cowboys didn’t win because they were unlucky. They didn’t win the game because they just couldn’t run the ball.

It’s actually not that hard to figure out why the attack is having such a hard time and why that affects everything else that happens.

Don’t get me wrong, everyone on the team except Brandon Aubrey has issues here. The defense is getting battered to the bone and can’t stop the run. I could easily turn this column into a “can’t stop the run” piece and it would still work.

But to me, the biggest problem with this team is that they are so one-dimensional on offense. It wasn’t until the game got out of hand that the Ravens defense backed off and played softer coverage, allowing the Cowboys to get back into the game.

But that was certainly not due to the running game.

The Cowboys totaled just 51 rushing yards – over the entire game.
For comparison, the Ravens rushed for 55 yards in the first quarter alone. Then they ran for 56 yards in the second quarter alone. Then there’s 122 yards in the third quarter before a 41-yard fourth quarter when the Ravens barely had the ball. But when they needed to run the clock, they ran it.

The Cowboys had to run the ball early in the game, but they just couldn’t.

This committee approach is not working right now. Again, I’m not sure why Dalvin Cook is not ready to play, or why they think he’s not ready, or what’s going on there.

Perhaps – and this is a theory I came up with last week – the plan is to bring Cook in this week, as he should be fresh when everyone else plays a short week against the Giants on Thursday.

Either way, whether it’s Cook or a trade for someone else, the Cowboys need to figure out how to revitalize the offense.

It doesn’t help when one of the big names in free agency — Derrick Henry — rushes for 151 yards and two touchdowns. The Cowboys didn’t draft a free agent running back, other than Royce Freeman, who was cut after camp. They didn’t draft a running back at all.

The plan was to go with a combination of Ezekiel Elliott, Rico Dowdle, Deuce Vaughn and Hunter Luepke, so no one should be super surprised that it doesn’t work here after three games.

As I said before, this isn’t the only problem. There’s no finger pointing at this team, because the defense has all sorts of issues and the offense is out of sync as well.

But there has to be more to this running back situation. Zeke only had three carries for six yards. For someone who is supposed to be the best pass protector, it makes no sense that he isn’t on the field more often, especially when your quarterback threw the ball 51 times.

I’m not saying “more Zeke” is the answer to the problem. But if he only gets a handful of touches (three carries and two targets), doesn’t play special teams, and is the third running back on the field, it really doesn’t add up.

So what did hit the mark on Sunday? The Ravens ran all over the Cowboys—until they didn’t. The Cowboys couldn’t move the ball at all—until they did.

The Cowboys somehow had a realistic chance to win the game, until they didn’t.

This game is definitely not easy to figure out. At least we don’t have to wait long, because another game is coming out in four days.

But hey, I’m not sure if that’s long enough to improve this game.