Rapoport: Week 8 game rankings
What's the best game on the Week 8 slate? The worst? Ian Rapoport provides a pecking order in his Rap Sheet Rankings. **More ...**
The Dallas Cowboys have been undermined all season by the inability to do the little things.
This has been especially apparent on offense, where illegal procedures and general miscommunication have contributed to the unit's disappointing performance.
"We thought we have a heck of an advantage as well as Tony sees and when the ball was snapped, we wanted all of that we could get," owner Jerry Jones told Rapoport. "But to some degree, it created other issues relative to execution -- offsides penalties, those kinds of things. We've cut back some.
"Basically, we've created a little less pre-snap communication with the rest of the team," Jones went on. "That's not taking a load off him, but the communication before the ball is snapped has been tightened up and crisped. Made crisper."
This isn't necessarily an indictment of Romo, though he might not ever outsmart defenses the way Denver Broncos quarterback Peyton Manning has for years. Jones said the change in gameplan isn't about making Romo a less aggressive quarterback.
"We don't want to take the Romo out of Romo," Jones told Rapoport.
"That's going to take us where we're going to get," he said. "He's going to be the one that's got to get there and the one to decide whether to make a play or not."
The Cowboys are killing themselves with the simple stuff. Consider this an attempt to make the simple less complicated.
Follow Dan Hanzus on Twitter @danhanzus.