(Editor's Note: Time to check the mail! The DallasCowboys.com staff writers answer your questions here in 'Mailbag' presented by Miller Lite.)
I keep hearing the teams who made the playoffs are more physical and more disciplined than the Cowboys. And stats like ranking among the worst in the league in penalties and missed tackles seem to support that. But can physicality and discipline be coached? Seems to me you either have that mindset, or you don't. Which means, do the Cowboys need to take a hard look at the players they have on their roster? – Robert Buckner/Dallas, TX
Patrik: Both can be coached. What can't be coached is talent, and that is to say the Cowboys need to take a long hard look at their roster (mostly on defense, for the purposes of this conversation) and ask themselves if they have the right level of talent for the incoming defensive coordinator, and that's where free agency and the 2026 NFL Draft will need to both come into play in revamping that side of the ball. But as far as discipline goes, people are literally taught it all day, every day and, like physicality, it's a mindset that requires the person to commit to the task (e.g., Deion Sanders wasn't physical, because he chose not to be, but his talent was a gift from God). It's really nothing more than that and if a player isn't mentally all-in on being disciplined and physical, then ask if it's the player and/or the coach's teaching methods. Talent is either there or not there, and it's either exceptional or it's less than, but nobody can convince me — a parent — that discipline can't be coached.
Tommy: I think discipline can be coached more than physicality can. You can grow to play more and more physical over the course of your career in my opinion, but a lot of it is a mindset that's already engrained in you as well and you have to want to play that way, in my opinion. Discipline on the other hand is definitely something that good coaches can instill in their teams. You want an example? If you're a college football fan, look at the Indiana Hoosiers this past year under Curt Cignetti. Yes, they were extremely physical, but they also didn't make any mistakes. Because of that, they went undefeated and won the national championships. Teams that don't beat themselves are incredibly difficult to beat, and that goes for all levels of football. Does that mean Dallas needs to take a look at their roster? Well, I would certainly hope that they feel confident about the players they are keeping around being able to fit that mold.
Mailbag
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