It was a tale of two sides for both the Dallas Cowboys and the New Orleans Saints in Week 4, but the latter escaped with the 12-10 victory in a game that could've gone either way. That brings the former back down to Earth a bit with a 3-1 record, and they'll get a chance to learn from the errors they made in Louisiana and ready themselves to host a familiar villain in Aaron Rodgers and the Green Bay Packers -- in a game that will tell a lot about who the Cowboys truly are in 2019.

It's an offense that averaged more than 30 points per game but was suddenly held to just 10, causing a noticeable eyebrow raise from many. The defensive unit again did what it was tasked to do, but this was the first time in four games offensive coordinator Kellen Moore and quarterback Dak Prescott couldn't match serve, and there's no one reason as to why that was the case. Unlike the first three opponents the Cowboys faced, the Saints often masked their defensive looks to disrupt any pre-snap motion Dallas would throw at them. What often looked like a blitz was instead zone coverage, and what looked like zone coverage at times turned into a blitz package.

It was enough to keep any first-year offensive coordinator on his heels, and Moore struggled for the first time to adapt for most of the game. His usually stellar tandem with Prescott to open third quarters remained intact as the Cowboys finally drove down the field in impressive fashion to score their only touchdown of the evening with a bully run by Ezekiel Elliott but, for the most part, head coach Sean Payton and defensive coordinator Dennis Allen gave Moore fits. 

The Cowboys lost to the Saints and there's a lot to go over. Fortunately John Breech, Ryan Wilson and Sean Wagner-McGough joined Will Brinson to break everything down on the latest episode of the Pick Six Podcast. Listen to the full show below and be sure to subscribe right here to get daily NFL goodness fired into your eardrums.

Offensive gameplan on maximum bland

At times, it appeared the Cowboys weren't as aggressive as they have been, and that included rarely taking shots downfield. 

A part of that was due to the pressure in Prescott's face because although he was sacked only once, he was hurried a total of seven times. On one such hurry, Prescott rolled out to the left and could've hit an open Randall Cobb in the end zone to change the entire dynamic of the game, but the pass sailed a few inches too far to the left. On yet another drive, Cobb dropped a pass that was thrown just slightly behind him but should've been caught, and killed a promising drive himself. These two situations were a bit of a microcosm for how out of sorts the usually pristine Cowboys offense looked on Sunday, and the officials didn't help their cause.

Amari Cooper was called for two questionable penalties that negated big gains when Dallas needed them most, and a late-game fourth-down conversion by Elliott was declared a fumble despite his elbow having been on the ground just prior to the ball being stripped free. 

It was easily the messiest game the Cowboys have thus far participated in -- by way of both their own struggles and those by the officiating crew -- but despite it all, they were only a few yards away from possibly mounting a game-winning drive on the boot of kicker Brett Maher. And so it went, the final drive was again handicapped by one of the aforementioned penalties on Cooper, and Prescott was left with only a Hail Mary pass that was intercepted by safety Marcus Williams.

So, did the Cowboys revert back to conservatism on offense? Or did the Saints -- who also saw the return of starting defensive tackle Sheldon Rankins -- simply impose their will? 

"I wouldn't say it was more conservative at all," Elliott said, via Jon Machota of The Athletic. "We ran a lot of the same stuff that we've run all year. We just didn't go out there and execute. 

"...Our defense played their ass off. They kept us in the game. They gave us a chance. We just didn't hold up our side on the offensive end. 

"We just can't let those guys down like that."

The offense isn't mailing it in after one loss

There's much to be gleaned by the Cowboys from a loss like this, having now witnessed Moore take his lumps in the fourth game of the season. That's admittedly better than learning in December or January, because the team has a chance to reboot the offense at home against Rodgers and Co., when a victory would put them at 4-1 and settle the mass hysteria that would have you believe they're 1-3 instead of 3-1 and still atop the NFC East. 

"I feel good about where we're at," tight end Jason Witten said following the close loss. "[The Saints are] a good football team. I think this team is gonna be a really good team. ...The teams that play in January, they're the ones that continue to get better and learn from it. 

"There's still a lot of confidence and belief in this team."

That is a sentiment echoed in the chiseled tone of Prescott. 

"We got a great team," Prescott said, via Machota. "There's no confidence lost with this loss, I can promise you that."

What was learned, and how to fix it

The Cowboys will need to get back to stretching the field as a means of aiding Elliott and the run game, and then utilizing Elliott to tear off runs that allow them to execute the play action pass effectively. They were one of the best in the league at doing so going into Week 4, but attempted the play action only 20% of the time in New Orleans. They also failed to get rookie Tony Pollard involved in the game plan, granting him only two offensive snaps and no touches; which is the opposite of how he was used in his first three NFL games. Just one week prior, Pollard joined Elliott in rushing for more than 100 yards against the Dolphins, but he barely saw the field against the Saints.

A large part of that is due to the Saints success at stopping the run, and that was fueled by Rankins having his way at times with the interior of the offensive line. It's rare you'll see All-Pro talent like Travis Frederick and Zack Martin have to less-than-stellar games in a row, which bodes well for the Cowboys and spells trouble for the visiting Packers. 

The biggest concern right now, however, is the status of All-Pro left tackle Tyron Smith, who will likely miss the Week 5 contest with a high ankle sprain suffered on the sole sack taken by Prescott -- when the fourth-year QB was pushed back into Smith's legs. More tests will be run and his status for Week 5 remains undetermined, but he's a long shot to take the field. That will make it a bit harder to seal the edge against the Packers, but the Cowboys and backup Cameron Fleming have no choice but to figure it out if they want to avoid their first two-game snide since Week 7 and Week 9 of the 2018 season.

Help is on the way, maybe...

The team is hoping to get great news this week on Michael Gallup, Tyrone Crawford and Antwaun Woods, three players battling an ankle, hip and knee issue, respectively. The absence of Gallup was evident in Week 4, as the offense failed to make down-the-field plays with backup Devin Smith. And although the defense did a great overall job of bottling up Alvin Kamara and holding him to only 69 yards rushing, he was able to slash up the A and B gaps at will late in the game to gain yardage and eat up much-needed clock against the Cowboys. 

You have to assume the presence of Woods -- at minimum -- pushes Kamara back and gives Dallas more time for a possible game-winning drive. Or, then again, Woods and Crawford help bring down Teddy Bridgewater an additional time or to; also changing the outcome of the game. If the Cowboys can get one, two or all three of those players back on the field against Green Bay, their chances of turning everything they learned at the hands of the Saints into a bounce-back win increases exponentially. Rodgers is a nemesis Dallas knows well, but have rarely been able to corral, and Woods plus Crawford would aid in that effort. 

How to grill The Cheese in Week 5

Flipping the coin reveals although Elliott was mostly capped by the Saints, at face value, the Packers don't have the personnel to achieve the same goal. They're ranked 26th in the league in run defense, allowing more than 142 yards on the ground weekly. That should be the initial plan of attack, because the Packers are currently third-best in defending the pass with only 188 yards allowed on average, but it bears mentioning they lined up against Mitch Trubisky, Kirk Cousins, Joe Flacco and an uneven Carson Wentz in their first four games.

For perspective, Prescott's 223-yard outing against the Saints was his worst of the year, but tied for the most yards any of the aforementioned four quarterbacks threw for against the Packers. It's a game wherein the Cowboys can control the ground and subsequently the air, hopefully having learned how to combat an opposing defense masking coverage, and remembering Pollard is a weapon to help to combat it.

As far as the officiating goes, well, that's another story -- especially when the Packers are involved. 

Wink wink.

Home cooking has fared well for the Cowboys, though, who are currently winners of seven straight at AT&T Stadium. After dropping a close one on the road, an eighth would hit the spot like iced tea on a hot Texas day, and especially considering it'd come with an order of grilled Cheese. They'll need to work through the stomach ache they feel thanks to tainted Gumbo, but they can again eat hearty on Oct. 6. 

Soup's on.