ARLINGTON, Texas _ The Dallas Cowboys offense is broken and no one has an idea how to fix it.
Well, at least no one in the United States.
With the star running back Ezekiel Elliott holed up in Cabo on a Mexico vacation while serving the third game of a six-week suspension, the Cowboys offense has run on empty and the team's ability to compete has seemingly diminished at every turn.
Thursday's embarrassing 28-6 loss to the Los Angeles Chargers was such an abject failure that the leadership and direction of the team should be questioned from the players on the field to the coaching staff all the way up to the front office.
It's one thing for the Atlanta Falcons, the defending NFC champions, and the Philadelphia Eagles, who have the league's best record, to thump the Cowboys in 27-7 and 37-9 shellacking respectively.
But the Chargers entered Thursday game with a 4-6 mark.
This was the team the Cowboys were supposed to get back on track against and hopefully keep their fledgling playoff hopes alive.
But the Cowboys were non-competitive from start to finish in what became their third consecutive blowout loss by a combined score of 92-22
They have been outscored 72-6 on the second halves of the past three games combined.
Chargers quarterback Phillip Rivers had his way with the Cowboys' overmatched and overworked defense, completing 27 of 33 passes for 434 yards and three touchdowns.
But the Cowboys success is largely dependent on their offense. And quarterback Dak Prescott had his third consecutive poor game since the departure of Elliott, completing 20 of 27 passes with two interceptions, including a 90-yard interception return for a touchdown cornerback Desmond King.
The Cowboys hoped the return of left tackle Tyron Smith, who missed the past two games with a groin injury, would make a difference for Prescott and the offense.
But it was to no avail.
The Cowboys opened the game extending a streak of drives without a touchdown to 26 as they trailed 3-0 at halftime and 16-0 at the end of three quarters.
Making matters worse is that 34-yard touchdown run by Prescott that could have made the score 9-7 in the third quarter but was nullified by a holding penalty on Smith.
The Cowboys finally got on the scoreboard early in the fourth quarter, taking advantage of a pass interference on a pass to Terrance Williams and an 18-yard pass to Dez Bryant to set up a 2-yard run from Rod Smith.
But Prescott missed a wide-open Williams on the two point conversion.
It's 16-6 with 12:48 left.
But the score and seemingly sign of life was only a blip on the radar.
The Cowboys would soon flatline on the ensuing possession as the tired and exposed defense gave up a 42-yard touchdown catch to Keenan Allen. Allen dodged five would-be tacklers on the way to the end zone.
And the coup de grace came when King jumped in front of a Prescott pass intended for Cole Beasley and returned it 90 yards to the end zone to make it 28-6. It was the third interception off Prescott that has been returned for a touchdown this season.
The Chargers followed with another interception off Prescott. Prescott has been intercepted five times in the past two games.
It's easy to blame Prescott, but the offense overall has shown little imagination and no playmaking ability.
Instead of wondering if the Cowboys can stay in playoff contention until Elliott returns for the Dec. 24 match-up against the Seattle Seahawks, there is a legitimate question will the Cowboys win again this season.
And if that's the case, it's a logical next step to question if owner Jerry Jones might consider a coaching change.
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