The Dallas Cowboys put it all together in the end and earned a hard fought victory versus the Houston Texans. Here are three things we learned about the Cowboys during the game.
The Cowboys offense is elite
It took Dak Prescott and the offense an entire half of football to show up and start to cook. But once the chefs arrived in the kitchen, they couldn’t be stopped. Playing against one of the league’s best defenses, Dallas scored touchdowns nearly every time they touched the ball after halftime, punting just once.
CeeDee Lamb
and Javonte Williams put their foot on the gas coming out of the break, responsible for 28 points between the two of them. Lamb would finish with an astonishing 17 receptions on 21 targets for 189 yards and a touchdown.
Williams only averaged 3.3 yards per carry on the day, but punched the ball into the end zone twice from inside the five, and once on a nifty play from eight yards out. One of my keys to the game this week was to finish with touchdowns on the ground when inside the five and this offense did just that.
The pressure got to Prescott in the first half but he was able to put that behind him in the second. He would be sacked three times on the day and faced relentless pressure. Yet the franchise quarterback delivered throughout the second half, including a game-winning touchdown drive leaving just 40 seconds on the clock for C.J. Stroud to attempt a miracle. That miracle never occurred.
The defense is building momentum
While the box score won’t look pretty, the defense kept the Cowboys in the game. Stroud threw for 347 yards on 31 attempts and finished with a 126.7 quarterback rating. Nico Collins proved to be a problem on the day, recording 118 yards on seven receptions in his first game back from injury.
But even through that, the defense surrendered 16 points in the first half, with six of those due to poor decisions by coach Schottenheimer putting them in a tough position. The score easily could have been 10-6 heading into halftime without the unsuccessful long field goal attempts by Dallas. In the second half, the defense would only let up 14 points.
The run defense looked good on the day, with the Texans rushing for 62 yards on 19 carries, averaging only 3.3 yards per carry. This is easily the best they’ve looked versus an opponents ground attack.
And let’s not forget the sacks. Dallas finally got on the board with players other than Caleb Downs in the sack tally. While it took entirely too long for the pass rush to figure itself out in this game, they would eventually start getting after Stroud on a more consistent basis late into the game.
Both Quinnen Williams and Rashan Gary would finish with their first quarterback takedowns on the year. The pass rush was not consistent or good enough on the day, but they did manage to string enough together to impact the quarterback at times. But make no mistake, this unit is in dire need of help.
Special teams giveth and taketh away
KaVontae Turpin clearly had his best performance of the season. The all-pro return man averaged 29.4 return yards on five returns, the longest of the day being 48 yards. Turpin constantly put his team near or beyond the 35-yard line, helping the offense start with solid field position throughout the day.
Brandon Aubrey’s dirty kicks continue to pin teams deep in their own territory. After the league adjusted touchbacks to begin at the 35-yard line, teams have tried to figure out ways to force their opponents to begin their drives further back.
The Cowboys and their kicker have solved the puzzle with the tough-to-corral dirty kicks. After two of these balls traveled out of bounds last week, Aubrey managed to land every kick inbounds this time around and force the return man to adjust to the wobbler, at times affording an extra second or two for the kick coverage team to get further down the field.
The Texans were able to return one ball for a big gain, but outside of that, their kick returns averaged a paltry 18 yards. The Texans were also plagued by special teams penalties, further pinning them back throughout the day.
But not all was bright and shiny on the day for special teams. While Aubrey would finish the day with two field goals, there were also two misses. The first long field goal attempt on the day from 62 yards would end up being blocked by none other than Will Anderson Jr. The premier edge rusher waltzed in nearly untouched on his way to the block.
The second long field goal attempt seems to have split the fan base. Sending Aubrey out to attempt a 65-yarder with around 30 seconds left in the half with the Texans holding no timeouts was certainly a risk. Miss it, and the Texans are just about in field goal range themselves. Make it and you head into half time with a chance to take the lead after the break.
This staff had enough confidence in the league’s highest paid kicker to drill the long attempt. Aubrey would just barely miss the long field goal and the Texans added their own three points before the half, making it a two-possession game.
