Divisional games are always a battle, so watching the Dallas Cowboys come away with a 37-20 win over the Washington Commanders should feel good, even if it was a little ugly at times. The Cowboys needed a good rebound game after a shaky performance last week, and they got it. Bravo?
Even with the win, it’s hard to know how we should feel about this game, so today we’re going to look closer at things to get a better sense of how this group played. Let’s run through some things that stood out on Sunday.
Prescott was dealing
The passing game was great thanks to Dak Prescott. He finished 26 of 31 for 279 yards with four touchdowns and no picks. He finished with a passer rating of 143.7, his highest mark since the regular-season finale trouncing of the Eagles back in 2022.
The great thing about Prescott’s play is he had some easy stuff drawn up for him with some nifty play designs to get receivers open, but he also made some difficult, spot-on throws to receivers in tighter coverage.
He also made good decisions with his feet, running at the right moments, although it still made fans hold their breath considering how many quarterbacks were getting hurt across the league on Sunday.
Prescott was dialed in, spreading the ball around and making all the right decisions. It was great to see, and it was only fitting that this performance allowed him to pass Tony Romo for the all-time record in passing touchdowns in franchise history. Well done, QB1.
Running game troubles
The only blemish in an otherwise great performance from the offense was their inability to run the ball. Javonte Williams never got anything started as he was met in the backfield on what felt like every other play. The interior offensive line could not get any push, and you cannot help but wonder how much they are missing Tyler Smith, who continues to miss games while recovering from thumb surgery.
Adding to the issue is that they routinely forgot to block the edge defender. Washington repeatedly snuck in extra run attackers along the edge, and the Cowboys left those guys unattended, allowing them to crash in and blow up the run behind the line of scrimmage.
Give the Commanders credit. They were strong in the trenches, particularly Javon Kinlaw. The veteran defensive tackle consistently won at the point of attack, moving blockers and shutting down running lanes. And safety Nick Cross was an effective run-blitzer. There just wasn’t much room for runners to run.
The only good thing about the lack of a rushing attack is that Brian Schottenheimer opted to move away from it rather than continuing to run negative plays. That doesn’t make the problem go away, but it is a nice mitigation tactic, so give him credit for adjusting. The bootlegs and play-action were plenty effective with the Commanders always so focused on attacking the run. The offense kept throwing the ball despite the game script practically screaming at them to run it.
Quietly doing his job
The run-blocking needs serious work, but the pass-blocking is holding up well. Specifically, Tyler Guyton is quietly putting together a great start to the season. He was the subject of endless scrutiny this summer to the point where he was supposedly in a roster battle for his job, but he has since silenced any doubters. He did a great job in his pass protection assignments, allowing Prescott a clean, comfortable pocket to operate from.
Not every first-round lineman the team drafts turns into an immediate All-Pro, but Guyton’s progress is super encouraging. He could still be on that path, even if his route is turning out to be a little more scenic.
Thank goodness for DB depth
It was just a few weeks ago when we couldn’t determine which safeties were going to make final roster cuts because the team was so deep with talent. Fortunately, the front office hung on to that depth, because it did not take long for them to need every single bit of it.
They were already playing without starting free safety Malik Hooker, who suffered a fractured forearm in the opener last week. His replacement, P.J. Locke, only lasted three plays before suffering a non-contact foot injury. Fortunately, the defense still had rookie Caleb Downs, free agent Jalen Thompson, and special teams sub Markquese Bell to hold things down. Downs had a few moments where he made rookie mistakes, but he gets splashier and splashier with each new game.
Additionally, starting cornerback Cobie Durant suffered a hamstring injury, forcing the team to call upon second-year player Shavon Revel Jr. to fill the void. While the young cornerback still has some moments to clean up, he also did a great job riding receivers toward the sideline. Three times in this game he used the boundary perfectly, and all three instances resulted in incompletions.
Linebacker play
The team was also without starter DeMarvion Overshown, who injured his hamstring last week. This put more of the workload on rookie Jaishawn Barham and new acquisition Dee Winters. There were moments where Barham looked a bit overaggressive and overran the play, or Winters was stiff-armed out of the play, but there were also times where both stepped up and shut things down. Ultimately, they combined on the biggest defensive play of the afternoon when Barham forced a fumble, and Winters pounced on it.
Weakness or tightening?
You can easily paint a narrative that the defense was still allowing opposing offenses to march down the field at will. In seven of the Commanders’ nine possessions, they moved the ball to the Dallas 36-yard line or better. That is a lot of chances to give up points, and Washington racked up almost 400 yards of offense.
But you can also make a strong case that the defense tightened up when it mattered. Washington only managed to score two touchdowns. There were two clear scoring opportunities where the Commanders walked away with absolutely zero points. Granted they had some self-inflicted mishaps that hurt their chances, but the Cowboys didn’t let them off the hook.
People will point to that unfortunate incident on the last play of the first half, but don’t forget the two plays before that. Washington had chances to punch the ball in from the one-yard line, but the defense forced two straight incompletions from Jayden Daniels.
The defense also forced a three-and-out to open the game and a quick turnover midway through the third quarter that completely changed the momentum. These are good things that the defense deserves credit for.
QB containment is still a thing
The defense struggled mightily to bring the quarterback down. The pressure was inconsistent, sometimes getting close, other times allowing the quarterback to have all day. In every instance, they could never quite finish the play with a sack.
Even knowing it is a strength of Washington’s offense, the front seven failed to keep the quarterback in the pocket. The QB kept eluding defenders and churning out big gains on the ground. Watching the game closely, there were some instances where Daniels was very decisive and very fast, and sometimes you have to just recognize the other team has great players too, so it wasn’t as egregious as it initially appeared. It’s still something to be mindful of.
While last week the defense was burned by designed runs, on Sunday it came from pure improvisation because the defense was not equipped to make stops in space. The good news is the team will be moving to a stretch of games against quarterbacks with far less mobility soon. The bad news is they have Lamar Jackson coming up next, so it might get a little worse before it gets better.
Special teams shout-out
We always talk about the special teams when they do poorly, so it is only fair that we give them props when they show out. Brandon Aubrey was fantastic. Yes, he did have that one squib kick that fell short of the landing zone, which gave Washington great field position, but he also had a few others that the returner struggled to handle cleanly. Honestly, it is impressive what he is doing, and it would not surprise me if one of those squibbers produces a turnover at some point.
Aubrey also casually nailed a 60-yarder. No big deal. He knocked it down like it was an extra point. Replay showed the ball hitting the back of the net, meaning that one had the distance to break the NFL record. It is only a matter of time before he does that. We all know it is coming.
It was not just Aubrey doing all the heavy lifting either. KaVontae Turpin deserves a lot of credit for constantly making good returns. He consistently got past the first line of defense and brought the ball out past the 30-yard line, and he came close a couple of times to taking one to the house.
The coverage team was sharp too. With the aid of some good kicks, the special teams unit attacked quickly, and who didn’t love that thunderous hit from Brevyn Spann-Ford? It was a great performance by the special teams group.
This game showed that the team has the offensive explosive firepower to mask its defensive flaws, at least for now. The schedule will get tougher. Prescott is playing with that MVP-type vibe, so that is exciting.
While the defense is taking its share of punches, it held up a little better this time around. There are still things to improve on both sides of the ball, but this was a good momentum-building win. If they can just fix a few things, the outlook for the season will improve.
