The Dallas Cowboys got back onto the football field and back in the win column, coming out of their bye week with a victory over the struggling Raiders. In truth, this game was never close, and the 33-16 final score doesn’t reflect how lopsided this one really was. These five plays were instrumental in the Cowboys pulling ahead early.
Kenny Clark and Quinnen Williams sack Geno Smith
The Cowboys offense did not start the game off right. After going three-and-out on their first drive, the second drive resulted in a strip-sack that set the Raiders
up in the red zone. An already maligned Dallas defense was backed up in their own territory to start the drive.
What happened next was huge. Geno Smith dropped back to pass and was quickly swarmed by both Kenny Clark and Quinnen Williams, who both brought him down. It was a loss of seven that immediately backed Las Vegas up and directly led to a third and long pass, which fell incomplete.
That sack was monumental in forcing a field goal from the Raiders on this drive. Without that big loss of yardage, the Raiders may very well have marched in the short distance needed for six. Instead, they got only three.
Quinnen Williams gets another sack
When the Cowboys finally woke up offensively and scored their first touchdown of the game, it put them up 10-6. At that point, the defense had given up consecutive field goals, playing well overall but not getting off the field quickly.
The next drive started similarly. A couple big runs got the ball to the Dallas 47, threatening another score. But on second and 10, Williams flew through the line of scrimmage and brought down Smith for his first full sack as a Cowboy.
That immediately led to a third and long, which in turn led to a punt. The sack from Williams blew up what was looking like another scoring drive and ultimately bought time for the Cowboys to rip off their second of three straight touchdowns.
Cowboys go on fourth down and score
Speaking of that touchdown, it almost didn’t happen. Dallas moved the ball fairly well after the punt set up by Williams, but two straight plays were stopped for no gain at the Las Vegas 14. Dak Prescott then dumped off the third down pass to Hunter Luepke, who rumbled forward for nine yards, coming up just shy of the marker.
That turned out to be just enough to convince Brian Schottenheimer – who has been one of the most conservative coaches in the league this year with fourth-down decisions – to go for it. Prescott found an uncovered Jake Ferguson in the endzone for a touchdown, paying off the gamble in a big way.
Luepke deserves credit for making the fourth-down decision easier, and Schottenheimer deserves credit for doing what needed to be done. A field goal here would have kept the game a one-score affair, but the touchdown marked the start of the Cowboys pulling away.
Missed facemask leads to interception
The Raiders offense got right back to their usual ways, throwing a lot and moving the ball with relative ease. Brock Bowers started to take over with several big catches to move the chains, and a quick checkdown pass to Ashton Jeanty picked up another first down at the Dallas 31.
On the replay of the tackle made on Jeanty, though, it was revealed that his facemask was pulled as he went down. The Cowboys got away with it, avoiding a 15-yard penalty that would’ve cut the field in half. And on the very next play, Smith’s pass was tipped up by Kenneth Murray and right into the hands of Markquese Bell.
This was another defensive play that greatly changed the pace of the game, preventing the Raiders from scoring what felt like a sure six points. The fact that they nearly gave Las Vegas a free 15 yards instead only adds to the weight of this moment.
Pass interference saves third-down failure
The interception, which came shortly before the two-minute warning, offered a perfect chance to shut down the Raiders before halftime, but they needed to score on that ensuing drive. Things started with an incomplete deep shot to George Pickens that was nearly picked, and then Javonte Williams was dropped for a loss, bringing up third and long.
Prescott targeted CeeDee Lamb a few yards beyond the first down marker, but he was unable to make the catch through heavy contact. The officials took a beat as Lamb looked around for a flag, and then the yellow came flying. Pass interference was assessed, and the Cowboys got a first down out of it.
Three plays later, Pickens had multiple defenders eating his dust en route to a 37-yard touchdown that effectively ended the game. But they came dangerously close to a three-and-out punt just before that game-clinching score.
BONUS: Wicked punt sets up safety
The game was effectively over by halftime, but there was a brief moment where panic started to creep in for Cowboys fans. The Raiders scored their first touchdown of the night early in the fourth quarter, trimming the score to 31-16. Then, Dallas went three-and-out. There were just under 12 minutes left when Bryan Anger punted the ball, and one more touchdown would make things a one-score game.
Then came the punt. Anger’s punt took a friendly bounce, going backward before returner Tre Tucker inexplicably fielded it while backpedaling. Cowboys surrounded him and quickly tackled him, downing the ball at the Raiders’ own 2-yard line.
A false start backed them up further, and then Donovan Ezeiruaku came unblocked for the safety, which quickly extinguished any hopes of a comeback for the Raiders. Still, there was an opening there for an epic collapse – Las Vegas had just a 2% win probability at the punt – and the Cowboys slammed the door shut, thanks in large part to Anger.
