The Washington Commanders lost to the Dallas Cowboys 37-20 in their second game of the season Sunday afternoon at AT&T Stadium.
Dallas got on the board first with a 10-play, 66-yard touchdown drive, while the Commanders offense went three-and-out on their first drive. Dallas kicked a field goal on its second possession, and Washington responded with a field goal of its own at the start of the second quarter.
Washington’s defense struggled to contain Dallas’s passing attack all day, with the Cowboys getting a touchdown on their next drive to extend their lead to 17-3 in the second quarter. However, the Commanders finally found the end zone when quarterback Jayden Daniels connected with Stefon Diggs for a touchdown to cut the deficit to 17-10. The
defense forced a three-and-out on the Cowboys’ final drive of the first half, and Daniels led Washington all the way down to the one-yard line.
On third and goal with three seconds left, the Commanders couldn’t find the end zone to tie the game. But they had a bigger problem after Daniels went down with a left elbow injury and didn’t return.
To start the second half, Washington kicked a field goal, though it should have been a touchdown; the referees ruled a pass from Marcus Mariota to Diggs incomplete when it clearly looked like a touchdown. That shifted the momentum as Dallas took a 17-point lead at the start of the fourth quarter.
Diggs scored his second touchdown in the fourth quarter to make it 30-20, but Dallas scored another touchdown to win 37-20.
Instant analysis of the Commanders’ season-opening loss to the Eagles:
Final score
Play of the game
so nice he did it twice 🙂↕️
— Washington Commanders (@Commanders) September 20, 2026
📺 #WASvsDAL FOX pic.twitter.com/bruT203q6S
Even though Washington lost by 17 points, this touchdown gave them hope in the fourth quarter. It was a great throw from backup quarterback Marcus Mariota, who will be the Commanders’ starting quarterback for the foreseeable future after Daniels’ elbow injury.
Numbers to know
- 1/3: The Commanders were 1/3 on their red zone trips compared to 3/3 last week when they were much more competitive. To win games, you have to be successful in the red zone. Washington also allowed the Cowboys to go 3/4 in the red zone, which is really not a winning combination.
- 389: Washington had 389 total yards on the day, outgaining the Cowboys by 58 yards. Nonetheless, they still lost. Offense is not their problem here, even with Mariota in the game.
- 31:29: For the second week in a row, Washington lost despite winning the time-of-possession battle. It is promising that they can control the clock, but they need their defense to stop allowing explosive plays.
- 4: The Commanders allowed Cowboys QB Dak Prescott to throw four touchdowns in this game. This was the fifth time in Prescott’s career he has thrown four touchdowns against Washington.
Game balls
- QB Marcus Mariota: Mariota came into this game in a rough position. The team was dejected after seeing Jayden Daniels go down the way he did. But he kept the Commanders in the game for most of the second half and played pretty well despite the circumstances.
- WR Stefon Diggs: After potentially costing Washington their game against the Philadelphia Eagles last week, Stefon Diggs bounced back in this game with two touchdowns and did not attempt to hug the goal post.
- QB Jayden Daniels: Even though he didn’t finish the game, Daniels was performing well before the injury. He completed 11 of his first 14 passes before throwing away three on that final first-half drive, but he was destroying Dallas in the rushing attack with 69 yards on just seven attempts.
What's next
First, Washington is awaiting a timeline for how long Daniels will be out, along with injury updates on other players, including starting left tackle Brandon Coleman and right guard Sam Cosmi. Washington will play their home opener next Sunday against the Seattle Seahawks on Sun. Sept. 27 (1 p.m. / FOX).
This article originally appeared on Commanders Wire: Instant analysis of Commanders’ 37-20 loss to the Cowboys
