A win is a win in the NFL, and Sunday's victory in Indianapolis keeps the Cowboys in contention for the NFC East, but it's difficult to feel very good about the 27-23 close call.
Once again, Dallas let a weak team hang around, and this time it nearly cost them a second straight gut-punch loss. Despite outgaining the Colts 508-271 and allowing them to convert less than a quarter of their third-downs on the day, the Cowboys watched a double-digit lead evaporate in the final 17 minutes of play and had to engineer a come-from-behind two-minute drive in order to secure the win against a 2-6 Indianapolis team who's currently in the middle of a clearance sale on star players before the trade deadline of what appears to be an already-conceded 2026 season.
Offense racks up stats, but not points
The Cowboys offense should have been able to post far more than 27 points. Dak Prescott was productive, going 21-of-34 passing for 335 yards (tying his season high) and a pair of touchdowns, even though he didn't have George Pickens all day and lost Jake Ferguson for a chunk of time.
CeeDee Lamb continued his mind-boggling season. The targets leader through eight weeks got 16 more on Sunday, catching 10 of them for 195 yards (his second-best day as a pro) and a touchdown. According to PFF, it was Lamb's second game of 2026 with 10 receptions/180 yards/1 TD, while the rest of the league combined has just one.
But despite racking up their most yards in three calendar years and averaging 7.2 yards per play, the offense did as much to stop themselves throughout the afternoon as the Colts defense.
A WILD play in Indianapolis!
— FOX Sports: NFL (@NFLonFOX) November 8, 2026
An untouched Lamb gets extra yards then fumbles in the red zone
📺: FOX/FOX One pic.twitter.com/rddAvGre0M
Lamb's costly fumble in the fourth quarter wasted a 48-yard pickup and turned the ball over at the Colts' 9-yard line. Though Indy couldn't translate that takeaway to points, the miscue thwarted a probable touchdown drive by the Cowboys and kept the Colts close enough to tie the score a few minutes later. Earlier, Lamb failed to get both feet down in the end zone on a would-be touchdown catch. So his monster stats don't tell the full story.
Prescott also coughed up the ball. Instead of driving toward an early double-score lead, that turnover gave the Colts possession on a short field and gave them a head start on their first go-ahead touchdown, setting the tone for a unexpectedly closely-fought game.
And of the season-high 14 penalties walked off against the Cowboys, nine of those calls went against the offense. Three of them were for offensive pass interference, negating another 56 yards worth of catches. The Cowboys continue to show themselves to be a thoroughly undisciplined bunch, and a higher-quality opponent would have made them pay dearly.
Brian Schottenheimer's play calling will undoubtedly continue to draw criticism. His decision to dial up a jet sweep/push pass to Lamb on a 3rd-and-1 (that failed) early in the second quarter definitely fell into the "too cute" category and drew immediate ire from fans on social media.
While the win is welcome, make no mistake: the Cowboys offense is not playing like an elite unit of late.
Defense showing promise; too little too late?
Christian Parker's beleaguered unit, however, did some good things Sunday, including ultimately bailing out the offense and icing the win. They held the Colts to 105 total rushing yards and limited Jonathan Taylor to just 3.5 yards per carry. They allowed just three third-down conversions on 13 attempts, a 23.1% clip. They forced five three-and-outs and permitted only one Indianapolis drive to go for more than eight plays or longer than 2:40. All are improvements over what the defense has shown for most of the season.
The defense did give up a pair of explosive plays, the 55-year touchdown run-and-catch by Ashton Dulin and Seth McGowan's 36-yard breakaway run. That's an area that's been particularly troublesome this year, though just two explosives out of 59 plays is a frequency the Cowboys should be able to live with.
DeMarvion Overshown has trouble staying on the field.
— Dan Rogers (@DannyPhantom24) November 8, 2026
And now, he has trouble staying off the field.
There's no winning with this guy. pic.twitter.com/2IleM2I9Qd
But for the first time this season, the Dallas defense held its opponent to under 300 total yards. Were there mistakes? Of course. DeMarvion Overshown getting flagged for an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty while in street clothes and not even on the active gameday roster is simply inexcusable and cannot happen, especially from a four-year veteran. And DaRon Bland got burned badly again, hit with an awful pass interference call that moved the ball 40 yards.
Individually, Quinnen Williams had a big game, leading the defense with seven tackles- three of them for a loss- and forcing a fumble. Rashan Gary had a big load: six total tackles, a sack, and a pair of TFLs. And rookie Caleb Downs snagged the key interception with under a minute to play that ended the Colts' last chance at a rally. He also added a huge sack in the second quarter that got the defense off the field.
Whispers about the Cowboys making a trade for edge rusher help could get louder now, after Donovan Ezeiruaku and Dee Winters were both dinged up during the game. Safety P.J. Locke also sustained a scary-looking injury, even after switching to a Guardian Cap midgame. Overshown and cornerback Joey Porter Jr. were inactive, leaving the defense well below full strength and creating question marks for a massive challenge next week versus the 49ers.
Not-so-special mention for special teams
The Cowboys miss the go-ahead field goal!
— FOX Sports: NFL (@NFLonFOX) November 8, 2026
The score remains even and the Colts take over with just over three minutes left in the fourth
📺: FOX/FOX One pic.twitter.com/qBps80X3wr
It's time to talk about Brandon Aubrey. The Cowboys kicker was flagged yet again for a kickoff that fell short of the landing zone; his third penalty for that infraction leads the entire league in 2026. And he missed yet another field goal, this one from 50 yards away with under four minutes to go. While replays showed that long snapper Trent Sieg didn't deliver his best effort- skipping the ball on its way to Bryan Anger's hold- Aubrey has now missed 22% of his field goal tries on the season. (And he's only 14-of-25 on attempts from 50 or beyond over the last two seasons.) Sunday's wide-left shot gave Indy the ball on the 40-yard line; they needed just 28 yards to set up a field goal of their own to give them a late lead that the Cowboys were lucky to overcome.
Aubrey may have once been considered automatic from anywhere near the logo. That is no longer the case.
Todd is on X at @ToddBrock24f7. Also, follow Cowboys Wire on Facebook to join in on the conversation with fellow fans!
This article originally appeared on Cowboys Wire: Cowboys' big stats don't equate to points in close Week 9 win vs Colts
