There is, in fact, plenty to feel good about for Cowboys fans after their 27-20 win in Washington. Padding the division lead, beating a hated rival, finally seeing the defense dominate, getting to nine victories and securing a winning record for the season… all things to celebrate.
It’s bad form to look a gift horse in the mouth. But it’s also naive to turn a blind eye if that horse clearly won’t make it to town because it’s gone lame.
The offense that has been billed for most of the season as one of the league’s elite went 7-of-18 on third downs and was 1-of-6 in the red zone. Quarterback Dak Prescott, once an early part of the MVP conversation, threw two egregious interceptions and ended with a passer rating of 58.8. Running back Ezekiel Elliott, a former two-time rushing champ, had his production equaled by an undrafted guy who has never started an NFL game. And the most explosive receiving corps in the sport couldn’t muster a reception of over 24 yards.
And yet that didn’t seem to shake the confidence of Cowboys players, despite nearly blowing a 24-point lead.
“It was a struggle on offense,” Prescott admitted in his postgame remarks, “and we weren’t exactly executing the way that we want to, especially late in the game, but it’s better in a winning effort. Some of the things are just simple decision-making by me, and I’ll clean those up. So as long as we are heading on the winning track and heading to the tournament, we’ll get it right.”
Getting it right would be a marked improvement for a Dallas offense that sputtered and stalled most of Sunday afternoon. The longest play from scrimmage was an accident, a busted play that saw Prescott connect with wideout Michael Gallup on a fire-drill route after picking a quick-snap up off the turf.
“It’s frustrating,” Prescott said. “We’ve got high standards and high expectations for ourselves, so when you’re not moving the ball and you’re not scoring points, only scoring what, six points in the second half? Yeah, it’s not acceptable.”
Actually, the Cowboys scored just three after halftime.
The team that once spoke of choking opponents out in the second half of games nearly did it to themselves on Sunday. Up 24-0 at the break, the Cowboys went 2-of-9 on third downs, 0-of-2 in the red zone, threw for just 39 yards the rest of the way, and punted five more times. Only a replay-confirmation of a called fumble ended the final Washington drive, with the Football Team down by seven points and moving with under three minutes to play.
“We’ve got to be better than that in the latter part of the year, obviously, as you get ready to go play better teams, play division teams, and play in the playoffs,” Prescott said.
“We were moving the ball well; we weren’t getting seven,” wide receiver Amari Cooper offered. “That’s what elite offenses do. It’s something we’ve got to clean up, something we’ve got to definitely talk about and discuss. We want to really go to the next level. At the same time, winning in this league is so hard to come by.”
True. A win is a win. And Dallas walked out of FedEx Field having earned one against a surging Washington squad who had entered with four consecutive wins of their own. It was never going to be easy.
“It’s against the reality of pro football… They have good players, too, and there’s plays to be made,” Cowboys head coach Mike McCarthy explained in his press conference afterward. “They can make plays, too. I think you’ve got to recognize that. This isn’t fantasy football; never has been, from my perspective. I would have liked the game to been more open in the second half, but at the end of the day, things happen.”
“I wouldn’t say I’m concerned at all. We knew it was going to be tough,” Elliott commented. “We’ve got to play a lot better football on offense. We’ve got to celebrate this win; we can’t be mad about a win. We’ll be better next week.”
Next week will find the Cowboys traveling again- this time, to New York to finish their season series against the Giants, who would love nothing more than to play spoiler for their NFC East rivals just a week before Christmas. A home rematch with Washington follows, then a potentially-monumental game against Arizona, before finishing away with the Eagles.
“It’s tough,” Prescott said of the club’s remaining schedule. “Any division game is tough, a team that you play twice a year. We’ve got to suit up against this team in two weeks. Coming into their place, whether it’s here, New York, or Philly, all those are tough road games.”
And while the Cowboys successfully rode out of the nation’s capital with a victory, they know that the thoroughbred offense that spirited them through September and October is looking alarmingly gimpy.
“We’ve created these high expectations and high standards, and we have them for ourselves,” Prescott said. “Just as much as the outside world isn’t pleased, we’re not. I guarantee we care a whole lot more than the outside world about what we’re doing. I know I do; I know the guys on the field and the coaches do. So as I said, all of this we can get better and learn from, and it’s much better to do that in a winning setting.”
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