Tag: Dallas Cowboys vs Jacksonville Jaguars

Studs and Duds from Cowboys’ preseason opener vs Jaguars

We evaluate 14 young players plus a QB’s performance in the preseason opener. Who’s stock is on the rise, who has to recover from a poor performance? | From @KDDrummondNFL

Saturday was a chance for first impressions. First impressions aren’t the end all be all, but they do often have lasting power. It’s human nature, really. Things that happen early form associations in people’s brains and while things that happen later matter just as much, or even more, they get compared to the first impression and therefore are seen with less value.

The Dallas Cowboys didn’t play the majority of their first teamers in a 28-23 loss to the Jacksonville Jaguars in their preseason opener. So it was an opportunity for much of their youth to log a lot of snaps and make those marks in the minds of the coaching staff and the fanbase. Here are our thoughts on the impressions left by several of the youngsters on the 90-man roster.

‘Hard to put into words’: Cowboys’ Deuce Vaughn leaves everyone speechless in NFL debut

From @ToddBrock24f7: The Cowboys lost their preseason opener, but they may have found the league’s next electrifying running back; Deuce Vaughn averaged 6+ YPC.

“You never know,” Deuce Vaughn explained.

The Cowboys running back had just come off the field after his NFL debut. The rookie knew full well that there had been questions about his size, about whether he’d be tough enough to play at the pro level, about whether his feel-good draft-day story would be the high point of his journey, about whether his game- even with its electrifying speed- would translate to the topmost tier of the sport.

The 21-year-old admits he was even second-guessing a little prior to Saturday afternoon’s preseason kickoff.

“It’s a question mark coming in whenever you’re about to play your first NFL game,” the Kansas State product told reporters post-game. “It was like that when you were in college- wondering if you can adapt to the speed, wondering if you can do everything and be successful.”

But Vaughn’s debut left no doubt. Though Dallas lost to Jacksonville by a 28-23 score, the sixth-round selection provided plenty of flash in just 20 offensive snaps. He logged 50 yards on eight carries and showed that, at 5-foot-5, he’s not just a hard man to find on the football field, he’s also a hard man to bring to the ground.

“Whenever you get to that second level,” Vaughn said, “I feel like that’s where I excel.”

 

Vaughn added another six yards in the passing game after catching all three targets thrown to him, and he added a fourth-quarter touchdown on the ground for good measure.

“Hard to put into words,” Vaughn said of his scoring moment. “I can’t take all the credit; those guys up front, they were blocking their butts off all game. To get in the end zone in your first preseason game, that’s just a testament to all the work that’s been put in since pre-draft.”

Perhaps even more impressive is that Vaughn racked up most of his stats behind an offensive line that was less a who’s who of Cowboys blockers and more just a who?

If Vaughn looks the way he did- averaging 6.25 yards per carry and averaging 5.4 of those yards after contact– rushing behind Earl Bostick Jr., Asim Richards, Brock Hoffman, T.J. Bass, and Alex Taylor-Prioleau, just imagine him dancing down a road plowed by the likes of Tyron and Tyler Smith, Terence Steele, and Zack Martin.

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“He played very well,” Cowboys head coach Mike McCarthy said in his postgame remarks. “I thought he had a heck of a night. It was a great introduction to the NFL.”

And in seeing for himself that the lights weren’t too bright and the stage wasn’t too big for him, Vaughn admitted that his most important takeaway from the night was a single realization, one that should put the NFL’s other 31 defenses on notice.

Because now they have no excuse not to know.

“That I belong. I feel like that’s the biggest thing for myself, is just coming in and proving people that believed in me right,” Vaughn explained. “And it doesn’t stop now. I go back to work on Monday to get ready for the next preseason game.”

Already spoken like a savvy NFL veteran.

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3 revelations that emerged from Cowboys’ preseason opener

The problem area might not be problematic, plans for the RBs and second-year leaping are among the early takeaways. | From @cdpiglet

The Dallas Cowboys’ comeback against the Jacksonsville Jaguars in the exhibition opener fell short. ending in a 28-23 loss at AT&T Stadium. It was the first of three games the Cowboys will play in the quote-unquote meaningless preseason. In the big picture, preseason games mean very little to a team’s season. Winning isn’t the primary objective like it is when games matter.

Instead the Cowboys will focus on getting units some work together to build continuity, getting young guys reps in real games, but mainly just leave each game without any big injuries and it’s a win at the end of the day. This doesn’t mean fans and analysts can’t find some important things to take from these games though. Players breakout, or teams show new wrinkles in their game plans just to name a couple. Here are some things the contest revealed for Dallas.

How to watch, stream, listen to Cowboys-Jaguars in preseason opener

The Cowboys’ preseason opener isn’t on national TV, so you’ll need a plan in order to watch the action from Saturday’s weird kickoff time. | From @KDDrummondNFL

It’s finally arrived. Draft mania came and went. It was fun to catch pics and videos of them running around installing the scheme, but that was short lived. When they arrived out west it was cool. Putting the pads on to match the funny helmet covers made things a little more exciting. However, none of it is actual football competition.

Until Saturday. The Cowboys will return to Dallas this weekend to host the Jacksonville Jaguars in both club’s first exhibition game of the 2023 season. Season ticket holders get 10 games in their package deal and this year that includes two exhibitions and eight regular season contests, starting with this one. There’s 60 minutes of football action to be consumed and here’s everything you’ll need to know.

Good, Bad, Ugly: Situational football cost Cowboys the most vs Jaguars

The Cowboys choked away another game, blowing a 17-point lead. What’s to blame? Several things, but there was a bit of good, too. | From @BenGrimaldi

The Dallas Cowboys gave away yet another game in the 2022 season where they had a double-digit lead in the second half to a team with a losing record. That’s extremely embarrassing.

This is what the Cowboys of the 21st century have become; an organization that stumbles its way through seasons and finds new ways to lose. After blowing another game, and now sitting with a record of 10-4, the Cowboys don’t feel like a team on the brink of competing for a Super Bowl. Dallas feels more like a team that is about to implode with another late-season swoon.

Players may change, and coaches may change, but the results for the Cowboys haven’t.

There was no reason the Cowboys should have lost this game. Up 27-10 in the third quarter, yet here the team was to remind everyone again, that nothing is a given with the Cowboys.

Here’s the good, the bad and the ugly in the Week 15 disaster.

Cowboys Week 15 photo gallery from stunning loss to Jaguars

Somehow, this play turned into the winning points for the other team. Here’s all of the evidence to what transpired in Jacksonville. | From @KDDrummondNFL

The game didn’t go as planned. Dallas went into their Week 15 contest against the Jacksonville Jaguars with a chance to punch their ticket to the dance. Instead, they left Florida stunned, after a third-down conversion ended up as a drop and a Pick-6 to leave the Cowboys wondering what happened.

In control for much of the game, things changed direction midway through the third quarter as the Cowboys’ defensive depth was unable to corral the up and coming Jacksonville offense. The loss dropped Dallas to 10-4, unable to celebrate a second consecutive playoff berth just yet. Here’s all of the action from the contest.

With win in hand, Cowboys fall apart and lose to Jaguars in OT, 40-34

The Cowboys had the game and a playoff berth right where they wanted it, until they didn’t. | From @KDDrummondNFL

The Dallas Cowboys had the opponent exactly where they wanted them. Looking to win their fifth straight game, the club was rolling in Jacksonville. The club scored touchdowns on two of their first three possessions before leading 21-7 at halftime. They stretched the lead to 27-10 with just over five minutes remaining in the third quarter and appeared to have righted their ship from a couple games against inferior opponents that took far too long to salt away.

But Dallas didn’t salt this game away, either, despite the big lead. Trevor Lawrence led the Jaguars on two quick scoring drives sandwiched around a horrible Dak Prescott interception. Soon after, Dallas found themselves trailing, then leading, then botching a chance to seal the win only to end up in overtime. There, a defensive stand led to a game-winning drive bounce off the arms of Noah Brown and right to a Jaguars defender who returned an interception for a Pick-Six. Game over, Dallas loses, 40-34.

To add insult to injury, literally, the Cowboys suffered additional manpower losses as Leighton Vander Esch and Dorance Armstrong left the game and didn’t return.

Dallas’ record falls to 10-4 and combined with the Philadelphia Eagles holding on against Chicago puts their chances of defending the NFC East title on life support. The Cowboys have to win out, including Saturday at home against the Eagles, and Philadelphia has to los their last two after that.

The Cowboys also failed to clinch a playoff berth on the day, though that may still happen if the New York Giants defeat the Washington Commanders on Sunday Night Football.

Dorance Armstrong exits with knee injury in second half

In the midst of a career year, Dorance Armstrong went to the locker room with a knee injury during the second half. | From @CDBurnett7

During the week leading up to Jacksonville, defensive end Dorance Armstrong was dealing with an ankle injury, but he made it for game day and was active for the contest. Early in the third quarter, Armstrong went down with an injury and was in pain before reaching the sideline.

Armstrong went straight to the blue tent with trainers and went to the locker room after being evaluated by trainers. He exited the game and is questionable to return in the fourth quarter.

Armstrong’s 2022 has been a career performance with eight sacks on the year on a defense that has haunted opposing quarterbacks. If the injury is severe, it’s another big hit to a defense that lost linebacker Leighton Vander-Esch in the first half.

WATCH: Noah Brown’s second TD gives Cowboys late lead

The Cowboys stepped up with their back against the wall yet again, this time it was Noah Brown’s second score of the day. | From @CDBurnett7

The Cowboys’ first half performance was a strong one, but the second half has been nothing short of bad. A mix of an untimely interception by quarterback Dak Prescott and mistakes from the defense made it 21 unanswered points from the Jaguars, targeting the young Dallas cornerbacks.

Suffering their first deficit of the game, quarterback Dak Prescott got back on track with a 25-yard gainer to wide receiver CeeDee Lamb, releasing the stress for a moment. After the big gain, Dallas went to the run game with seven-straight to move near the red zone. Kellen Moore strategically worked down the clock and Prescott regained the lead with a 13-yard touchdown strike to Noah Brown.

Brown has been Mr. Reliable for the Cowboys this season and his second touchdown of the day gives his team a 34-31 lead with just over three minutes to play. After surrendering 21 unanswered, the Dallas defense has to step up.

WATCH: Bland’s fourth INT leads to three-possession game

The fifth-round pick has starred in the nickel position and robbed Trevor Lawrence with his fourth interception on the year. | From @CDBurnett7

Coming in as a fifth-round pick, cornerback DaRon Bland impressed in the preseason and the opportunities opened up for him in the regular season. When Jourdan Lewis went down for the season, Bland stepped into his role and there was no noticeable drop-off at the nickel corner.

Bland had his coming-out party against the Colts with two interceptions, but his play was stellar up to that point regardless. Now, he has his fourth pick of the season. Trevor Lawrence thought he had Christian Kirk for a big gainer, but Bland cut off the pass and got the Cowboys’ second takeaway of the day.

Bland’s interception set up Dallas at the Jacksonville 44-yard line and the drive was stifled after a near miss downfield between quarterback Dak Prescott and running back Tony Pollard. Kicker Brett Maher continued his impressive season with a 53-yard field goal, making it a three-possession game at 27-10.