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Can you feel sorry for an NFC East rival? Should this be allowed?
The Dallas Cowboys have already entered their clash against the New York Giants as the best team on paper, but when an already stoned Giants team lost quarterback Daniel Jones, running back Saquon Barkley and Receiver Kenny Gollady with injury, the task for the visitors looked tough, to say the least.
And while New York was certainly up for a fight – this is the NFC East, after all – in the end, the Cowboys outscored their rivals, taking a 44-20 victory and improving their record to a 4-1 in head of the division.
Injured or not, the Giants really had no response to the Dallas offense as Dak Prescott and his company racked up 515 total yards. After suffering that horrific dislocated ankle injury against New York almost exactly a year ago, the quarterback continued his outstanding comeback campaign by throwing 302 yards with three touchdowns and one interception for a passer rating of 116, 9.
Three different targets – CeeDee Lamb (84), Dalton Schultz (79) and Amari Cooper (60) – took at least 60 receiving yards, with Lamb and Cooper also adding touchdowns. In total, seven different players caught a pass in the Cowboys’ multi-faceted offense.
Meanwhile, on the field, Ezekiel Elliott ripped 110 yards rushing, his second straight game exceeding the mark of the century, while also scoring both rushing touchdowns and touchdowns. Tony Pollard also added 75 rushing yards to effort.
On the other side of the ball, the opportunistic Dallas defense recorded a pair of turnovers again with interceptions from Trevon Diggs and Anthony Brown. Diggs became only the second player in team history to record a pick in each of the first five games of a season, joining Don Bishop in 1961. He is also only the third player in the team. NFL Super Bowl era (since 1966) to post steals in each of his team’s first five games.
The Cowboys tripped out of the gate somewhat with an interception from Prescott on their first possession giving the Giants the ball over their own 49-yard line. But the visitors stumbled themselves as the Dallas defense forced a 54-yard field goal attempt, which sailed wide to the right. The Cowboys then returned to their second streak and went 44 yards in 10 plays to give Greg Zuerlein a good 31-yard field goal.
Perhaps even worse for the Giants, star running back Saquon Barkley rolled his ankle badly on that initial possession after stepping on the foot of cornerback Jourdan Lewis. Barkley would not return, lost for the match.
Dallas was knocking on the door for his first touchdown of the day when on second and goal from the Giants’ 5-yard line, Prescott mishandled a snap. Linebacker Reggie Ragland was there to pounce on it for the New Yorkers, ending the Cowboys threat.
But after a quarter, the home team already had 104 rushing yards with five different players recording at least one rush.
It seemed like only a matter of time – Dallas has finally reached the end zone. And it only took four pieces. That’s because Prescott threw a perfect pass to a Lamb who caught the ball just behind two Giants defensemen and ran without touching into the end zone for 49 yards and a 10-0 lead.
Unfortunately, New York was finally ready to score points and after their next two possessions the Giants had tied the game. It started with a 51-yard field goal from Graham Gano and was followed by a 12-play, 88-yard long practice that resulted in a three-yard dive from running back Devontae Booker for the tying touchdown.
It came at a cost, however. On the pre-scoring play, quarterback Daniel Jones attempted to reach the end zone by running alone around the left end. But rookies Jabril Cox and Chauncey Golston beat him to the pylon for the stop. In the process, however, Jones suffered a concussion and he too was done for the remainder of the game.
These events left just under three minutes into halftime, which was more than enough for Prescott to execute the no-caucus offense to perfection. It took eight plays to cover the 75 yards, but the quarterback only needed 2:15 clock to reach the end zone. This came thanks to a laser strike from Amari Cooper for completion and the score from 24 yards and a 17-10 lead at the break.
The Cowboys entered that game fourth in the NFL scoring 9.2 points in the third quarter, a trend they continued in this one as they added 10 more.
With Giants starting wide receiver Kenny Golladay also scheduled to leave the game with a knee injury, the Giants opened the second half with another 51-yard field goal from Gano. But the Cowboys responded with seven points to increase the advantage, with the team covering 75 yards on the field in 10 games.
The heavy blow came on third and sixth on the Dallas 40-yard line as Prescott rushed to his right to avoid the run before shooting a dart at tight end Dalton Schultz to complete the 30-yard dash. . The streak ended with a wonderful play call that saw Prescott fake a throw to Elliott, watch the defense, then return a short pass to the wide open running back on the right side for an easy score.
And then Trevon Diggs continued his incredible streak, picking up a deep ball from Mike Glennon for his sixth interception of the year. Dallas was injured with possession penalties that followed, but at least the turnover led to three more points. Zuerlein was good from 38 yards to make it 27-13 going into the final quarter.
The Giants swung into action as the timed player moved into the fourth quarter, threatening a first and a goal on the Dallas 7-yard line. But while the Cowboys defense may have folded, it hasn’t broken. On the fourth down at the 2-yard line, Glennon’s pass to Kadarius Toney fell incomplete after the receiver slipped and fell after his break.
With that, the game was practically over.
Dallas was not finished, however. The offense went the distance, 98 yards in nine plays to pay for the dirt. One trick play saw wide Cedrick Wilson hook up with teammate Noah Brown for a 22-yard completion before Wilson caught one himself deep in the left sideline for 35 more. his second touchdown of the game.
In typical NFC East fashion, the game was a bit hectic at the end with Giants’ Toney and Dallas safety Damontae Kazee both receiving unsportsmanlike conduct penalties resulting in Toney being sent off for throwing a punch. It happened during a possession that ultimately led to a touchdown in New York. Glennon kept his team on track and finished the 11-play, 75-yard run with a 3-yard drop to Booker, who dived for the end zone for the score.
Of course, it was too little, too late. The Cowboys recovered the ensuing side kick and added another field goal for Zuerlein, this over 31 yards, leaving just 1:57 to play.
Which was enough for cornerback Anthony Brown to land a pass from Glennon to receiver Collin Johnson and run without touching the left sideline for 45 yards for the first pick of six of his career.
Ending another outstanding performance for the Cowboys and once again affirming that they will be a force to be reckoned with this season.
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