Post by Matt Meyer | @Bluto51 on X (Twitter)
Nice performance by the Dallas Cowboys coming out of their bye week as Dallas dismantled the Los Angeles Rams 43-20 to improve to 5-2 on the season. Cowboys were ahead 33-3 late in the 2nd quarter and coasted to another blowout win. Six of the seven games that Dallas has played have been decided by double digits. Starting to get weird that way.
The day started ominously as 3 of the first 4 snaps ended in sacks for the Rams, though one was wiped away by penalty. Dallas took advantage of that by going 75 yards in 10 plays as Dak Prescott hit Jake Ferguson for an 18 yard TD, and the Cowboys were off and running. The teams traded FG’s, and then Dallas began to separate themselves with yet another pick six by DaRon Bland. Rams had to punt on the next drive, and Sam Williams blocked it out of the end zone for a safety. The Cowboys’ next drive was set up by a 63 yard return of a free kick from KaVontae Turpin, and two plays later, Prescott found CeeDee Lamb for a 10 yard score. Prescott would hit Lamb for a 22 yard TD pass later in the second quarter, and the rout was on.
Good to see the Cowboys’ offensive line fix their early issues, because it looked like it was going to be a punishing day for Prescott. Dallas allowed 3 sacks officially, with 2 of those coming on the first drive, so the Cowboys recovered from a poor start protection wise. Dallas had a decent yet unspectacular day on the ground, running the ball 26 times for 102 yards, with Tony Pollard having 53 of those yards on 12 carries. Even going against future Hall of Famer Aaron Donald, I’d still like to see the Cowboys run the ball better. However, Prescott was in complete control against the Rams, seemingly changing the play at the line of scrimmage more often than he has this season. Stands to reason that as the year goes along, Prescott will become more and more comfortable in the first year of Mike McCarthy’s offense. Being comfortable is one thing, but playing well and taking care of the ball is another. Prescott’s one pick was tipped, but it was probably a throw he shouldn’t have made because he threw it into a ton of traffic. All in all, a very good day for the Cowboys QB, as Prescott was 25-31 for 304 yards, with 4 TD’s and 1 INT. Lamb had a monster day with 12 catches for 158 yards and 2 scores. Ferguson and Brandin Cooks had the other TD receptions. Ferguson has done a fine job replacing Dalton Schultz at TE, and Brandin Cooks could take this offense from decent to really good if he can continue to make plays. Cooks has had a TD score in each of the last two games.
Dallas’ defense played well for a good portion of the game, with the exception of allowing TD drives just before and coming out of halftime. Cowboys knocked Matthew Stafford out of the game with a hand injury, and once Brett Rypien replaced him, any realistic chance at a comeback was out the window. Dallas held L.A. to 15 first downs and 280 total yards, and even more impressively, the Cowboys held Puka Nacua and Cooper Kupp to a combined 64 yards receiving. While Dallas only registered two sacks officially, Rams QB’s were under a lot of pressure for the majority of the day. Essentially, Dallas followed the formula that they need to follow: get a lead, and let the dogs loose.
Following that formula will be a much tougher task this Sunday as the Cowboys visit the best team in football, the defending NFC Champion Philadelphia Eagles. Jalen Hurts isn’t quite playing at the level that he did a year ago, but he’s still been plenty good while dealing with a knee injury. Hurts’ completion percentage is actually up from last season, but he’s already thrown more interceptions (8) than he threw all of last season (6). The former Sooner and member of the Crimson Tide had his best game of the season last week against the Commanders, throwing for 319 and 4 scores without a pick. WR A.J. Brown is being mentioned for MVP consideration as he’s already caught 60 passes for 939 yards and 5 scores. Tyreek Hill isn’t the only WR that could get to 2,000 yards this season. D’Andre Swift is averaging nearly 5 yards a carry to pace the running game. Eagles are third in total offense, 7th in passing offense, 7th in rushing offense, and 3rd in points per game. On the other side of the ball, Philly is 8th in total defense and 1st against the run, but they have been a little susceptible to the pass. The key there is whether or not Dallas can protect Prescott enough against a pass rush that is 6th in the NFL in sacks. How the Cowboys’ offensive line plays and how effectively Dallas can contain Brown will dictate whether or not the Cowboys have a chance to win.
Cowboys would make a statement with a win in Philadelphia, as a victory would somewhat erase the stench of the last litmus test they took against San Francisco. However, the Eagles are good at every position group and better than good in many places. Hurts looks like he’s starting to heat up. It’s Philly’s conference until someone takes it from them.
Eagles 27 Cowboys 17