The Dallas Cowboys had their second opportunity of the season in Week 9 to show that they can hang with the big boys in the NFC. After suffering an embarrassing loss on the road to the San Francisco 49ers in Week 5 42-10, they suffered the same outcome against the Philadelphia Eagles this past weekend.
However, if there is one positive to take away from the game, it is that the Cowboys were much more competitive this time around. They lost the game 28-23 and with better execution in a few spots, they could have easily pulled off the upset.
Rookie tight end Luke Schoonmaker not running his route into the end zone, ultimately costing the Cowboys six points as he was ruled a half yard short of the goal line, was a backbreaker. Dak Prescott stepping out of bounds before reaching the ball over the goal line on a two-point conversion left the team trailing by five instead of three.
Had that conversion counted, the Cowboys wouldn’t have been in the position they were in the final drive. Prescott hit CeeDee Lamb on the final play of the game, but he was a few years short of the end zone, ending the game with a tough loss.
Not surprisingly, some blame was placed on Prescott and the offense for their continued struggles in the red zone. But, star pass rusher Micah Parsons wasn’t having any of it. After the game, he went to bat for his quarterback.
“Dak is a freaking warrior. That’s Dak motherf—ing Prescott, bro. He’s a dog. He’s a warrior. I have an unbelievable amount of confidence in him. I felt he had a great game. People need to put more respect on him. He outplayed everyone today,” Parsons said, via Jon Machota on X, formerly known as Twitter.
While it is always easy to blame the quarterback for a loss, Prescott played well against the Eagles. He completed 29-of-44 passes for 374 yards and three touchdowns. He did everything he could to keep the Cowboys in the game, more than matching what Jalen Hurts and the Philadelphia offense were accomplishing.
If the Cowboys get more performances like that out of Prescott in the second half of the season, they are going to rack up wins and stay on the Eagels’ heels for the NFC East divisional title.
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