The tension in the air surrounding the Dallas Cowboys can be cut through like a knife through some Texas brisket on a lovely summer evening.
Starting the season 1-2 was not in the Cowboys’ plans, and falling to 1-3 on the season with a loss to a team Dak Prescott has defeated 12 straight times as a starter would definitely have thrown the fanbase into extreme anxiety.
Luckily, the Cowboys marched into New Jersey and took down Daniel Jones and the New York Giants by the score of 20-15 on Thursday Night Football. The game set a Thursday Night Football record by reaching a peak of $16.2 million viewers who tuned in to watch Dak Prescott and the Cowboys save their season early on.
After having an extra day to think about the game, we can now talk about developments from the game that give us some reason for hope. Let’s dive in.
Dak Prescott
Let’s start with the most obvious. If this team has any chance of success, it starts with the arm of Dak Prescott. Dak “The Giant Killer” was surgical in his command of the offense on Thursday night.
Prescott threw just five incompletions on his way to a season-high 81.4% completion percentage. The Giants made him work for it, but he came through with a successful evening despite completing just four passes of 15+ yards.
One of those passes was a 55-yard strike to WR CeeDee Lamb, who weaved past defenders and sprinted to the end zone. Speaking of Lamb…
Prescott to Lamb Connection
After a couple of weeks of appearing a bit out of sync, the Prescott to Lamb connection is almost fully functional, and a date with the Giants might have been the cure for it.
Lamb had an outstanding first half with six receptions for 94 yards and that long touchdown, and although the connection cooled to just one reception for 4 yards in the second half, the initial outburst is encouraging.
We should temper our expectations just a bit, considering Prescott and Lamb have owned the Giants’ defense year in and year out, but the likelihood of success between the two is more likely than the alternative.
A strong connection between the Cowboys’ two best offensive players will be a key piece to the overall success of the offense.
Do We Have a Rush Defense?
Pardon the phrasing in the heading. I know we have a rush defense because they made themselves very well known after two weeks of ineptitude, but is there really a chance for success?
In two bad losses, the rush defense was a sieve, allowing 464 rushing yards at 5.5 yards per tote. Against the Giants on Thursday night, the defense allowed just 26 yards rushing on 24 carries, a 1.1 yard per carry average.
It’s not that Giants’ HC Brian Daboll didn’t try to run the ball, they just weren’t successful. A big part of that was the play of Mazi Smith. The second year pro was graded as PFF’s (Pro Football Focus) highest graded run defender of the game with an 88.4 grade.
This is another aspect of the team where we should temper our expectations. Especially with injuries to DE DeMarcus Lawrence and EDGE Micah Parsons.
Those injuries to two of the Cowboys’ top defenders will thrust younger and more inexperienced players into a larger role starting next Sunday versus the Pittsburgh Steelers. The losses of Dorance Armstrong and Dante Fowler Jr. to free agency and the loss of Sam Williams to injury will be felt strongly.
Up to the plate behind them is rookie DE Marshawn Kneeland and veteran utility player Chauncey Golston. Strong play from the two of them will be a key ingredient to the overall success of the defense moving forward.
