The Dallas Cowboys offense started the first half and the second half hot, scoring touchdowns on the first drive of both.
Dallas was only able to score 10 points in the first half against the worst defense in football, and 10 in the second half, and lost 27-20.
Yes, a special teams blunder probably cost them the game, but they had chance after chance to take the lead in the 4th quarter and not give Joe Burrow any more chances and they couldn’t do it.
Incontinent
What bothered me the most about this game is the Bengals defense IS atrocious, allowing 28.3 points per game, which is good for 30th in all of football, and the Dallas Cowboys even with Rush should have scored more times than they did.
Backup or not, this Cowboys’ offense was at its best when they ran the football!
After a 35-yard field goal from Brandon Aubury in the first half, Rush and the offense proceeded to punt the next two drives before half-time.
Rico Dowdle had 10 carries for 60 yards in the first half, and the two punts, they just didn’t run the ball, and that is what the problem is. It has been a problem all season, keep running the ball!
KEEP RUNNING THE BALL
First drive of the second half, guess what happened? They ran the football, including a 27 yard rush by Dowdle that set up a touchdown for Brandin Cooks.
Mike McCarthy as a play caller just doesn’t work. Everyone tried to ride a high horse when the Cowboys beat the worst team in football on Thanksgiving in the Giants, and had an upset of Washington.
Rico had the first back to back 100 yard rushing games for the Dallas Cowboys since Tony Pollard did it in weeks 8 and 10 in 2022.
Think about that, it has been over two years since a Cowboys running back had back-to-back triple-digit yards. I don’t care who you are, that is a play caller problem. No offense can function when you don’t have production like that at least once or twice.
Dowdle was averaging 48% of the Cowboys’ carries over the course of his first nine games. Pittsburgh was the only week he got more than 57% of the team’s carries. Starting in Washington, this is now his third straight week, taking 70%+ of the carries.
Now, a game where the offense had to score more than 20 points, Rush and big Mike couldn’t do it, and again, what makes it frustrating is that it is against the worst defense in football!
To add salt to the wound, DeMarvion Overshown left the game early in the fourth quarter with an injury to his right knee.
Overshown missed his entire rookie season a year ago with a torn ACL in his left knee, and he was helped off the field and ruled out not even two snaps later. He went back to to the locker room right away to get imaging done on it.
Credit Mike Zimmer and the defense, they played their behind off, and the offense could not do enough to win the game. You knew you couldn’t score 20 points and beat a Bengals offense averaging 35 points a game.
The special teams saved the day and ruin the day at the end of the game for the Cowboys. A blocked punt, and they pulled a Leon Lett touched the ball, the Bengals recovered and won the game.
If this is not a total Cowboys way to lose a game, I don’t know what else is. That locker room is so deflated now, maybe it is time to see what they’ve got in Trey Lance.
The last thing I will say is, if he gets brought back somehow next year like Jerry Jones is hinting about, he better run the dang football!