Well, that game was positively awful. The Dallas Cowboys loss in this game was in the bag from the first quarter as the Detroit Lions played bully-ball from the start to the 47-9 finish.
Dallas started hot with a tipped pass reception from Rico Dowdle, followed by a one-hand grab by CeeDee Lamb, and from there I don’t think I can think of a single positive moment.
We saw a repeat of the same old issues for the Cowboys; they failed terribly in the red-zone, either settling for field goals or turning it over, and they could not meet the physicality of the Lions.
If you were able to continue watching this one, it was clear that this was not just an offensive problem, or a defensive one. They got beat up in every facet of the game.
The first quarter had some scrapping from Dallas, but the second quarter, followed by the second half, was a meltdown.
Let’s quickly react to this one more in-depth with a look at each half.
First Half
I mentioned the two fun plays at the beginning of the first drive, but like I said, that was just about it for Dallas in the first half.
In total, the team was outscored 27-6 in the first half. When you add up the Cowboys’ last four home games dating back to the Packers’ playoff loss, they get outscored 110-35 in the first half.
That is abysmal, and its shocking coming from a team that was so dominant in home games the last two seasons.
Both of the first two drives in the 1st quarter had promise, but they ended in a field goal and Dallas’ fourth red-zone turnover of the season, which leads the NFL.
Red-zone struggles have plagued the Cowboys offense since last year, but this newly found turnover issue is an even bigger problem, and it falls directly on Dak Prescott’s shoulders.
He was simply not good enough today, and certainly not in the first half.
Dallas started and ended the first half with a pair of field goals, but the drives in between ended in an interception, two punts, and a turnover on downs. Woof.
Second Half
It was hard to imagine a more embarrassing half than that of the first, but boy, the Cowboys found a way to outdo themselves in the second.
After starting things off with yet another field goal, which would be their final score of the game, Dallas turned the ball over on four consecutive drives. Yes, they really turned it over four times in a row.
Offensively, clearly it was a disaster, but the defensive side was almost as poor.
The Cowboys defense did not force a single punt in the second half, and the only non-scoring drive for the Lions was a turnover on downs, and the kneel-down drive at the end.
We had Amon-Ra St. Brown running to the star at midfield after a touchdown, the Lions trying their best to pull off a trick-play touchdown, and offensive tackles running slant routes.
If the issue in the first half was ability and preparedness, the issue in the second was a sincere lack of physicality and fight.
Dallas once again showed no ability to get off the canvas when punched by a more physical fighter. The real Super Bowl contenders in this league do not lose 47-9, or 44-19 at home in the span of a couple of weeks.
The Bottom Line
Truth be told, I’ve struggled to find the words to adequately react to this loss. The Cowboys just got pummeled today.
We reached a point where the Detroit Lions were legitimately messing around with offensive linemen running routes and trick plays, and still, the Cowboys had no answer.
Nobody played up to par today; not Prescott, not Lamb, not the offensive line, not the defense, and certainly not the coaching staff.
In what could have been an upset victory against a rival to snap the home-game losing streak, Dallas rolled over and got stepped on for four quarters instead.
The Cowboys’ loss means they sit at 3-3 with their bye week to follow.
You can expect many questions to be thrown at the organization between today and their next game, but will we get answers? It’s hard to believe the answer is yes.