After three weeks and a 1-2 start to 2018, the Dallas Cowboys were looking for answers on offense. They found a few of them today, and none bigger than Ezekiel Elliott, in a hard-fought 26-24 victory over the Detroit Lions.
Elliott had 240 total yards of offense, 152 rushing and 88 receiving, in what might have been the best performance of his career. His lone touchdown came on a 38-yard screen pass with Dallas trailing 10-6 just before halftime.
Zeke put it all on display today. He had the speed runs, the tough yard-grinders, and the plays in the passing game. Given the struggles Dallas has had so far this year, and Elliott's costly mistakes last week in Seattle, it was a big statement from one of the team's young leaders.
Elliott's production helped the rest of the offense find some rhythm. Dak Prescott broke the 200-yard mark for the first time since last year, finishing with 255 passing yards and two touchdowns. Cole Beasley had four catches for 53 yards, and tight end Geoff Swaim had three catches for 39 yards and a touchdown.
Dallas gave up nearly 400 yards offense to Detroit, so their own offensive surge came at the right time. The secondary struggled against Matthew Stafford and Golden Tate, with Tate getting 132 yards and two touchdowns by himself today.
But in the end, under pressure, Dak Prescott led his team down the field to set up Brett Maher's game-winning field goal. The difference between 2-2 and 1-3 is a lot more than one game, and the offense delivered with the season on the brink of collapse.
Other Notes
- Maher went 4/4 on his field goals, including the game winner from 38 yards out. He has gone 8/8 since missing his first FG attempt in Week 1.
- DeMarcus Lawrence had three sacks, raising his season total to 5.5 in just four games. As a reminder, Dallas has no option to sign his long-term deal until after the season. That's one of the risks of letting a guy play on the franchise tag.
- Tavon Austin could've helped his QB have a bigger day but dropped a deep pass in the endzone. Dak put the ball right in the sweet spot, but Austin bobbled and lost it.
- It was a rough day for the defensive backs. Other than Byron Jones, everyone got picked on at some point. Jeff Heath did not look good early and then left the game midway with a shoulder injury. Chidobe Awuzie and Anthony Brown struggled against Tate and Kenny Golladay.
- It was another strong day for rookie LB Leighton Vander Esch. He made several big stops against the run and even chased down Golden Tate to prevent a big gain. Dallas has never been better equipped to be without Sean Lee, making their first-round pick look wiser by the week.
- Elsewhere in the NFC East, the 2-1 Eagles are in overtime right now against the Titans. Washington sits at 2-1, having an early Week 4 bye. The 1-2 Giants are just kicking off at home against the Saints.
- The Cowboys had to Houston next Sunday night to face the Texans, who are currently winless but heading to overtime against the Colts as of the writing of this article.
