Irritating. This is one of the many words that can describe this year’s Dallas Cowboys. The Dallas Cowboys versus the New York Giants was a game of attrition. Each team struggled to get any offense going, and the defenses on both sides were below average.
There’s hope in the form of key players like Brandon Aubrey, Dak Prescott, Hunter Leupke, and CeeDee Lamb. They seem to be the ones who bring discipline and heart to the game for the Cowboys.
No one, including the coaches and front office, knows how to right the ship four games into the season.
The Dallas Cowboys are nothing short of irritating at this point.
The First Quarter
If you had to guess the script for the Cowboys on the game’s first series, you would guess run, run, pass. If you couldn’t guess this script, you may be the only person who couldn’t because opposing defensive coordinators knew.
The drive ended in an unsurprising punt. Looking on the bright side of all the punts, fans could see Bryan Anger in the Pro Bowl or even get an All-Pro nod.
The Dallas defense on the next series was unable to stop Daniel Jones and company as he marched his team down the field to get into field goal range.
Nine minutes into the game, the Giants took a 3-0 lead.
Dak Prescott and the Cowboys’ offense took over at the 30-yard line after a touchback on the kickoff. To the dismay of many Dak haters, he took over on this series.
Prescott moved the ball well, hitting several different receivers as he led the offense down the field.
On the march down the field, Dak Prescott passed it to five different players, ending the drive with a 15-yard touchdown pass to Rico Dowdle.
The Second Quarter
The Dallas Cowboys defense finally looked like they would turn the corner on the next series. The Giants were moving the ball down the field until Trevon Diggs intercepted a pass, but an offsides penalty canceled it.
Following the offside call, the defense let the Giants move the ball down into field goal range. The Giants ended the drive with a 41-yard field goal.
The Cowboys led 7-6.
Dak Prescott again moved the ball down the field well, completing passes to several players. Hunter Leupke even got to rush the ball, resulting in six yards gained.
The series would end on a 55-yard completion from Dak Prescott to CeeDee Lamb for a touchdown.
That touchdown extended the Cowboys’ lead to 14-6.
This is how the Cowboys’ offense should look: getting several players involved, so the defense cannot focus on any one player.
The Cowboys’ defense did OK in the next series. DeMarcus Lawrence got a sack, but the Giants were in field goal range at this point and did, in fact, make the field goal.
The Giants shrunk the Cowboys’ lead by three points, 14-9.
The next Dallas Cowboys offensive series was uneventful with several offensive penalties as the series ended in a punt. This would end the first half of football.
The Third Quarter
The Giants received the second-half kickoff.
Daniel Jones and the Giants’ offense moved the ball well against the Cowboys’ defense on this series. The Dallas Cowboys’ defense seems to be an extreme version of bend but don’t break, as the Giants would get another field goal.
The Cowboys led 14-12.
The Cowboys’ offense seemed to find some semblance of a running game in this series. Rico Dowdle and Ezekiel Elliott ran the ball well, but (big shocker) a penalty killed the drive.
The Cowboys settled for a field goal, putting them up 17-12.
The defense decided to show up on the next series as rookie Marshawn Kneeland made a big play by getting to Daniel Jones for a five-yard loss. The Giants’ series would end in a punt.
The next offensive series for the Cowboys was not good. Run negated by a penalty, run for a loss, run for eight yards, and a pass for three yards.
Another punt for Dallas and Bryan Anger. This would basically end the third quarter.
The Irritating Fourth Quarter
The bend-but-don’t-break defense showed up again as the Cowboys held the Giants to a field goal.
The Cowboys led 17-15.
Dak Prescott and the offense would take over and move the ball down the field, but stall out around the Giants 22-yard line. The series ended with another field goal.
The Cowboys led 20-15.
The defense finally decided to start playing and forced a turnover on downs, giving the Cowboys’ offense the ball at the Giants’ 45-yard line.
The Cowboys could only move the ball 13 yards on seven plays, ending the drive on Brandon Aubrey’s first missed field goal from 50-plus yards.
The Giants took over at their 32-yard line. Daniel Jones tried to force the ball down the field, but the series and game ended on an interception by the Dallas Cowboys defense.
Wrapping up the Cowboys vs Giants in week 4
It was not a great game, but some improvement could be seen. The Giants were a terrible team, and yet they seemed to move the ball down the field too easily.
The Dallas Cowboys’ defense must step up to get out of their slump. The offense was not spectacular, but not having a running game kills the offense.
The Dallas Cowboys won, which is a good thing overall, but the Cowboys simply are not an impressive team at this point in the season. With the number of chances given to the Giants in this game, any other team in the NFL would have beaten the Cowboys.