After dispatching of the Carolina Panthers with impunity, the Dallas Cowboys return home on a short week.
The holiday season is here, and with it comes the annual Thanksgiving Day tradition of hosting a game at AT&T Stadium while America drowns their turkey in gravy.
This time around the division rival Washington Commanders come to town reeling off of an embarrassing home loss to the lowly New York Giants.
Giants’ third string QB Tommy DeVito notched the first victory of his career on Sunday versus Washington, throwing for 246 yards and three touchdowns with zero turnovers.
Washington committed six turnovers. Three interceptions from Sam Howell’s arm combined with three lost fumbles by his teammates.
The Commanders don’t even have time to bury their heads in the sand as they are likely already preparing to board the plane for Texas.
Since the inception of the Cowboys franchise in 1960, they have squared off against Washington on Thanksgiving Day 10 times.
The Cowboys are 8-2 in those games, including a 6-0 start before dropping the first Thanksgiving game in the rivalry to a hot-shot rookie in 2012. More on that later.
Today I’d like to take you on a little trip down memory lane to the three most memorable games (in my 36 year old mind) in the Dallas versus Washington Thanksgiving Day history.
RGIII Torches the Cowboys
Let’s start off with the first win ever on Thanksgiving by the Washington Redskins over the Dallas Cowboys.
It occurred during the 2012 season, and at the hands of sensational rookie QB Robert Griffin III.
Both teams were in the middle of mediocre seasons.
Washington stood at 4-6, while the Cowboys came into the game with a 5-5 record.
By all accounts, the Cowboys should have shut the door on the Redskins before they even had a chance to step foot in the house.
QB Tony Romo had offensive weapons like Dez Bryant, Jason Witten, Cole Beasley, and Felix Jones at his disposal.
As it turns out, offense wouldn’t be the problem for the Cowboys that day. At least not late in the game.
This game was lost by the Cowboys in the 2nd quarter when they allowed Griffin and the Redskins to take a 28-3 lead into halftime.
The rookie quarterback from nearby Baylor University threw three of his four touchdowns in that 2nd quarter after the Cowboys completely broke down on both sides of the ball.
Dallas’ 2nd quarter possessions ended in a punt, interception, fumble, and a kneel down to end the half.
Romo and the Cowboys would mount a furious second half comeback, but the damage in the 2nd quarter was too much to overcome.
The Cowboys would fall by the score of 38-31 for the first loss on Thanksgiving to the Redskins in their history.
Washington’s win would catapult them to six straight victories and the NFC East title.
Dallas would finish 8-8, and miss the playoffs.
Rookies To Be Thankful For
The 2016 campaign was a magical season in many ways for the Dallas Cowboys and their fans.
It marked the beginning of a new era in Cowboys football. One led by rookie QB Dak Prescott.
With RB Ezekiel Elliott as his running mate, the dynamic duo of rookies sparked the first trip to the Divisional round of the playoffs since the 2009 season.
One of Prescott’s signature wins that year was on Thanksgiving versus Kirk Cousins and the Washington Redskins.
Prescott would drive Dallas 75 yards in seven plays to start the game with a 7-0 lead, and the defense would hold Cousins and his offense to just six points.
With a 17-6 lead at halftime, the game felt well in hand like the previous nine consecutive victories prior to that game.
Cousins would bring his team back, and he and Prescott would turn this game into an instant classic.
After exchanging punts to start the second half, the Cowboys and Redskins would combine for five straight drives ending in touchdowns.
The offensive explosion had fans at the edge of their seats, afraid to get up for a second helping of Thanksgiving dinner in fear of missing out on the action.
Cousins would throw for 449 yards and three touchdowns, but tough running from Ezekiel Elliott (97 yards, 2 TDs) and Prescott (39 yards, 1 TD) would be enough to salt the game away at the end.
Dallas would win 31-26, the narrowest victory of Prescott’s career up to that point.
The Cowboys would end up winning the NFC East with a 13-3 record while the Redskins would finish 8-7-1, and out of the playoff picture.
Welcome to Dallas, Mr. Cooper
The next Thanksgiving meeting between the Cowboys and Redskins would come in the 2018 season.
Washington (6-4) would actually enter the matchup one game better than Dallas (5-5) in the standings, but a new addition for the Cowboys would make all the difference.
Approximately a month prior, Dallas would pull the trigger on a bye week trade to acquire WR Amari Cooper from the Oakland Raiders.
The Cowboys had attempted a wide receiver by committee approach after star WR Dez Bryant was lost for the season with a ruptured Achilles tendon suffered in the offseason.
It didn’t work out, as the team sputtered to a 3-4 record with the offense only averaging 20 points per game.
Even that number was inflated by a 40-7 thrashing of the Jacksonville Jaguars.
Take that game out, and the offense was only averaging only 16.6 points per contest.
In a game where Redskins’ backup QB Colt McCoy got the start, Amari Cooper proved to be the difference in a matchup that was closer than it should have been.
Cooper caught eight passes on nine targets for 180 yards and two touchdown receptions.
It marked his first 100 yard effort as a member of the Dallas Cowboys, and he did most of his damage in the 3rd quarter.
With Dallas down by three points early in the 3rd quarter, Prescott hit Cooper on a slant pattern.
Cooper’s route tangled up the defender’s feet, and he fell to the ground.
He then sprinted to the endzone 40 yards untouched.
Later, nursing just a four point lead near the end of the 3rd quarter, Prescott threaded a pass in between two defenders to Cooper, who made the catch and raced another 65 yards to the endzone.
It would go down as a 90 yard touchdown catch on the stat sheet, still the longest completion of Prescott’s career.
Amari Cooper’s first Thanksgiving as a member of the Dallas Cowboys was a memorable one, as he owned the second half of the 31-23 win.
Washington would finish the season 7-9, and out of the playoff picture.
Dallas would finish the season winning four of their last five games to win the NFC East, and win a Wildcard game versus the Seattle Seahawks.