After the season-opening win over Cleveland, most Cowboys fans were crowning the team as Super Bowl champions. Reality just knocked on their doors. The Dallas Cowboys still might win this year’s Super Bowl.
But not by playing the way they did in Sunday’s home-opening, 44-19 loss to the New Orleans Saints.
The Cowboys’ defense was a no-show – an effort eerily similar to January’s stinker against the Packers that ended the 2023 season.
That’s two straight home games where the defense got run out of the building in the opening half. Both games were essentially over by halftime.
Another striking similarity was an offense that couldn’t step up and at least try to keep the game in range.
Against the Packers, not only couldn’t the offense score, they basically gave Green Bay 14 of their 27 first-half points. Courtesy of two Dak Prescott interceptions.
The second pick was returned for a touchdown and a 27-0 lead with two minutes left in the half.
Game over.
At Least Points Were Scored
At least against the Saints on Sunday, Prescott managed to put points on the board. He threw for one touchdown but still threw an interception that was converted into a Saints’ touchdown.
Prescott did get 16 first-half points on the board, but 12 of them were off the foot of Brandon Aubrey.
Meanwhile, Derek Carr was leading the Saints to five first-half touchdowns for a 35-16 halftime lead.
Like the Packers game, Dallas got the ball to start the second half. They had a chance to at least give the defense some hope, something to fight for.
However, as happened back in January, the opening drive of the second half ended in another Brandon Aubrey field goal. That was the closest Dallas would get the rest of the way.
That isn’t what the Cowboys shelled out a quarter of a billion dollars for. Prescott is the highest-paid player in the NFL now.
With that title, and the money, comes expectations.
He is expected to elevate his game, especially when his defense is struggling. He is expected to go toe-to-toe with his opposite number and match him touchdown for touchdown.
Prescott didn’t do that on Sunday. He very rarely does it at all, last year’s shootout against Seattle being the exception rather than the rule.
Through two games, Prescott is 46-of-71 for 472 yards; that’s just 236 yards per game. He’s thrown for two touchdowns and has two interceptions.
The Cowboys’ other two touchdowns were an Ezekiel Elliott run and a 60-yard punt return by KaVontae Turpin.
The rest of the scoring? A total of 24 points on eight Brandon Aubrey field goals.
Remember when Jason Garrett’s offenses kept settling for field goals and how many games were lost because they couldn’t punch the ball in?
With his new contract, fairly or not, it falls on Prescott to win games, especially when his defense can’t get off the field.
He needs to throw touchdowns instead of interceptions and settling for field goals.
Dak Defenders On Notice
The Dak Defenders (oh yes, I see you coming at me on social media) will lay 100% of the blame for every loss on the defense.
They also shamelessly put 100% of the credit for every win on Prescott.
But the fact is, Dallas is now 1-1 (as predicted here earlier, even if I have the win and loss reversed). Unless they discover a running game on offense and the defense plays better consistently, the 8-9 prediction will come true too.
Just come at me with the same energy when Dallas is 2-4 going into the bye week.
Derek Carr: Cowboys Killer
The Saints win snapped a few Cowboys’ streaks. It was the first loss for Dallas in the second week of the season since 2017.
It also snapped a three-game regular season win streak for the Cowboys. The third streak to fall was Dallas’ three-game win streak against New Orleans in second-week games in a season.
Dallas is now 18-14 all-time against the Saints and 11-5 at home.
For Carr, he is now 2-0 against the Cowboys at AT&T Stadium, with wins coming for two different franchises. He won a Thanksgiving Day thriller with the Raiders in 2021.
Dallas is now 43-22 and 23-10 at home in games played in the second week of the season.
Next Week For Dallas
The Cowboys host the 0-2 Baltimore Ravens on Sunday afternoon at 3:25. Despite the record, the Ravens are a dangerous team.
They also have history on their side with a 5-1 record all-time against Dallas.
The Cowboys are 1-1 at home against Baltimore, including a 27-17 win back in 2016.
Manning On The Run
A quarterback named Manning scoring a 67-yard touchdown…run?
Both Peyton and Eli Manning were timed with calendars instead of stopwatches when they played. Apparently, Arch Manning inherited his grandfather’s wheels.
Manning was forced into action when Texas’ starting quarterback, and Heisman Trophy favorite Quinn Ewers, went down with an injury.
Manning, the son of Cooper Manning and nephew of the Super Bowl-winning elder Mannings, expanded the Longhorns’ lead over UT-San Antonio with four touchdown passes.
But it was his 67-yard touchdown run that set college football on fire on Saturday.
The win also propelled Texas to No. 1 over Georgia after the Bulldogs barely beat Kentucky by a point later that night.
Tua’s Third Concussion
For the third time in his brief NFL career, Tua Tagovailoa suffered a serious concussion in a game.
For the second time, he went into an immediate “fencing” position, indicating a serious injury and likely being unconscious for a time.
He’ll be undergoing tests this week. But perhaps it’s time for Tagovailoa and his inner circle to seriously consider retirement.
He and his family are financially set for life.
He needs to think about having long-term health to go along with that financial security.
Show Some Class
Sheduer Sanders and the Tennessee football program need to be humbled, and as soon as possible at that.
A week after Sanders threw a fit and then threw his offensive line under the bus in a loss at Nebraska, he was back to trash talking the opposing QB in a win immediately after the game.
Colorado barely beat North Dakota State to open the season, then got trounced by the Cornhuskers.
Colorado State isn’t putting fear into any Top 25 team. So Sanders acting like he had just won the championship was uncalled-for.
The Vols jumped out to a 30-0 lead with three minutes left … in the first quarter over Kent State. Then ran an onside kick.
Seriously?
I understand it was the Tennessee kicker that audibled into the play. But the Vols coach had better have a long talk with his kicker about winning with the same class that you lose with.