The Dallas Cowboys brand of football is not sustainable over the course of a 17-game season. To be successful, the team must score 30 points or more per week. However, against the Washington Commanders (3-4), 1-1 in the NFC East), a team playing without its three best wide receivers and, for most of the second half, without starting quarterback Jayden Daniels, it was more than enough Sunday for a 44-22 win before a sellout crowd at AT&T Stadium.
The Cowboys’ offense was able to exploit the lack of speed in Washington’s linebackers and defensive backs, racking up 409 yards in total offense. Quarterback Dak Prescott was 21 of 30 for 264 yards and three touchdowns. Wide receiver CeeDee Lamb led Dallas with 5 catches, 110 yards, and a touchdown. George Pickens caught four passes for 82 yards. Running back Javonte Williams rushed for 116 yards and one touchdown.
It took Dallas less than two minutes to score to open the game as Dak Prescott took the offense 66 yards on the opening drive, capped by a Javonte Williams two-yard touchdown run for a 7-0 lead.
Washington struck back, after punting on its first drive, the defense tackled Williams in the end Zone for a safety to cut the lead to 7-2.
Daniels then drove the offense 65 yards on seven plays, throwing a short touchdown pass to tight end Zack Ertz to take an 8-7 lead (the two-point conversion failed).
Even after five straight possessions that ended in either a punt or a turnover on downs, the Commanders were in the game. With just over a minute left in the second quarter, Daniels scored on a two-yard touchdown scramble to make the score 20-15 Cowboys.
A minute was more than enough time for Prescott. He found Pickens for a 44-yard gain, then Ferguson for a two-yard touchdown to make the score 27-15 at halftime.
The game essentially ended on the Commanders first series of the second half.
After driving to the Dallas 39-yard line, Daniels was sacked and lost the ball, which was recovered by the Cowboys. Worse, Daniels injured his right hamstring and left the game, replaced by Marcus Mariota.
Mariota’s first series came with Washington trailing 34-15 after another Dallas touchdown. On third down on the Cowboys’ 38-yard line, Mariota threw an ill-timed pass intended for Ertz. DaRon Bland stepped in front of it and returned the interception 68 yards to make the score 41-15.
While no one on defense played well, cornerback Marshon Lattimore’s play was particularly egregious.
The former all-pro, whom the team traded for last season to shore up a leaky defensive backfield, was targeted eight times, giving up five receptions for 82 yards. Safety Quan Martin was just as bad, giving up 81 yards, including 42 yards after the catch, according to PFF.com.
The road doesn’t get any easier for Washington; in fact, it gets worse. The Commanders go to Kansas City to play the Chiefs on October 27th on Monday Night Football. Kansas City has won its last two games.
Post Game Notes:
Daniels appeared to injure his right hamstring while getting sacked in the third quarter. He was examined on the sidelines, then went to the locker room where he remained for the rest of the game. Head Coach Dan Quinn said Daniels will have an MRI on Monday.
Wide Receiver Luke McCaffrey had 209 yards in kickoff returns.
Washington’s first quarter safety was the first the team recorded since 2022.
Daron Payne is the first defensive lineman to record three or more pass defenses in the first half of a game since Minnesota’s Brian Robinson in 2012.
Bob Matthews is a 33 year veteran broadcast journalist, spending the last 29 years of his career in Virginia. Bob has covered both news and sports stories and for the last three seasons, the Washington Commanders. He looks forward to continuing to provide coverage to Sportsjourney.com both on the website and through his podcast, The Bob Matthews Show.
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