4 reasons the Dallas Cowboys lost to the Seattle Seahawks
#3. Lack of Discipline
It’s a great feeling when a defender for your team makes a big play. What makes your heart hurt is when it doesn’t even matter because there is a penalty. That is exactly what seemed to happen throughout the game on Sunday.
Penalties are inevitably going to come up; however, it is an issue when they cost you points or possessions. In total, the Dallas Cowboys committed 10 penalties.
While Dallas didn’t commit one penalty in the first quarter, the second quarter would be the start of a bad trend. One drive stands out the most. This started at the 11:31 mark.
On third down, Wilson was sacked for a loss of seven yards, which would make it fourth down at Seattle’s 47-yard line. Rather than forcing them to punt the ball, they got a fresh set of downs due to an illegal contact penalty.
Four plays later, defensive back Daryl Worley picked off a deep pass by Wilson. Instead of it being Dallas’ ball at their one-yard line, pass interference was called. This resulted in a Seahawks possession with a fresh set of downs at Dallas’ 15-yard line.
The very next play is another pass interference penalty against Dallas. This gave the Seahawks a new set of downs at Dallas’ one-yard line. It would take two plays for Wilson to throw a touchdown.
During the next possession for the Seahawks, Dallas gave up another possible possession. A strip-sack on third down turned into a first down for Seattle due to defensive holding. Luckily, the Cowboys never gave up points on this drive.
In the fourth quarter, Dallas almost had a costly penalty. On third down, left guard Connor Williams had a false start, forcing a third and three into a third and eight. Thankfully they converted on the third and long to march down the field for a field goal.
The following possession, the Cowboys committed a roughing the passer penalty on a two-point conversion. The original play was an incomplete pass, but the second time around they made the conversion.
In total, five costly penalties allowed the Seahawks to continue their drive and score points. This is an area that must be addressed as soon as possible.