The Indianapolis Colts played the Dallas Cowboys nearly to a draw through three quarters of action. In fact, the only thing that had kept the Cowboys in the lead was a two-point conversion stop.
Against Indy’s surprisingly frisky offense and defense, the Cowboys required some superhuman plays on both sides of the ball to keep them afloat. Not the way Jason Garrett drew it up, but it was the way it had to be done.
Luckily, some of Dallas’ best and brightest showed up when the skies looked darkest, allowing the team the smallest amount of breathing room for the fourth quarter, when all things finally fell apart for the clearly-undermanned Colts.
Funny this was ever close, isn’t it? It was close! Close for 3/4 of the game! Not that fourth fourth, though.
If these Cowboys had taken it easy on Sunday night instead of stepping up under the lights, it’s possible the team’s 54-19 pounding never would’ve materialized. Luckily, these game-changers played their best when it mattered most.
3 Cowboys players who stepped up vs Indianapolis Colts on Sunday Night Football
3. CeeDee Lamb
Lamb played like a No. 1 wide receiver from the second the Colts defense allowed him to get off the mat. Literally.
With Odell Beckham Jr. rumors constantly swirling, Lamb (and Michael Gallup, for that matter) showed that all they really need is a solid running mate. Surprisingly enough, the way Dallas’ offense played was likely their most effective argument yet for Beckham’s services. No need to come here and be The Man. This is a lot like Buffalo. Flash when you can, and let Lamb do the work.
In one of his most spectacular games of the season, Lamb scored the Cowboys’ first touchdown of the game, rolling out of a tackle without hitting the ground before sprinting to the end zone untouched.
After that, he looked at least two steps faster than Indianapolis’ defense whenever he was targeted, often in space. “Two steps” is also being generous to the defense.
Lamb finished the game with 71 receiving yards on five receptions, as well as 23 rushing yards. It felt like more, considering every time the camera found him, he was zipping and twisting down the field in an entirely different gear from his pursuers.
2. Cowboys Safeties Donovan Wilson and Malik Hooker
Alright, fine. A little cheat. A little cheat for the boys. But while the Dallas safeties’ contributions to the stat sheet surely lean Malik Hooker’s way in this revenge grudge match, don’t lose Donovan Wilson’s game-changing play from the game’s meaty middle.
Forget the final numbers. Wilson being shot out of a cannon into the backfield on a 3rd & 5 with Indy up 10-7 to open the second quarter seemed to ignite the defense for the remainder of the half.
Sure, Dallas still entered the locker room up just 21-13 (an inflated gap thanks to Hooker and some late-half shenanigans), but from Wilson’s rocket fuel sack of Matt Ryan to the end of the second quarter, the only score the Cowboys allowed was a field goal after the Colts were given a short field.
Following a Stephon Gilmore pick, Indy’s offense advanced just three more yards in 57 seconds before kicking.
The Colts’ surprising intensity and underdog stature will be the story for many, but Wilson’s burst from the safety position helped redefine this game and allowed Dallas to win the second quarter emphatically. That was the difference in the contest.
Oh, and Hooker, folks. Even in his wildest dreams, he likely didn’t envision the matchup against his former team going this well. Maybe the scales would’ve been tilted in the Cowboys’ direction pretty significantly. After all, they’re a much better team. But a field-flipping pick right before the half, then a scoop-and-score to salt it away in the fourth and pour salt in the wound? That’s what you get for giving up an injury-riddled first-round pick and letting another team nurse him back to health.
1. Tony Pollard
According to the NBC broadcast, Ezekiel Elliott and Tony Pollard are only competitive with one another in their off-the-field Call of Duty battles. In the backfield? The two men reportedly agree on numerical goals prior to every game, then do their best to help the team and match those numbers together.
On Sunday night, Zeke was solid, as usual. Pollard was particularly electric.
Pollard’s final touchdown, a tiptoe job down the left sideline where he blazed past the entire defense behind Tyler Smith’s lead block, felt inevitable. Like a hot ‘back through butter. There were defenders everywhere. None of them could catch him. None of them were close.
Not an every-down back, but certainly something more than a gadget piece, Pollard finished Sunday night with 91 rushing yards on 12 carries, a wild (and somehow also typical) 7.6 yards per carry. He also caught two passes for 15 yards and sniffed out the end zone twice. As has been the case for every player on this list, though, the energy he brought wasn’t entirely captured in those numbers.
Pollard, Lamb, and Wilson/Hooker/Honorable Mention DaRon Bland played at a different level in this contest, and when the floodgates completely opened in a ridiculous fourth quarter, it was all thanks to their hard work.
And oh, at the end of the game, who was there to benefit from Pollard’s lightning strikes? Zeke, whose legs were still fresh enough to hop into the Salvation Army kettle and turn this one into an even louder laugher.
7 plays that proved that Dak Prescott and the Cowboys offense are back
The Cowboys offense was on fire against the Bears. Here are the best plays to prove Dak Prescott and his squad are back after the 49-29 win.