The Dallas Cowboys played down to their competition in their previous two games against the Giants and Colts. Ultimately, they picked themselves up in the second half, and their superior talent level proved to be the difference.
On Sunday, the Cowboys took playing down to their competition to a whole new level against the one-win Texans. On a fast-track to clinching the NFL’s worst record and No. 1 overall pick, Houston smelled blood following KaVontae Turpin’s first quarter muffed punt and pushed their in-state rivals to the brink.
So much so that it took an 11-play, 98-yard touchdown drive with less than three minutes remaining in the game for Dallas to see out the victory.
It was a surgical drive from Dak Prescott, whose interception just minutes earlier seemed to seal a win for the visitors before DeMarcus Lawrence saved the day with a physics-defying run stop on 3rd and goal.
A win is a win, obviously, but the Cowboys were downright lucky to escape with a win. While you’re celebrating this thrilling come-from-behind victory, be sure to take note of these causes for concern.
3 causes for concern from Cowboys win over Texans
3. Self-inflicted mistakes
The Cowboys’ record under Mike McCarthy speaks for itself. It also speaks volumes the team is continually plagued by self-inflicted mistakes under McCarthy’s tutelage. If it’s not penalties, which were oddly few and far between against Houston, it’s unforced turnovers, dropped passes, or missed tackles. You name it.
Sunday was the same old story.
For starters, KaVontae Turpin’s muffed punt after Tony Pollard’s early touchdown changed the game. If Dallas gets the ball back and goes up 14-0, it’s extremely possible the one-win Texans lie down and prepare for the slaughter.
Besides that, Dallas committed an offsides on 3rd and goal after stopping the Texans, which led to a Dameon Pierce touchdown run.
You also had a dropped pass from Noah Brown that resulted in an interception, and a dropped touchdown by Dalton Schultz. Dallas wound up getting stuffed on 4th and goal later in the drive, which opens up another can of worms about Kellen Moore’s conservative play-calling near the goal line.
After eight straight runs to start the second half, the Cowboys packed the box and called an Ezekiel Elliott run up the middle on 4th and goal that had no chance. The Texans snuffed it out (how could they not?) and blew up the play behind the line of scrimmage.
ALL of these blunders were unforced. Inexcusable, but not surprising.
2. Injuries to starters
The Cowboys’ injury report has been an incredibly short read in recent weeks, but they suffered a number of scares on Sunday.
Before the game, Jayron Kearse was assisted to the locker room with an apparent leg injury, before returning and starting the game. Suffered during warmups, Kearse’s freak injury marked the start of a long afternoon on the injury front.
In the second quarter, underrated space-eater Johnathan Hankins was removed with a shoulder injury and didn’t return.
In the same quarter, Trevon Diggs left the game with a thumb injury. He went back to the locker room before returning, albeit with his hand heavily wrapped. Additionally, promising rookie tight end Jake Ferguson (neck) was ruled out after exiting the game just before halftime.
The biggest concern, though, occurred when right tackle Terence Steele was undercut by a Texans defender while finishing off a block. Unable to brace himself for hit, Steele went down awkwardly and was helped to the locker room. He was quickly ruled out with a knee injury.
2021 fourth-round pick Josh Ball replaced Steele and was so dreadful in limited action that Dallas benched him for Jason Peters.
Steele’s been a model of consistency at right tackle this season, allowing just four QB hits and one sack over 417 pass-blocking snaps, to go with a sublime 82.4 run-blocking grade from PFF. Losing him for any period of time would be a brutal blow to an offensive lie that’s on the verge of getting Tyron Smith back.
1. Dak Prescott’s interceptions aren’t sustainable
This isn’t an anti-Dak rant. Far from it, actually. Anyone with a fundamental understanding of football — or two functioning eyes — realizes Prescott’s return from injury has meant everything to the Cowboys’ offense. The group ranks first in multiple major categories since he took his job back from Cooper Rush.
With that said, the interceptions are piling up at an alarming rate. While Sunday’s pick wasn’t entirely on Prescott — Noah Brown had it bounce off his helmet and into the air begging to be intercepted — it was a familiar sight for Dallas fans over the last month.
In fact, Prescott’s now thrown an interception in three straight games, and five of the last six contests. There’s never a good time for a turnover, but a majority of them have come near the end of the first half on passes over the middle. Wouldn’t you know it, Sunday’s (first) pick was a carbon copy of that description.
Is it a matter of Prescott forcing unnecessary throws into tight windows? Could his receivers do a better job on routes and catching the football? You bet. Not every INT has been on Dak, but even his most adamant supporters can admit he’s been more careless with the football than we’ve grown accustomed to.
Prescott can win any game on his own, but the Cowboys are built to win by running the football and playing sound defense. It’s tough to carry out that blueprint when your QB is throwing interceptions almost every week.
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