Cowboys studs and duds: Dak Prescott chokes in the spotlight, again

Another year has come and gone without the Dallas Cowboys getting past the second round of the NFC Playoffs. This time, they fell to the San Francisco 49ers in a 19-12 defensive showdown.

The Cowboys are likely beating themselves up after this loss since their defense did all they could to keep them in the game, while Dak Prescott did all he could to keep them from winning it.

Now with the dust settled, let’s see who stood out as studs and duds in the loss.

Cowboys studs and duds Divisional Round

Stud: CeeDee Lamb, WR

While there was a lot to be frustrated with this year, the performance of CeeDee Lamb does not fall in that category. Lamb had a fantastic season and put it all on the line in this loss.

He finished with 117 yards on 10 receptions as he caught everything that was within his reach.

One of the biggest plays Lamb made on the night won’t stand out in the stat sheet though. On a fourth and one, Dallas went for it and Lamb got the ball on a left-end run. He was one-on-one with Talanoa Hufanga and made the All-Pro safety miss the tackle.

He ended up with a four-yard gain which kept the chains moving and the drive ended with Dalton Schultz catching his third touchdown of the postseason.

Dud: Tyler Smith, OT

It was never going to be easy going against the 49ers, who had the best defense in the NFL this season, but it became even harder when the Cowboys started to move in the wrong direction. Tyler Smith, was guilty of causing this more than once.

On the very first offensive snap for Dallas, Smith was flagged for holding, and that caused them to start with a first-and-20. He was flagged again right before the end of the first quarter, this time for a false start.

The Cowboys had just moved the chains thanks to a seven-yard reception from CeeDee Lamb but the rookie moved them back with his flag.

Smith has been great this season and once again had to kick outside to tackle when Jason Peters was hurt. Still, his main issue has been the penalties and it was again a problem on Sunday.

Stud: DeMarcus Lawrence, EDGE

DeMarcus Lawrence might not get the love Micah Parsons does but he was on his game during the playoffs. He did all he could against the 49ers as he had six tackles, a sack, and two tackles for a loss.

Lawrence impacted the game early and often as he pressured Brock Purdy on third down to force the second punt of the game. He was then able to sack Purdy on the very next defensive snap, which came following the Dak Prescott interception on third down.

Right after Dallas tied things up at nine, San Francisco had to punt following a three-and-out. That was courtesy of another strong play from Lawrence. McCaffrey had a five-yard run on first down, but then Deebo Samuel was hit in the backfield for a loss of four on the second-down run.

That led to Purdy having to drop back to pass and he then sailed it out of bounds when no one was open. He should have had another sack as well, but that didn’t happen thanks to the next ‘dud’ on our list.

Dud: Donovan Wilson, S

Lawrence appeared to have made a huge play as he sacked Brock Purdy which should have forced a field goal attempt in the fourth quarter. That didn’t happen as there was a flag that flew as Donovan Wilson was called for holding George Kittle.

It gave San Francisco a fresh set of downs — which is always bad but was even worse when it appeared they had finally stopped a long drive where they were being bullied by the Niners’ offensive line.

They then capped the drive off with a touchdown, which was enough to seal the game.

Stud: Brett Maher, K

It seemed as though all would fall apart again for Brett Maher. He missed four extra points in the Wild Card Round and could have used a make on his first attempt Sunday. That didn’t happen as the first extra-point try was blocked.

After looking at the replay, it was clear to see that the block was on Maher. He kicked the ball low and it was veering to the left. Even if it wasn’t blocked, he would have seen it sail wide and it still would have been a miss.

Dallas stuck with Maher and after this miss, it seemed they made a mistake. But then, he finally turned a corner.

Maher hit a 25-yarder in the third quarter to tie it up at nine. Then, he got a 43-yarder to make it 16-12. He needed those two kicks to get on track even worse than the Cowboys needed them to stay in this game. It was nice to see him come through, even though the offense didn’t do enough to get the win.

We called him out when he struggled, so Maher deserves the praise for being one of the lone people to step up this weekend.

Dud: Trevon Diggs, CB

Dallas only gave up one touchdown in the loss but it should have been none. With the 49ers driving, Brock Purdy had a pass batted by Anthony Barr and it went straight to Trevon Diggs ‚— the man who had 11 picks in 2021.

Diggs had both hands on the ball but ended up dropping it. Had he pulled it in, that could have been the play they needed to steal the momentum and the game. Since he couldn’t, the 49ers got another shot and Christian McCaffrey put the game out of reach with his touchdown run.

Stud: KaVontae Turpin, KR

KaVontae Turpin made the Pro Bowl for his ability to flip the field and he did so a couple of times for Dallas — which was huge considering how hard-fought every yard was in this game.

Turpin was huge for the Cowboys as he responded to the 49ers’ long touchdown drive with his best return of the game, ripping off 44 yards. He might have been able to take it to the house if not for Robbie Gould as the kicker got in front of him and was able to stop him.

Dud: Dak Prescott, QB

Leading into this game, the discussion was centered on Dak Prescott. This was a game where he was supposed to be able to show he belonged among the elite, but he did the exact opposite. Instead, he left way too many plays on the field and gave more fuel to the narrative that he chokes in big moments.

Prescott kept on turning the ball over — an issue he had all year as he led the league in picks despite missing five games. And while his defenders point to all the times a receiver let the ball go through his hands, there’s no way to defend his two interceptions in this one.

The first was a terrible read in their own territory as he never saw Deommodore Lenoir who had the easiest pick of his career. The defense held but the 49ers still got three points due to the field position. Then, Prescott took points off the board as he threw the ball into double-coverage at the San Francisco 12, and Fred Warner gladly took the ball away.

Not only did that prevent Dallas from taking the lead going into the half but the 49ers then scored on a 50-yard field goal to head into the intermission with a 9-6 lead.

Prescott continued to leave plays on the field, including when he missed CeeDee Lamb on a third-and-eight which meant they again had to kick a field goal. It also meant they were unable to tie the game despite the long return from KaVontae Turpin.

Once the Niners went back up by seven, Prescott had a three-and-out that highlighted every one of his issues in one series. He threw a pass right to Dre Greenlaw but was bailed out as the linebacker dropped it. The next play saw Michael Gallup get wide open deep, but Prescott simply missed him. On third and 10, he held onto the ball and was sacked.

Dallas played well on defense and the wideouts found openings against the defense. Unfortunately, they were all let down by Prescott who single-handily gave this one away with his mistakes.

4 plays that shaped the Cowboys’ season-ending loss to 49ers

The Cowboys' season came to an end with their loss to the 49ers in the Divisional Round. These four plays shaped Dallas' season-ending loss.