4 Cowboys to blame for embarrassing loss to 49ers in Week 5

For the third time in as many matchups, the San Francisco 49ers humiliated the Dallas Cowboys with the entire country watching.

The Cowboys fell down early and never made the game competitive. Though it breathed life into a defeated fan base, KaVontae Turpin's 26-yard touchdown pass from Dak Prescott that made the score 14-7 in the second quarter just delayed the inevitable. Dallas was (literally) punched in the mouth and never got off the ropes.

It was an embarrassing night for Dallas, which looked to send a message to the NFL that it should be taken seriously as a Super Bowl contender. Instead, they proved they don't belong in that conversation and there's nothing they can do short of going undefeated the rest of the way to make anyone take them seriously.

The entire roster and coaching staff top to bottom deserves a piece of the blame pie, but these Cowboys deserve bigger slices than most.

4. CeeDee Lamb

This Cowboys loss is hardly on CeeDee Lamb. He didn't make any glaring mistakes like Dak Prescott, Tony Pollard, Jayron Kearse and others, but his performance was not indicative of a top-10 receiver in the NFL.

Prescott had a nightmarish outing, but Lamb didn't do his QB any favors. The 49ers defense looked the part of a behemoth Sunday night, but it's not on the same level of the last few years when DeMeco Ryans was calling the shots. And yet, Lamb struggled creating separation for most of the game.

In both games this season that the Cowboys were playing from behind, Lamb's impact was minimal. Again, San Francisco's defense is elite, but its secondary is beatable. The Pro Bowler finished with four catches for 49 yards and it somehow felt less than that, if that makes any sense.

Lamb has feasted this year when Dallas has been playing with a lead. Sunday was a different story and it sheds light on a familiar trend with No. 88.

Say what you will about Prescott, but he knows how to get Lamb the ball. It's when the Cowboys' struggling passing game has looked its best this season. The fact Prescott couldn't locate Lamb (he tallied just five targets) suggests he wasn't open. That's a problem.