4 Cowboys studs (and 1 dud) after carving up the Commanders on Thanksgiving

Another home game and another lopsided win for the Dallas Cowboys. In Week 12, they hosted the Washington Commanders or the annual Thanksgiving Day game. Washington was able to move the ball often but couldn't finish drives and before long, the Cowboys ran away with it.

A 20-10 halftime lead turned into a 45-10 blowout thanks to an insane fourth quarter that included 25 points. It became such a one-sided affair that Dak Prescott decided to pull out a hidden turkey leg and start his dinner with six minutes left in the game.

This was a fun game for any Dallas fan as they got to see Prescott toss four touchdowns while witnessing history with DaRon Bland running back his fifth pick-six of the year. With all that going on, we wind up with a whole lot of studs that deserve praise this week.

Dallas Cowboys Stud: Rico Dowdle, Running Back

Rico Dowdle was a surprise player this offseason as he was able to knock off every other contender for the backup running back spot behind Tony Pollard. He came into this one with 235 yards and a touchdown on the ground as well as 54 yards and a touchdown as a pass-catcher.

His numbers aren't bad at all but he's also been very unfortunate. Dowdle seems to have at least one long run called back every game and that happened to him again on Thanksgiving Day. During the Cowboys second drive of the game, Dowdle ripped off an 11-yard run but it was called back due to a hold on CeeDee Lamb. That hold was a terrible call but it still took away a big run for Dowdle.

Despite this, he kept it rolling when he saw the ball. Dowdle had a seven-yard run a couple of plays later and then capped off the drive with a 15-yard touchdown. In addition to what he did with the ball, Dowdle picked up a blitz as well to give Dak Prescott more time to throw.

Again, his numbers were modest with 11 yards on the ground and 15 through the air. But he got the scoring started and continues to prove he's worthy of his spot on the team — and deserves more touches.

Dallas Cowboys Stud: Osa Odighizuwa, Defensive Tackle

For the past couple of years, the Cowboys defense has been vastly improved but they've still had one weak spot — run defense. They attempted to shore this up by trading for Johnathan Hankins last year and then selecting Michigan nose tackle Mazi Smith in the first round of the 2023 NFL Draft. They've each done their part in helping to clean up the run defense but they haven't been alone.

Osa Odighizuwa entered this game as the No. 8 defensive tackle according to PFF and is top-20 in run defense. He's still an effective pass rusher from the interior but he's also rounded into an all-around defender. In this one, he stood out once again, especially when it came to stopping the run.

A perfect example of this came early in the third quarter. Washington was moving the ball in an attempt to cut into the 20-10 Dallas lead and had a second-and-two from the Cowboys 39. Brian Robinson took the hand-off but Odighizuwa stuffed him for just a one-yard gain.

Sam Howell threw an incompletion on third-and-one and the Commanders then went for it on fourth down. Again, it was Robinson who got the ball but Odighizuwa made another play. This time, he stuffed the running back for no gain, giving the ball back to Dallas.

Hankins also deserves a ton of praise for his performance, as he recorded two sacks including one on fourth down. The entire Dallas defensive line was feasting but this felt like a break-out party for Odighizuwa who was constantly causing problems in the offensive backfield. He was instrumental in stopping Washington from cutting the lead to one score and allowed the defense to pin their ears back and get after Howell — which they did to the tune of four sacks.

Dallas Cowboys Dud: Sam Williams, EDGE

Sam Williams stopped Jameson Crowder on the first punt of the day by Dallas which should have put the Commanders inside their own five. That's not where they started with the ball, however, since Williams was guilty of a facemask penalty. That flag gave them an extra 15 yards, setting Washington up at the 18.

They did have to punt after eight plays and just 38 yards but since they started in a decent position, that punt pushed Dallas back to their own 10. It was an early chance to flip field position but that didn't happen thanks to a mistake from Williams. It also wasn't the first time he had a gaffe on special teams recently.

Last week, Williams was hit with another costly penalty on special teams. The second-year defensive end was guilty of running into the kicker as Dallas had forced a punt from Carolina. His penalty gave them a fourth-and-two, which they wound up converting. They had 12 more plays after the punt and finished with their lone touchdown of the game — none of which should have happened if not for the penalty on Williams.

On defense, Williams was fine and he still has a lot to offer on special teams. The fact that he's a 260-pound gunner is amazing but he has to find a way to clean up the penalties. If he does, he will be a huge weapon for this team.

Dallas Cowboys Stud: DaRon Bland, Cornerback

When DaRon Bland was announced as the Cowboys pick at No. 167 overall last season, no one would have guessed that he would be setting records by Week 12 of his sophomore season. But that's exactly what happened on Thursday as Bland once again found himself running an interception back for a touchdown.

In the fourth quarter with a 38-10 deficit, Washington was trying to put something together before the game ended. They were moving the ball, with Cole Turner hauling in a 29-yard pass to move the ball into Dallas territory. A couple of plays later, Sam Howell threw a pass to Jahan Dotson but Bland jumped the route. He then returned the ball 63 yards for the touchdown, dodging a few players at the end to get into the end zone.

That wound up being the fifth pick-six for Bland this season which is an NFL record. It's also a career record for Dallas, as Bland topped the four interception returns for a touchdown that both Dexter Coakley and Dennis Thurman had during their time in Big D.

During the broadcast, Tony Romo asked how many times Deion Sanders recorded a pick-six and found out the answer was nine. That means Bland has more than half as many in 11 games as the legendary Prime Time did in his historic career.

At this point, you have to wonder why anyone throws the ball anywhere near Bland. Sure, they might get a completion against him but the risk simply doesn't seem worth it. Having said that, the Cowboys are glad teams keep testing him and will be perfectly content if they continue to do so.

Dallas Cowboys Stud: Dak Prescott, Quarterback

The Cowboys offense has been spectacular since their bye week, especially when they're at home. They continued to roll on Thanksgiving led, as always, to the play of Dak Prescott. The veteran quarterback was once again dealing and even though he missed a couple of early throws, he settled down and began to carve up the Commanders defense.

On the opening drive, Prescott missed CeeDee Lamb on a pass that would have gone for a 62-yard touchdown. Lamb had Benjamin St-Juste beaten for a score but the pass was too far ahead of No. 88. He then missed Jalen Tolbert on the next pass, who was wide open for a long gain. Dallas had to punt after that but they got the ball back quickly and Dak started to fire with much more accuracy.

He led them on a 90-yard drive, finishing with a touchdown pass to Rico Dowdle. Washington answered with a field goal but Prescott responded with another score. This time, Prescott found Brandin Cooks for a 31-yard score, which put an exclamation point on a six-play, 75-yard drive.

Dallas was forced to watch the Commanders get back in the game thanks to a 13-play drive but once again, No. 4 answered. In just 1:25, he led them back down the field for another score, this time Tony Pollard finished things off with a seven-yard score. That sent them to the break with a 20-10 lead and Prescott already had 221 yards and two touchdowns on 13-of-18 passing.

He was just as deadly in the second half, hitting Lamb and KaVontae Turpin for touchdowns as well. Prescott finished with 331 yards on 22-of-32 passing with four touchdowns and no picks. This was the 10th time he had four touchdowns, making his own history as he tied Tony Romo for the most in franchise history. He even found himself on the sideline with DaRon Bland after the game enjoying the celebratory turkey leg for the first time.

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