4 Cowboys who were exposed in Thanksgiving win vs Commanders
By Jerry Trotta
The Dallas Cowboys once again handled their business against an inferior opponent, as they pounded the Washington Commanders 45-10 on Thanksgiving. The game was closer than expected in the second half, but Dak Prescott and DaRon Bland helped Dallas score 25 unanswered points in the fourth quarter.
Bland took some shine off Prescott's surgical performance by making NFL history with his fifth pick-six of the season, but at this point both players deserve to be included in the Defensive Player of the Year and MVP conversations, respectively.
It's hard to find negatives from a 35-point win, but as we noted earlier the Cowboys struggled to put Washington away. Their start to the second half was uninspiring and kept the Commanders hanging around.
The Cowboys deserve credit for pulling away and extending their home winning streak, but multiple players were exposed in the victory.
4 & 3. Jake Ferguson, Luke Schoonmaker
If you're shocked to see Ferguson included, let's start by saying that we fully acknowledge he's an ascending tight end. It says a lot about Ferguson's talent and potential that he's cemented himself as the Cowboys' TE1 of the future midway through his second season.
Ferguson is clearly one of Dak Prescott's favorite targets and that's translated into him ranking among the TE leaderboards in catches, yards after the catch, and touchdowns.
All that said, far too many would-be completions bounce off Ferguson's hands. It happened again against the Commanders on a pass that would've moved the chains. Per ESPN's receiver metrics among tight ends, Ferguson ranks 20th in catch score this year.
There's plenty to be excited about with Ferguson. In order for him to take that next step, though, he needs to reel in tough catches more consistently.
The same can be said for rookie Luke Schoonmaker, who dropped a would-be first down on a tight window throw from Dak Prescott. The young tight end has dropped multiple easy catches this season, so it's no surprise why fans don't want him to see targets in high-leverage situations.