Jerry Jones may be asking himself if he really in truly needs Mike McCarthy after this game. The answer will be “yes” after he watches the film and examines the play calling. Jerry said that Zeke would carry the rock a whole bunch in this game. Maybe Jerry was selling some fake news…because as it turned out, Zeke wasn’t the bell cow against the Saints. While Dallas Cowboys defense came out and performed, the offense was less than stellar. Towards the end of the game, with about eight minutes left to go, when the Cowboys really and truly needed to run the clock, Kellen Moore was inexplicably calling pass plays. Prescott threw an interception and almost threw a couple more over the next couple of possessions. Thankfully the defense stood tall and snagged three interceptions including a pick six in the last six minutes of the game. The story of the game is the opportunistic play of the Cowboys defense.
Overall, the game was a battle of the defenses. Which offense was going to be forced to make the most mistakes? The Saints lost that battle. They really don’t have a dynamic offense anymore because they lack a quality trigger man. Still, the Saints defense kept them in the game forcing the Cowboys to punt twice and forcing them to turn the ball over on downs once in the first half. Additionally, they held the Cowboys to one touchdown and two field goals in the first half.
The Saints made things worse on the Cowboys in the second half forcing five punts and snagging an interception. But for two explosive plays on the part of the Cowboys, the Saints might have pulled off a home win. In the third quarter Tony Pollard ripped off a 55 yard beautifully blocked touchdown run. It was one of the best run plays of the year for the Cowboys. Every block was hit perfectly at the first, second and third level and of course it helps that Pollard can really turn on the jets up the sideline. The second explosive play was Carlos Watkins 29-yard interception return for a touchdown. PICK SIX BABY! I love it when a defensive lineman snags an interception and rumbles into the endzone! However, the celebrations were muted when New Orleans exhibited their quick strike ability. Deonte Harris ripped off a 70-yard run after catch for a touchdown. After stealing the onside kick from the Saints, the Cowboys offense finally came to their senses and ran the football until they could execute the victory formation three times to close out the game.
Overall, it was a great performance for the Cowboys defense. They allowed some yards, but they forced four turnovers and nine pass deflections. Demarcus Lawrence made his presence felt by consistently pressing the pocket and deflecting two passes at the line of scrimmage. Trey Diggs collected his 9th interception of the season and Micah Parsons was once again all over the field collecting five tackles, one sack, one tackle for loss and two quarterback hits. Parsons is looking like a generational talent. Moreover, he might be the steal of the draft at #12 for the Cowboys. Parsons could be an all-pro sooner than we think.
Dak benefitted from having CeeDee Lamb and Amari Cooper back on the field. They were the only other players who had explosive plays for the Cowboys. Amari collected a 41-yard pass. CeeDee Lamb ripped off a 33-yard run which led to a 1-yard touchdown reception by Michael Gallup. Lamb was Dak’s go to receiver on Thursday night. He collected seven receptions for 89 yards. However, Dak didn’t benefit from the play calling. Once again, he threw at least 40 passes, and the Cowboys only ran the ball 24 times. Dallas still has improvement to make when it comes to playing complimentary football. Perhaps Mike McCarthy can get the offense back on track as they get ready for their next road game against Washington.
