NewsBot
New Member
- Messages
- 111,281
- Reaction score
- 2,947
Four games in 18 days. That's what the Dallas Cowboys have endured in the past two-and-a-half weeks. In that span, the team won all four games. That's the type of team the Cowboys have in 2016. It is a true testament to the toughness of this team, and it all starts with the man at the top and that is Jason Garrett.
Both the Cowboys and the Minnesota Vikings played on Thanksgiving last week against divisional opponents, with the Cowboys picking up a nice win and the Vikings losing in heartbreaking fashion. The Cowboys knew that they were going to get a big effort from the Vikings. After all, the Vikings are 6-6 all of the sudden after starting the season 5-0. However, they are much better than their record states.
This game had the look of an ugly one from the get-go when the Cowboys received the ball first. A false start penalty from Tyron Smith stunted what looked like a promising drive. The Cowboys' first series went for just four plays for 14 yards. Minnesota drove a little bit but also reciprocated with a punt of their own. Dallas responded to that drive with a three-play drive that went for all of zero yards, resulting in another punt. The Vikings got the first points of the game near the end of the first quarter after Kai Forbath hit a 48-yard field goal.
On the following drive, the Cowboys were driving down the field. However, instead of handing it off to Ezekiel Elliott on 3rd-and-1, the Cowboys got cute and opted to hand off a reverse to Lucky Whitehead. While Whitehead did pick up the first down, Everson Griffen stripped the ball out and the Vikings recovered.
After a Minnesota punt, the Cowboys got their first points of the game. The eight-play, 84-yard drive would not have happened if it weren't for a deep pass to Dez Bryant. Against free coverage, Bryant made a double-move that forced free safety Harrison Smith to bite on the in pattern. Bryant got free past the defensive backfield.
Last week, Bryant got free for deep completions with consistency, but Dak Prescott had already checked down to other options. Prescott hit Bryant for a 56-yard gain. The following play resulted in a one-yard touchdown run for Elliott.
Three punts ensued in the next drives. The Cowboys had a chance to put more points on the board near the end of the first half. But before that, a sack from Maliek Collins roughed up Sam Bradford. It looked like the Vikings were going to be without Bradford for the second half, but he kept playing. The Cowboys went into the half with a 7-3 lead.
The second half started with two punts, but after the Vikings drove down the field to score, there were three more punts. The Cowboys had a chance to change the complexion of the game with a lengthy touchdown drive. Instead, Vikings star defensive end Brian Robison beat Doug Free around the edge and Robison forced a strip-fumble. Minnesota recovered and took over deep in Cowboys territory.
Despite taking the ball over deep in Cowboys territory, the Vikings had to settle for another field goal. A few drives later, the Cowboys were forced to punt. At that point in the game, it looked as if the Cowboys were going to suffer their second loss of the season. Instead, Chris Jones punted 46 yards and rather than fair-catching the punt, Adam Thielen opted to return the punt.
Recently promoted Vince Mayle forced a fumble and Kyle Wilber recovered the muff punt deep in the Vikings territory. On the next play, Prescott hooked up with Dez Bryant for a touchdown pass after a nice catch-and-run from Bryant.
After another Vikings punt, the Cowboys added more points to cushion their lead, this time with a 39-yard field goal from Dan Bailey. In the following drive, the Vikings went three-and-out and were forced to punt. With one of the best offenses in football, the Cowboys had a chance to put the game away. Prescott looked to have gotten the first down off a scramble. But after the Vikings challenged, it was clear that Prescott's slide was behind the first-down marker. The following play altered the game's course.
On 3rd-and-1, a miscommunication between Prescott and center Travis Frederick led to a fumble. Fortunately for the Cowboys, Elliott recovered the football and almost picked up the first down. The Cowboys punted and gave the Vikings the ball back with just over two minutes to go with no timeouts.
The Vikings waltzed down the field in an eight-play, 65-yard drive that resulted in a touchdown reception to Jerick McKinnon. But because they were down eight, the Vikings needed a two-point conversion to send the game into overtime. With just two yards to go to tie the game, a false start penalty pushed the Vikings back.
On the next play, the Cowboys got pressure on Bradford and Bradford's pass sailed to the back of the end zone. The Vikings needed an onside kick recover to extend the game. Instead, future Hall of Famer Jason Witten fell on the onside attempt, and the Cowboys were looking at an 11-1 record.
Read on for full grades and analysis from the Cowboys' 11th consecutive win of the season.
Begin Slideshow
Continue reading...
Both the Cowboys and the Minnesota Vikings played on Thanksgiving last week against divisional opponents, with the Cowboys picking up a nice win and the Vikings losing in heartbreaking fashion. The Cowboys knew that they were going to get a big effort from the Vikings. After all, the Vikings are 6-6 all of the sudden after starting the season 5-0. However, they are much better than their record states.
This game had the look of an ugly one from the get-go when the Cowboys received the ball first. A false start penalty from Tyron Smith stunted what looked like a promising drive. The Cowboys' first series went for just four plays for 14 yards. Minnesota drove a little bit but also reciprocated with a punt of their own. Dallas responded to that drive with a three-play drive that went for all of zero yards, resulting in another punt. The Vikings got the first points of the game near the end of the first quarter after Kai Forbath hit a 48-yard field goal.
On the following drive, the Cowboys were driving down the field. However, instead of handing it off to Ezekiel Elliott on 3rd-and-1, the Cowboys got cute and opted to hand off a reverse to Lucky Whitehead. While Whitehead did pick up the first down, Everson Griffen stripped the ball out and the Vikings recovered.
After a Minnesota punt, the Cowboys got their first points of the game. The eight-play, 84-yard drive would not have happened if it weren't for a deep pass to Dez Bryant. Against free coverage, Bryant made a double-move that forced free safety Harrison Smith to bite on the in pattern. Bryant got free past the defensive backfield.
Last week, Bryant got free for deep completions with consistency, but Dak Prescott had already checked down to other options. Prescott hit Bryant for a 56-yard gain. The following play resulted in a one-yard touchdown run for Elliott.
Three punts ensued in the next drives. The Cowboys had a chance to put more points on the board near the end of the first half. But before that, a sack from Maliek Collins roughed up Sam Bradford. It looked like the Vikings were going to be without Bradford for the second half, but he kept playing. The Cowboys went into the half with a 7-3 lead.
The second half started with two punts, but after the Vikings drove down the field to score, there were three more punts. The Cowboys had a chance to change the complexion of the game with a lengthy touchdown drive. Instead, Vikings star defensive end Brian Robison beat Doug Free around the edge and Robison forced a strip-fumble. Minnesota recovered and took over deep in Cowboys territory.
Despite taking the ball over deep in Cowboys territory, the Vikings had to settle for another field goal. A few drives later, the Cowboys were forced to punt. At that point in the game, it looked as if the Cowboys were going to suffer their second loss of the season. Instead, Chris Jones punted 46 yards and rather than fair-catching the punt, Adam Thielen opted to return the punt.
Recently promoted Vince Mayle forced a fumble and Kyle Wilber recovered the muff punt deep in the Vikings territory. On the next play, Prescott hooked up with Dez Bryant for a touchdown pass after a nice catch-and-run from Bryant.
After another Vikings punt, the Cowboys added more points to cushion their lead, this time with a 39-yard field goal from Dan Bailey. In the following drive, the Vikings went three-and-out and were forced to punt. With one of the best offenses in football, the Cowboys had a chance to put the game away. Prescott looked to have gotten the first down off a scramble. But after the Vikings challenged, it was clear that Prescott's slide was behind the first-down marker. The following play altered the game's course.
On 3rd-and-1, a miscommunication between Prescott and center Travis Frederick led to a fumble. Fortunately for the Cowboys, Elliott recovered the football and almost picked up the first down. The Cowboys punted and gave the Vikings the ball back with just over two minutes to go with no timeouts.
The Vikings waltzed down the field in an eight-play, 65-yard drive that resulted in a touchdown reception to Jerick McKinnon. But because they were down eight, the Vikings needed a two-point conversion to send the game into overtime. With just two yards to go to tie the game, a false start penalty pushed the Vikings back.
On the next play, the Cowboys got pressure on Bradford and Bradford's pass sailed to the back of the end zone. The Vikings needed an onside kick recover to extend the game. Instead, future Hall of Famer Jason Witten fell on the onside attempt, and the Cowboys were looking at an 11-1 record.
Read on for full grades and analysis from the Cowboys' 11th consecutive win of the season.
Begin Slideshow
Continue reading...