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The Cowboys didn’t get it done on Sunday.
Cowboys again can’t hold onto big lead, lose to Packers 35-31 - Tom Ryle, Blogging The Boys
Tom writes on the Cowboys’ heartbreaking loss to the Packers. Deja vu.
It was a case of deja vu all over again, as the Dallas Cowboys jumped out to a big, early lead against the Green Bay Packers, only to have them come back. Dallas led 21-6 at one point, but Aaron Rodgers is still Aaron Rodgers, and he brought the Packers back for 16 unanswered points to give them a 22-21 lead after the first play of the fourth quarter. It was the same script that cost them the game against the Los Angeles Rams a week earlier.
And it happened again, as the Cowboys retook the lead late, but couldn’t stop the Green Bay Packers from driving the field and scoring the winning touchdown to take the game by a score of 35-31.
It would come down to whether the Cowboys could make a defensive stand against the most dangerous passer in the league. And it would be as much because of his ability to escape the rush, as he got an 18 yard run in the waning seconds to get them down to the 12 yard line, and then he would thrown one of his absolutely perfect passes to get the winning touchdown. The game was won because Rodgers is just so good, and he had an unexpected amount of help from his running game, which totaled 160 yards.
Nine months later, Aaron Rodgers does it to Cowboys again - Todd Archer, ESPN
Archer’s recap.
If the Dallas Cowboys need any reminder of their magical 2016 season, there's this: In five weeks, they have three losses. They lost just three games all of last season.
After Dak Prescott's 11-yard touchdown run gave the Cowboys a 31-28 lead, Rodgers played a game of "Anything you can do, I can do better," moving Green Bay from its 25 with 1:13 remaining to the end zone by mixing in passes to Adams and Martellus Bennett, and using an 18-yard run on third-and-8 from the Dallas 30 after he escaped from Benson Mayowa and David Irving.
Instead of breaking the Cowboys' hearts with a third-and-20 completion along the sideline, he was able to find Adams in single coverage with rookie cornerback Jourdan Lewis. Unfortunately for Lewis, Rodgers' pass was perfect, just over his helmet, and Adams, who was not sure he was going to play until Saturday because of a concussion, was able to get his feet in bounds.
For the second time in nine months, the Cowboys scored 31 points against the Packers ... and lost.
Rodgers, Packers take another close one from Cowboys - Clarence Hill, The Star-Telegram
Despite Dak’s performance, Dallas falls to Rodgers.
It was equally devastating for a Cowboys team that seemingly did almost everything right on offense, controlling the ball and the clock, behind a stellar performance from Prescott.
Prescott completed 24 of 35 passes for 223 yards with three touchdowns and an interception before his dramatic touchdown run.
“I thought Dak was really, really good in this ballgame, throwing the ball to the right guy and a lot of big-time throws throughout the game,” Garrett said.
And even then the Cowboys applied the right formula, going 89 yards on 17 plays, taking 8:43 off clock as they tried to keep Rodgers off the field.
5 thoughts from Cowboys-Packers: Yet another third-quarter disaster; a good sign for Dak Prescott - Jon Machota, SportsDay
Machota gives five thoughts on the game and Dak Prescott:
3. Dak Prescott did everything he could. He played an incredible first half, throwing three touchdown passes. He had the go-ahead score with 1:13 remaining. Unfortunately, against Aaron Rodgers that's rarely enough. Prescott finished 24 of 35 for 223 yards, three touchdowns and an interception that was clearly not his fault. Terrance Williams let a catchable ball go through his hands and right to Damarious Randall for a 21-yard defensive touchdown, putting Green Bay up 28-24 with 9:56 remaining.
Cole Beasley's performance is a good sign moving forward.
4. A good sign for Prescott was that he got back on track with Cole Beasley. Not only did Beasley score his first two touchdowns of the season, but he came up big on the final scoring drive and nearly hauled in another big grab in the final seconds. Beasley was Prescott's favorite target last season. They won't win many games if those two can't continue what they did Sunday.
Why Cowboys fans should feel disturbed by Packers loss (but they're still a playoff team) - Bob Sturm, SportsDay
Sunday was a disappointing loss.
How should Cowboys fans feel entering the bye?
Disturbed. We knew the schedule was rough, but that Rams loss is everything right now as 3-2 at the bye feels fine. But, to lose back-to-back home games late in the game both time is going to really hurt. You should feel good about David Irving's return and how impressive he looks in game one means plenty. But, losing as many games as you did in 2016 by Oct. 8 is a tough pill to swallow for two weeks. Not the bye week you were hoping for.
But, Bob Sturm says they are still a playoff team.
Any other thoughts on the game?
Well, nobody wants to hear this, but that was a really strong offensive performance again. Elliott looks back in form and the offense is still capable of very impressive things. The defense is still a work in progress, but with Lee and this pass rush with DeMarcus Lawrence and Irving, I am still comfortable that they are a playoff team and likely to win the East.
Questionable play call proves costly vs. Packers; what Cowboys allowed that was unfathomable - Matt Mosley, SportsDay
Mosley writes on leaving too much time for Rodgers, Terrance Williams’ costly mistake, and the flagon Benson Mayowa.
Even in the euphoria of the Cowboys taking a 31-28 lead with just over a minute left in regulation, surely everyone who's followed Aaron Rodgers' career knew he had way too much time to lead the Packers to a win. And that's what he did in delivering a 35-31 win that dropped the Cowboys' record to 2-3. At least the Packers didn't wait until the postseason to cause such heartbreak this time around. Now, settle in for my weekly Hurry-up Column
Four winners and four losers from the Cowboys painful loss to the Packers - Dave Halprin, BTB
David Irving and Dak Prescott shined.
Winners
David Irving - Welcome back David Irving! The Cowboys defensive lineman was pretty disruptive in his first game back from suspension. He had two sacks and three QB hits along with multiple pressures. He looks good against the Packers, can he carry it on through the rest of the season?
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Dak Prescott - Can’t pin this one on Dak. He was excellent throughout the game with very accurate passing. He wasn’t responsible for the pick-six, but he was responsible for three passing TDs and one rushing TD. He also avoided multiple sacks, extended plays and drove the Cowboys down for what should have been the winning TD if not for the defense failing.
Defensive penalties kept drives alive for the Packers.
Losers
Defensive penalties - The Cowboys hurt themselves with some key penalties. An Anthony Hitchens facemask, a Jourdan Lewis hold (accepted over an Anthony Brown hold on the same play), and a Benson Mayowa personal foul (granted, it was a sketchy call). The Cowboys couldn’t help Aaron Rodgers out by keeping drives alive, but that’s what they did.
10 observations in the Cowboys heartbreaking loss to the Packers - DannyPhantom, Blogging The Boys
DannyPhantom writes on his ten observations following Sunday’s game, including the topic on everybody’s mind:
1. Did the Cowboys score too early?
It would be great if you could just pin-point the exact time in which you would like to score. If Dallas could do that, they would. Nobody wanted to see Rodgers trot back on the field against the Cowboys defense with the game on the line. Many will suggest the Cowboys should have ran the ball more on that final drive to burn more clock. Specifically, the end zone pass to Dez Bryant was one that Troy Aikman made a point of expressing his disapproval.
Sure, taking more time off the clock is ideal, but the Cowboys cannot take it for granted they were going to score. They just got finished with a close-call fourth down so every play counts. They have to capitalize on any opportunity that presents itself. The offense burned almost nine minutes on that final drive. Scoring when they did was not a mistake. This is a team sport and unfortunately the guys on the other side of the ball was free fallin’ most of the day.
Cowboys feel it deep: ‘Losing sucks’ - Stefan Stephenson, The Star-Telegram
Losing sucks. The Cowboys have a week off before they can get this taste out of their mouths.
All together, Dallas Cowboys fans: Losing sucks.
That was the prominent sentiment from the Cowboys’ locker room after another heartbreaking, last-second loss to Aaron Rodgers and the Green Bay Packers on Sunday afternoon at AT&T Stadium.
“Can I say the F-word?” Cowboys defensive end David Irving said when asked to describe Rodgers’ penchant for game-winning drives. “It’s really hard. That guy is awesome at what he does. It takes everybody to stop one guy. He gets out [of the pocket]. I don’t know how he does it.”
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