Nothing was pretty for the Dallas Cowboys on Thursday night.
Neither team could get into a rhythm, especially as they both kept taking penalties. Not all of the Cowboys’ problems were solved. They couldn’t run the ball. They gave up a lot of meters and a lot of long runs. The offense didn’t stop the Giants when it had the chance. No one could cover New York Giants rookie receiver Malik Nabers. The evening took a turn for the worse late on when Micah Parsons was taken off with a left leg injury. Dallas can’t afford to be without him for long.
Parsons’ injury is a major concern, but at least the Cowboys won. After two consecutive miserable losses, the Cowboys just wanted to win and it didn’t matter how it happened. Dallas managed to get back in the win column with a 20-15 win over the New York Giants in a game they won’t remember much about.
But there’s a big difference between 2-2 and 1-3, and the Cowboys avoided the latter.
Dallas hasn’t played well on either side of the ball this season, and it’s not like they’re going to be happy with the number of yards the defense gave up or zero touchdowns in the second half by the offense. But imagine the alarms that would go off if they lost three in a row.
Cowboys start slowly but take the lead
The Cowboys had to want to get back on the field right away, get rid of the stench of Sunday’s game and perhaps carry some of the momentum from their fourth quarter rally into Week 4. Then Dallas started off with a very quick three-and-three. -out, cornerback Anthony Booth Jr. covers. Nabers had broken his ankles trying to guard NBA star Anthony Edwards in the lane, and there wasn’t even a Cowboys defender on the TV screen when Nabers caught a 39-yard pass. That set up a Giants field goal and a Cowboys penalty on the ensuing kickoff. Not the start Dallas was hoping for.
The Cowboys got going after a slow start. Rico Dowdle scored on a screen pass, then CeeDee Lamb took a 55-yard pass into the end zone for a touchdown. The Giants moved the ball, including a marathon drive in the second quarter, but allowed only field goals and no touchdowns. The Cowboys led 14-9 after a penalty-filled first half.
The second half was somehow even uglier than the first.
Giants and Cowboys don’t get many points
The first half and second half were similar for the Giants. They moved the ball, stalled in Cowboy territory and Greg Joseph came on for a field goal. The Cowboys didn’t do much, but they kept the Giants out of the end zone, and a pair more Joseph field goals made it 17-15 in favor of Dallas.
And even though the Giants were without a touchdown when they got the ball back with 6:54 left, they trailed by less than a touchdown. The Giants defense, which allowed the long touchdown catch to Lamb and not much else, kept the Cowboys from putting the game away. Daniel Jones got the ball back with a chance for a game-winning drive, although the Giants would ultimately have to score a touchdown to make that happen.
The Giants immediately faced a fourth-and-1 and Brian Daboll decided to go for it. Devin Singletary picked up the ball on a run up the middle. They immediately went for it again in fourth and sixth place. Nabers was unable to latch on to a pass with 3:21 left and was also injured on the play. The Giants said he suffered a concussion.
In the final minute the Giants got another chance. Brandon Aubrey, who was nearly automatic in his NFL career, missed a 51-yarder with less than a minute left. But Jones threw an interception on a desperation pass and the game was over.
If there was one positive for the Cowboys, it’s that the defense was stronger against the run. That was a big problem in the losses to the Saints and Ravens. Dallas shut down the Giants’ run game. It was also positive for Lamb to post 98 yards on seven catches.
The rest wasn’t pretty. Things get worse if Parsons’ injury is serious.
