Dak Prescott Guides Dallas Cowboys By Struggling Commanders to Begin Holiday Triple-Header.
Dak Prescott accumulated 307 yards and two touchdowns, and the Dallas Cowboys squandered a large portion of an 18-point lead before edging the Washington Commanders 30-23 on Thursday night.
Dallas (7-8-1) scored touchdowns on their first three possessions to establish a 21-3 lead. Washington, falling to 4-12, narrowed the margin to a touchdown on three different occasions, they were unable to finish the comeback and suffered their tenth defeat in 11 games.
Each squad were previously eliminated from playoff contention, which severely lessened the significance of this matchup between historic NFC East rivals.
The Quarterback's Record-Tying Outing
Prescott connected on 19 of 37 passes and was instrumental on all six of its fourth-down tries. His pair of touchdown throws gave him 30 for the season, equaling Tony Romo’s record of four seasons with at least 30 touchdown passes.
The signal-caller endured six sacks, including three credited to Jer’Zhan Newton.
Washington's QB Dilemma
Playing without their top QBs Jayden Daniels (elbow) and Marcus Mariota (quad, hand), Washington turned to 39-year-old journeyman Josh Johnson. Making his 10th career start and his first in over two years, Johnson went 15 for 23 for 198 yards with zero touchdowns and zero picks.
Washington's Offensive Highlights
Jacory Croskey-Merritt found paydirt with runs of 10 and 72 yards for Washington. The latter touchdown got the Commanders to 24-17 in the second half, but Dallas reclaimed a double-digit lead with a 52-yard kick by kicker Brandon Aubrey.
The kicker later nailed a 51-yarder to extend the lead to 30-20 with under four minutes to play.
After Prescott threw to tight end Jake Ferguson on the game’s opening drive, Johnson completed three passes for 68 yards to get Washington to 7-3. The key play was a 41-yard completion to Deebo Samuel, Johnson’s longest since 2018.
Dallas' Sustained Possessions
On their second possession, the Cowboys successfully executed three fourth downs on a 17-play march that culminated in a touchdown run by Javonte Williams. Prescott then made it three TDs in three drives with an 86-yard touchdown strike to KaVontae Turpin.
