Cowboys vs. Giants: Checking Boxes
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The Cowboys won a game they were expected to win. And they won emphatically. 49-17. How the Giants ended up with 17 points, I still don’t know, because this was pure domination from start to finish. 640 yards played 172 yards. 32 first downs vs. 16 first downs. 472 passing yards vs. 61 passing yards. The Cowboys led 28-0 at half-time and the game was over. Dak Prescott was the best player on the field, for the 4th straight week. Ceedee Lamb created history, becoming the first player ever in the NFL to have at least 10 receptions and 150 receiving yards in 3 straight games. And the defence did, what the defence does, in games like this – without Micah Parsons registering a single tackle.
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As impressive as these feats are from Dak, Ceedee and the Dallas D, I can’t help but be more excited about the long-awaited break out game, from Brandin Cooks in a Cowboys jersey and similarly, that of Rico Dowdle. I, along with a lot of Cowboys fans, have been asking to see more of Cooks and Dowdle. Maybe ‘more’ isn’t the right word for Cooks, in terms of playing time or snaps, but more scheming him open and getting him the ball in space, which they did to the tune of 9 receptions, 173 yards and a touchdown. Dowdle, on the other hand, has had limited snaps and touches through the first nine weeks. Week 10, however, saw him get 12 touches from 22 snaps, leading to 79 yards and a touchdown at an average of 6.6 yards per attempt – impressive.
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Will this be a blueprint for Mike McCarthy’s offence in the future? I hope so. Splitting the workload just makes sense, now we know that Rico Dowdle is more than capable of delivering these types of numbers. Tony Pollard also seemed to benefit from less snaps, allowing him to obtain that burst we have become accustomed to, overly the last few seasons. McCarthy’s persistence in running the ball up the middle, also seemed to subside in this game, making this run game look like, it could be a huge asset in the latter half of the season. Having lost Ezekiel Elliot in the off-season, the Cowboys remain without a trusted power back, so to persist with an A and B gap run game, seemed somewhat, naive. Let’s hope that they continue to run the ball in a way that gets these two backs in space, with room to run – which also, seems to play into the hands of this more athletic offensive line.
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A check boxed ticked, next to the Giants, in what is a generous run of fixtures for the Cowboys. This is still the NFL and anything can happen (see week 3 vs. Cardinals), but the Cowboys now face the worst team in the league, in the Carolina Panthers and the 2023 number one overall pick, Bryce Young. This run of games is a great chance for the Cowboys to continue to find something, that will help them get over the hump of failing in big moments against good teams, when it comes to the last six games of the season and into the playoffs. Another box is waiting to be ticked in the records column and hopefully a few more boxes (run lanes) are opened in the process.