Cowboys complete mission of staying in contention until Elliott returned

The Dallas Cowboys' 20-17 victory against the Oakland Raiders extended their winning streak to three games and has them with a 3-3 record during the absence of running back Ezekiel Elliott.

The goal was to stay in contention until Elliott returned.

The Cowboys (8-6) completed the task with a gutsy effort in the wild finish against the Raiders. Credit NFL referee Gene Steratore for help with his fourth-down ruling with a folded piece of paper, but also credit a Cowboys team for never giving up, typified by safety Jeff Heath forcing the final game-saving fumble.

RUN OFFENSE: B- The Cowboys get a respectable run grade because of Dak Prescott's 32 yards on the ground on six carries, including a 5-yard touchdown run, and Chris Jones running 24 yards on a fake punt. The true running game was bad. Alfred Morris had 61 yards on 16 carries after rushing for 51 yards in the first quarter alone. Rod Smith had seven carries for just 13 yards.

PASS OFFENSE: C Prescott passed for 212 yards, but was intercepted twice and sacked twice. But the passing game came up with big plays when necessary, including two key throws to Dez Bryant of 19 and 40 yards on the two second-half scoring drives. There was even a 12-yard completion to fullback Keith Smith on the game-winning field goal drive.

RUN DEFENSE: C Marshawn Lynch battered his way to 76 yards on 16 carries. He averaged 4.8 yards per pop. Quarterback David Carr also got loose for 47 yards on four scrambles. Sean Lee led the way with 10 tackles. Heath had six tackles including a forced fumble on the final play of the game to seal the victory on a Carr scramble to the end zone.

PASS DEFENSE: B Michael Crabtree had two touchdowns, but only had seven completions on 17 targets. David Carr passed for 171 yards on 38 attempts. The Cowboys didn't get a sack. But they proved to be effective enough against the pass for the win, surviving a 55-yard pass interference penalty against Jourdan Lewis in the waning moments. Anthony Brown had three pass deflections.

SPECIAL TEAMS: B Ryan Switzer is back to being a mystery on returns and the coverage teams had their share of hiccups on kickoff returns, giving up a 44-yard return. But Dan Bailey made two field goals after missing two kicks and an extra point last week. Chris Jones was the hero. In addition to averaging 43 yards a punt, he helped spark the victory with a 24-yard run on a fake punt.

COACHING: A It wasn't pretty. The Cowboys had their share of mistakes. But this team never quits, which is a hallmark of coach Jason Garrett. And Garrett helped spark the win with a fourth down gamble late and a fake punt. He also made the right decision to kick the field goal in the final 2 minutes and trust defense to make a stop.

This story was originally published December 18, 2017 at 3:26 PM with the headline "Cowboys complete mission of staying in contention until Elliott returned."