With first place on the line, Dallas Cowboys trail Washington by four at halftime
The Dallas Cowboys entered Thursday’s game against Washington with heavy hearts following the death of their strength and conditioning coach Markus Paul on Thursday.
The Cowboys, who trailed 17-13 at halftime, did a video tribute and moment of silence for Paul before the game. The team added a decal with his initials to the back of their helmets.
And then disaster seemingly struck the first time the Cowboys got the ball when left tackle Cam Erving and right tackle Zack Martin suffered left injuries four plays apart and were taken to the locker room.
Erving returned to the sideline, but Martin was ruled out of the game with a calf injury. Brandon Knight and Terence Steele came into play left and right tackle, respectively.
The Cowboys offense, however, didn’t miss a beat early with Andy Dalton at quarterback against Washington.
The Cowboys kicked a field goal on the play after Martin’s injury to take a 3-0 lead.
Washington followed with a 75-yard touchdown drive that was aided by defensive holding penalties on cornerbacks Rashard Robinson and Jourdan Lewis to move the chains following third down incompletions. Running back Antonio Gibson scored on a 5-yard run.
Dalton then struck big with a 54-yard bomb to receiver Amari Cooper, who walked into the end zone. And a Washington field goal made it 10-10.
The game potentially turned on the ensuing series when a fourth-and-1 gamble from their own 35 backfired on the Cowboys. Dalton threw incomplete to CeeDee Lamb, who was draped by his defender before the ball arrived. Added to that apparent non-call, Dalton Schultz was hit with a 15-yard unsportsmanlike conduct penalty which gave Washington the ball in prime scoring position.
Quarterback Alex Smith connected with tight end Logan Thomas on a 5-yards scoring toss, putting Washington up 17-10.
The Cowboys faced a fourth-and-1 at the 50 the next time they had the ball with 1 minute, 12 seconds left in the half. This time Dalton converted on a quarterback keeper.
The winner of Thursday’s game will temporarily take over sole possession of first place in the NFC East.
The Philadelphia Eagles currently lead the way at 3-6-1. But they don’t play until Monday night against Seattle.The New York Giants (3-7) face the Cincinnati Bengals on Sunday.
Dallas and Washington both have 3-7 records so the winner would be the first team in the division to reach four wins.
This story was originally published November 26, 2020 at 5:17 PM.
