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The Dallas Cowboys didn't get the chance to make a real statement about their standing amongst the NFC's true playoff contenders that they thought they would in Week 16 against the Philadelphia Eagles sans Jalen Hurts. What they did do was pull off a come-from-behind victory against a loaded playoff team with a quarterback that threw for over 350 yards against them.
It was an affirming win for the Cowboys even if it didn't answer all the questions we have about them. With that said, here are the playmakers that made the victory possible and some of the players that need to do better moving forward.
Cowboys Studs
Dak Prescott
Cooper Rush truthers thought their moment had truly come when Dak Prescott gift-wrapped a pick-six to Josh Sweat on his third passing attempt of the game. It was a horrible decision, an even worse throw, and it set the Cowboys on the back foot immediately.
Luckily for the Cowboys, Prescott put that miscue behind him in short order and finished the game with 27-of-35 passing for 347 yards and three touchdowns. The overall statistics look good, but one play Prescott made with the game hanging in the balance stands out from the rest. On 3rd and 30 from the Dallas 29, Prescott uncorked the longest air-yardage pass of his career: 52 yards down the field to T.Y. Hilton. The play kept the eventual game-tying drive alive and set up CeeDee Lamb's second touchdown of the night (more on him later). That play was the game. If Prescott doesn't make that throw the Cowboys lose. Making plays like that earns you stud status.
DaRon Bland
Nahshon Wright had a decent evening against the Eagles, but DaRon Bland came up with yet another huge takeaway in a big spot. His emergence in the wake of Jourdan Lewis' injury is a godsend for Dallas' depleted secondary. It wasn't a perfect night for the undrafted rookie by any means. Minshew completed 6-of-9 passes for 67 yards and a touchdown when targeting Bland. Still, the rookie took the ball away when the Cowboys needed it most.
Cowboys fans have seen firsthand what an aggressive ball-hawking cornerback like Bland can turn into with time and coaching.
CeeDee Lamb
Speaking of highly-talented wide receivers, CeeDee Lamb played one of his best games as a Cowboy on Saturday. The majority of his 120 yards came in the first half, but he caught a game-tying touchdown late as well. Saturday was lamb's second straight 120-yard receiving game and his second multi-touchdown game of the season. The Cowboys' offense isn't flooded with playmakers in 2022. Lamb carries a lot of weight on his shoulders as the top receiving threat for Prescott. The addition of Hilton will help and there are certainly other players capable of making plays on the Cowboys' roster, but it's hard to say where Dallas would be without Lamb offensively. The Cowboys will look for more big performances from Lamb moving forward and in the playoffs.
Cowboys Duds
The secondary
Bland deserves his flowers and so does the rest of the secondary for tightening up and making plays when they had to. Jayron Kearse's first-quarter interception changed the trajectory of the game and he did a solid job in coverage of Dallas Goedert all night. This was not a good overall showing for the Cowboys' secondary though. The most concerning part of the defensive backs' performance was the way they let Devonta Smith and A.J. Brown get behind the safeties.
Smith and Brown both caught long balls and there were other opportunities for big plays that Minshew couldn't take advantage of. There are a lot of very talented wide receivers standing between the Cowboys and a super Bowl and the Dallas secondary is allowing a troubling number of deep ball opportunities at the moment.
The pass rush
Yes, Micah Parsons is obviously dealing with some nagging bumps and bruises. Yes, they were missing Sam Williams. Yes Demarcus Lawrence was still elite in run defense. All of those things are true, but they don't change the fact that the Cowboys' stable of pass rushers is too talented not to sack Gardner Minshew a single time. The Eagles' offensive line is elite, and the good news is that Parsons and the rest of the Cowboys' rushers did pressure Minshew 21 times in the game according to Pro Football Focus.
This pass rush is supposed to be the strength of the team though. It was at the start of the season, but they haven't been nearly as explosive in recent weeks. After averaging four sacks per game through their first 12 games of the season, the Cowboys have sacked the opposing quarterback only once in the last three weeks. Dan Quinn has some work to do before the playoff starts and Parsons needs to step up. If the Cowboys don't bring down the quarterback often in the postseason they could be facing an early exit.
