Dak Prescott Guides Cowboys Past Struggling Commanders to Launch Christmas Tripleheader.
The Cowboys' quarterback passed for 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 Thursday.
The Cowboys, now 7-8-1, scored touchdowns on their first three possessions to build a 21-3 lead. Washington, falling to 4-12, closed the deficit to a touchdown on three different occasions, they were unable to finish the comeback and suffered their 10th loss in 11 games.
Each squad were previously eliminated from postseason consideration, which significantly reduced the stakes of this contest between longtime 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 attempts. His pair of touchdown throws gave him 30 for the season, equaling the franchise 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 Quarterback Dilemma
Playing without injured quarterbacks Jayden Daniels (elbow) and Marcus Mariota (quad, hand), Washington called upon veteran 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.
The Commanders' Scoring Drives
Jacory Croskey-Merritt scored on runs of 10 and 72 yards for Washington. The latter touchdown got the Commanders to 24-17 in the second half, but Dallas restored its double-digit lead with a 52-yard field goal by kicker Brandon Aubrey.
Aubrey added a 51-yarder to extend the lead to 30-20 with 3:59 remaining.
Following a Prescott touchdown pass 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 pass to Deebo Samuel, Johnson’s biggest play since 2018.
Dallas' Methodical Possessions
On their second possession, the Cowboys converted three fourth downs on a 17-play march that ended with a touchdown run by Javonte Williams. Prescott then completed the hat-trick in three drives with an 86-yard scoring pass to KaVontae Turpin.
