One week after everything went right, everything went wrong.
One week after hanging 43 points on the Atlanta Falcons, the Dallas Cowboys were incapable of scoring a single touchdown against the Kansas City Chiefs, losing Sunday’s Week 11 interconference tilt, 19-9, at Arrowhead Stadium.
One week after Dak Prescott re-established himself as an NFL MVP candidate, the $160 million quarterback played at a replacement level, completing 28-of-43 passes for 215 yards and two interceptions — a season-low 10.0 QBR.
Seven days separated Jekyll from Hyde, jubilation from exasperation.
“I’m never discouraged but pissed off, yeah, for sure,” Prescott said in his postgame press conference, via ESPN.com. “Especially when you have an opportunity to come out and play against a team that’s been in the Super Bowl the last two years, and we had a chance to show what we’re capable of. But this is a resilient team that’s going to continue to fight and get better, I can tell you that.”
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McCarthy Addresses Cowboys’ Woes
Dallas brought the NFL’s top-ranked offense into Kansas City, one that could have overshadowed Patrick Mahomes and the 2020 Super Bowl champs. But they didn’t. Not even close.
The Cowboys fell well short of their season averages, logging 276 total yards across 12 drives despite pass-heavy game script. Coordinator Kellen Moore devised a conservative if uninspiring plan of attack that resulted in five sacks, three turnovers, a meager 4.3 yards per play, and just 5-of-15 third-down conversions.
The Chiefs blitzed Dak Prescott 14 times, according to @NextGenStats. Dak had more TD passes vs the blitz (16) than any other QB in the #NFL this season — by a lot. He was 8-for-14 for 55 yds vs the blitz in KC.
Adding injury to insult, the team lost wide receiver CeeDee Lamb to a concussion while running back Ezekiel Elliott re-aggravated a nagging knee issue. This, on top of WR1 Amari Cooper (COVID-19) and left tackle Tyron Smith (ankle) being made inactive prior to kickoff.
These, however, no excuse for its defeat, according to head coach Mike McCarthy.
“We had a healthy 48 players ready to play,” McCarthy said after the game, via ESPN.com. “We had a number of guys that couldn’t play in the game. That’s the NFL. That’s the course of a season.”
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Dak Updates Lamb’s Status
Sans Cooper, Prescott lost his best weapon on the final play of the first half when Lamb smacked the back of his helmet on the end zone turf following a jump-ball attempt. The sophomore pass-catcher appeared dazed upon leaving the field, flanked by the training staff, and was quickly ruled out.
Lamb is in jeopardy of missing the next Cowboys game, Thanksgiving Day versus Las Vegas, as he must now clear the league’s concussion protocol. But his spirits evidently remained high in the wake of the brain injury.
“I talked to him. He said he was fine. He was going to be OK,” Prescott said in his postgame press conference, via ESPN’s Todd Archer. “I didn’t necessarily know what was going on but that is the nature of this. You have to continue to move on and trust the guys we have. That is what I did. He will be fine. He will be OK.”
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‘P***** Off’ Dak Prescott Lashes Out After Cowboys’ Loss to Chiefs