In looking for reasons for the Dallas Cowboys’ distressing 33-30 overtime loss at AT&T Stadium to the Cardinals on Sunday in Week 8, maybe the culprit is not the coaches or the play-calling or the too-soft mentality of a team that does not seem to know how to handle NFL success. Maybe the real blame belongs to the ankle of Joey Porter Jr., the one start-to-finish capable defensive player on this roster, the guy acquired in a trade from the Steelers after Week 3. The Dallas defense is, simply, a better 11-man unit when Porter is on the field. It’s a bit of a Keystone Cops outfit when he is not. It might be no coincidence that, after Porter went to the sideline for good in the second half against Arizona, Cardinals backup quarterback Gardner Minshew (188 yards, three touchdowns) suddenly looked like Johnny Unitas, and backup running back Tyler Allgeier looked like Jim Brown.
Porter has been outstanding since arriving in Dallas, and came into the game on Sunday having allowed just two completions on nine targets in the three games he played. But he also came in nursing an ankle injury that has lingered for four weeks, and it simply got worse as the game progressed, forcing Porter out.
Cowboys Defense Fell Apart Without Joey Porter Jr.
After the game, Porter spoke to reporters in the Cowboys locker room about his injury.
Per Nick Harris of the Fort Worth Star Telegram, Porter said: “It’s been going on since I got here in the first game against Houston. It’s very frustrating. Today, I just wasn’t on a good leg. It’s very frustrating to not be able to move how I want to.”
It’s worth noting that Porter came out of the game with 3:45 to play in the first half, at which time the Cowboys led, 14-0. Porter was called for holding, and did not come back into the game. The Cardinals went on to kick a field goal on that drive, but still trailed, 14-3.
The Cowboys were outscored 30-16 from there.
Debut Ruined in Loss
It was the debut of Porter at AT&T Stadium, after he was forced to miss the Week 4 game against the Buccaneers because of a late illness.
Porter said of his debut this week: “Hopefully, it’s gonna be a good turnout. Hopefully, it’ll be loud. It’ll be my first time [playing] there. I’ve been in it once before, when I was in college, so that’s gonna be unreal to play there, finally.”
It was, indeed loud. Until the end, at least.
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