Thoughts on Cowboys Victory Over Redskins

The Cowboys were in a must win mode when they faced the Washington Redskins on Sunday. They knew very well, that they could not start the season 0-2 and 0-2 in the division. The Cowboys gave fans a signature stress filled game.

Quick glance at the stat line–

• Dak Prescott 22/30 for 292 yards 1 rush TD
• Ezekiel Elliott 21 carries for 83 yards; 1 TD; 2 fumbles
• Dez Bryant 7 catches for 102 yards
• 2 Sacks (Crawford & Crawford)
• 1 INT from Barry Church

Here are my takes on the game:

• Dak Prescott got his 1st regular season victory of his career
• Mo Claiborne has has two solid games this year, had a nice one today
• Byron Jones is still learning the position
• Doug Free is still a liability in pass protection
• Running game was much better today
• Zeke had a bounce back game, but two bad fumbles
• Terrell McClain should be awarded Tyrone Crawford’s contract
• Sean Lee was very active today, led the team with 6 tackles
• Terrance Williams had zero catches, zero passes his way
• Failed onside kick was very risky, I didn’t care for the decision
• Garrett went for it on 4th & 1, showed confidence in the offensive line
• Cowboys are 1-1 in the NFC East

Other thoughts

The defense was able to bail out the Cowboys failed onside kick and Zeke’s fumble, but the game as a whole was still not that good. The 1st half of the game was a bit of a slow start for the defense, and Terrell McClain keeps showing up and the most disruptive player on the defensive line.

This defense is still looking for an edge rusher, we essentially are lining up four defensive tackles. None of these guys have a speed element or dip and sack move. I think some are putting a little too much hope that Demarcus Lawrence is going to be an instant impact. Historically, Lawrence has had slow starts to the season.

We still don’t know if Randy Gregory will be available, and even if he is, I doubt he would be in any sort of game shape. I suggested the Cowboys need a Charles Haley type trade to get this defense going, and I still think this is the case. Will such a trade manifest itself? I highly doubt it.

We were able to get away with a win today, but make no mistake, this defense will not match up well with some of these other offenses. Byron Jones had a few gaffs today, one in particular where he was pointing across the field and then forgot to cover his guy – pay attention! Reed was expected to be a factor, and it was expected that Jones would cancel him out. That did not happen, and Reed gutted us on several drives.

Overall, I think the defense still needs a lot of work, but to their credit, they did better this week.

I do like what the Cowboys had at defensive tackle with Terrell McClain and Maliek Collins, they gave a nice push up the middle and did a nice job against the run in the 2nd half. This may be the combo the Cowboys go with moving forward. Crawford has been a complete bust at the 3-tech. So much so, he was was kicked out to DE where he was able to get a sack. Maybe that woke him up?

Next game: Chicago Bears on SNF – AT&T Stadium

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