ARLINGTON, Texas – The Dallas Cowboys are now 0-2 in the preseason after tonight’s game against the Cincinnati Bengals on their home turf at AT&T Stadium.
The Cowboys got of to a good start in the first half. During the first quarter the Cowboys had to rely on the running game with Rod Smith as the lead rusher amassing 9 attempts, 36 yards, and averaging 4.0 yards per carry. Dak Prescott had trouble connecting with receivers and threw several incomplete passes to Michael Gallup and Blake Jarwin.
The offense had to settle for a 35-yard field goal during the first quarter, but Prescott was able to find chemistry with Terrance Williams during the second quarter, on a scramble 6-yard pass to the end zone for the touchdown.
Williams remarked on the play during halftime giving the recognition to his quarterback “ Dak is a great mobile quarterback so when he breaks the pocket, that makes him more dangerous because he is good on the run.”
The second key play for the Cowboys was also in the second quarter when Chidobe Awuzie was able to high point the football with one hand for an interception to put the Cowboys’ offense back on the field.
The Cowboys were leading 10-0 heading into halftime with their time of possession being 20:33 and Cincinnati’s 9:27. The pendulum began to swing in the opposite direction during the second half for Dallas.
Jordan Willis was dominant on defense for the Bengals with two sacks on Mike White and a tackle for a loss of yardage. Our defense could not keep their offense from marching down the field. The Bengals scored 11 points in the third quarter, keeping Dallas off the field for no score with a 10:16 time of possession and the Cowboys at 4:44. The Bengals executed the shotgun formation with short passes to get down the field and score. Anthony Brown and Jourdan Lewis both had penalties that hurt the Cowboys on key plays to keep the drive alive for Cincinnati.
The biggest concern was the injuries. After last week’s game the Cowboys came away with relatively no injuries but this week they came in full force. All-Pro right guard, Zack Martin left the game and had an MRI on his knee. The Cowboys remain optimistic, however Martin is the second highest paid guard in the league for a reason and Dallas needs his dominance in their o-line during the regular season. Xavier Woods also left due to a hamstring issue. Other players who left the field and stepped into the locker-room during the game Datone Jones, Bo Scarbrough, Jameill Showers, and Duke Thomas.
