ARLINGTON, TEXAS — Sunday was a bittersweet day for the Dallas Cowboys that ended in both a win and a loss for the franchise. The Cowboys won the divisional matchup 37-34 over the Giants but lost quarterback Dak Prescott, who suffered a compound right ankle fracture and dislocation that required immediate surgery Sunday night.
The team carried on and battled hard for Dak to advance to 2-3. One thing you cannot deny about the team is they showed heart in the victory. Andy Dalton came in and led the team down the field on the final drive in less than a minute to set up Greg Zuerlein’s game-winning field goal. The Giants’ secondary had no answers for Michael Gallup who helped seal the win and hauled in two back-to-back phenomenal catches as both sidelines watched in awe.
Just like Gallup, the Giants could not contain rookie CeeDee Lamb. Lamb made a big impact working the middle of the field, as Dak’s go-to-target early in the game. He concluded the game with a career-high eight catches for 124 yards. The Oklahoma product became the second player in NFL history to start a career with five straight games of at least five catches.
Dallas’ offense did fall behind in the first quarter 17-3 and it looked as if history would repeat itself but the momentum shifted when Anthony Brown darted towards Daniel Jones on a corner blitz. Jones picked up and reacted to Brown’s blitz but did not see DeMarcus Lawrence flying off the edge. Lawrence not only got to Jones for the sack but also knocked the ball out. Brown picked up the football and took it to the house to tie the ballgame at 17. Finally, the Cowboys had forced a turnover.
Coming off the worst three-game defensive span for the Cowboys in franchise history with 126 points allowed in the previous three games, Jason Garrett’s offense took advantage early on with trick plays. The Giants had not reached the end zone since week two against the Bears and scored on the Cowboys twice in less than 10 minutes. But Dallas’ defensive unit came together and made a crucial stop at the end of the game to put the Cowboys’ offense back on the field for a chance to win.
The victory was clouded by the loss of Dak and on Monday, many are still in shock and replaying the gruesome injury after the nine-yard quarterback draw. Even the nature of how he went down embodies who Dak is; fighting for every last yard and literally giving his all on the field for his beloved team. Even after he landed awkwardly underneath the Giant defender, Dak tried to straighten out the dislocation on the field himself hitting his foot into the ground. That will be a vision hard to forget as the realization of the injury’s severity set in and the tears flowed for the fifth year QB who was off to a record-setting start in 2020.
He had a successful surgery on Monday to cleanse the wound and fix the fracture. Dak was released earlier today and Mike McCarthy told media “he is in good spirits. He was excited to get home and start the journey back.”
McCarthy stressed the importance of the team’s role in being a solid support system for Dak and to all of the players dealing with injury, including defensive tackle Trysten Hill who tore his ACL in the win over the Giants. Now add Dak Prescott and Trysten Hill to the long list of season-ending injuries: Tyron Smith, La’el Collins, Gerald McCoy, and Blake Jarwin.
The team is hopeful to have Leighton Vander Esch and Chidobe Awuzie back on the field soon to join recently activated Anthony Brown.
