On Thanksgiving Day, the Cowboys’ playoff hopes were alive and well. They were coming off back-to-back wins over the Super Bowl LIX teams, had a favorable remaining schedule and, after a trade for defensive tackle Quinnen Williams, had the defense playing better.
That good feeling didn’t last nearly long enough for Cowboys fans as Dallas lost to the Lions and Vikings in back-to-back games.
The Cowboys aren’t mathematically eliminated, but realistically, the team knows it won’t be advancing for a second consecutive season.
Quarterback Dak Prescott called it “shitty” to be in the position the Cowboys are in now.
“Yeah, definitely surprised,” Prescott said after the 34-26 loss to the Vikings on Sunday night. “Especially after the bye week and the trades got rolling like we did for those few weeks, and then watch the confidence just skyrocket. [We] stopped teams scoring at will, coming back from 21 points [against the Eagles]. Just a lot of good wins there to be in this position. Just reminds you that every play matters. It’s a hard game. Those guys get paid, too. They practice throughout the week and prepare no different than we do. It’s tough. I’m definitely surprised, hurt, pissed off, frustrated, but all I can do is get better tomorrow.”
Prescott said the Cowboys won’t stop playing hard just because the playoffs appear out of reach. They have the Chargers on Sunday in the home finale before closing out the season at the Commanders and at the Giants.
“You’re a professional football player. You have to come to work and give your absolute best, regardless,” Prescott said. “Unfortunately, I’m sure the playoffs are out of the picture. But, it’s about taking pride in who you are as a man, and not only that and your job and everything that’s gotten you to this point. I know for a lot of guys, it’s just the business of the world, right? That’s interviews for some people. You can’t just give up. You can’t just stop. You can’t just say, ‘Oh, we’re not going to playoffs.’ It’s the National Football League. I just saw a team Thursday night that’s not going to the playoffs [in the Falcons] beat a good team [in the Bucs] and knock them out.
“We’ve got to show up and just do our job, and that starts throughout the week. When you get to the game days, it’s a celebration of the hard work that you’ve put in through your preparation. Nothing’s going to change for me, and that’s going to be my influence as a leader. My message to anybody around me is take pride in who you are as a man and as a football player and the job responsibility that you have and what that entails is giving your best every day. And if you don’t, you probably won’t be in this league for long.”
During Sunday night’s Vikings-Cowboys game, NBC’s cameras captured an image of Cowboys owners Jerry Jones and Stephen Jones, watching the action from their suite. Stephen was speaking into a walkie-talkie.
Beyond the jokes it inspired (some funny, some not), the situation sparked obvious speculation: Who was Stephen talking to?
Via Jon Machota of TheAthletic.com, Stephen Jones explained the situation during an appearance on 105.3 The Fan in Dallas. Jones said that he uses it for injury updates from the press box and other “important updates” from around AT&T Stadium.
The situation raises questions because of the NFL rule that prohibits in-game communication with sideline personnel during games. In 2015, then-Browns G.M. Ray Farmer was suspended four games and the team was fined $250,000 for texts sent by Farmer to an assistant coach and another employee on the sideline regarding strategy and use of personnel.
That’s not an issue in this case, based on the explanation given by Stephen Jones. And while there’s no reason to dispute the accuracy of his version of the events, would anyone admit to using a walkie-talkie or other device to engage in communications that may not be allowed?
Text messages can be preserved and reviewed. A walkie-talkie is a low-tech way to create no paper trail. Absent simultaneous evidence showing that someone on the sideline had the other walkie-talkie, there’s no digital smoking gun.
The Packers’ fear has been confirmed.
Per Ian Rapoport of NFL Media, an MRI confirmed that star defender Micah Parsons has, in fact, suffered a torn ACL.
He faces a recovery time of at least the next nine months.
Parsons went down on a non-contact play late in the third quarter of Sunday’s eventual loss to the Broncos. Parsons was trying to change directions while chasing quarterback Bo Nix.
Parsons’ injury brings his first season with the Packers to a premature close. In his 14 games with Green Bay this year, Parsons registered 12.5 sacks with 12 tackles for loss, 26 quarterback hits, and two forced fumbles.
The Cowboys began the day knowing they needed to win out and have the Eagles go 2-2 in the final four games to win the NFC East. That scenario would have left the Cowboys 10-6-1 and the Eagles 10-7.
But it was not to be.
Hours after the Eagles shut out the Raiders 31-0, the Cowboys stunk it up at home. They lost to the Vikings 34-26.
“We certainly didn’t think we’d be here in this kind of shape with three games to go and be behind the eight ball the way we are,” Cowboys owner Jerry Jones said afterward. “It’s very disappointing. I’m really, obviously, very disappointed for our fans. I’m disappointed for these players. I didn’t expect that. I thought we could come out here and on both sides of the ball make a better accounting of ourselves. Minnesota did the best job out there today on both sides of the ball.”
The Cowboys aren’t eliminated from the playoffs, but their odds are longer than long to make the postseason. Realistically, they are done, something quarterback Dak Prescott acknowledged postgame.
“It’s shitty,” Prescott said at one point, calling Sunday one of the toughest losses of his career.
The Cowboys know where they stand after a second consecutive loss: They will miss the playoffs for a second consecutive season.
“I don’t know how to describe a miracle,” Jones said. “I know it would take a very tight circumstance to get us in. We expected that. We thought we’d have to win out to have a little room, but not a lot. Now, of course, I know how to count.”
The Vikings had nothing to play for but pride in Sunday Night Football. That was enough for them to put a serious dent in the Cowboys’ playoff hopes.
Minnesota upset Dallas, 34-26.
The Cowboys aren’t eliminated in playoff contention, but their odds aren’t good after a second consecutive loss dropped them to 6-7-1. The Vikings, who are eliminated from playoff contention, improved to 6-8.
The Cowboys punted only once, but turned it over on downs once and Brandon Aubrey missed two field goals. They scored only two touchdowns, going 2-for-12 on third down, as they settled for Aubrey field goals of 37, 26, 41 and 41 yards.
They outgained the Vikings 423 to 327.
J.J. McCarthy’s first pass was tipped at the line of scrimmage by blitzing safety Donovan Wilson and McCarthy, in an attempt to knock it down, tipped it to Cowboys defensive tackle Quinnen Williams. The interception gave the Cowboys the ball at the Vikings’ 35, and they took an early 7-0 lead on Javonte Williams’ 1-yard run.
The Cowboys led 14-7 on Malik Davis’ 1-yard run early in the second quarter, but the crowd of 92,991 had little to cheer thereafter.
Will Reichard’s 53-yard field goal with 1:08 remaining, which came after the Cowboys turned it over on downs at the Minnesota 39, was the death knell for Dallas. The Cowboys kicked a field goal with 19 seconds left, but failed to recover the onside kick to end it.
Dak Prescott finished 23-of-38 for 294 yards with no touchdowns and no interceptions. CeeDee Lamb caught six passes for 111 yards, and Javonte Williams rushed for 91 yards and a touchdown on 15 carries despite injuring his shoulder on the first possession.
McCarthy was 15-of-24 for 250 yards with two touchdowns and an interception. Both scoring tosses went to Jalen Nailor for 20 and 4 yards. T.J. Hockenson caught four passes for 66 yards.
Several players left late in the game with injuries. For the Cowboys, Quinnen Williams went in for a concussion check and left tackle Nate Thomas didn’t return from a shoulder injury. The Vikings lost edge rusher Jonathan Greenard (shoulder) and right tackle Brian O’Neill (ankle).
