Dallas defeats New England in an overtime thriller 35-29. The Dallas Cowboys faced off against the New England Patriots in a classic showdown ending with a walk-off touchdown to CeeDee Lamb. Both teams took advantage of mistakes leading to one of the best games of the 2021 season.
Dallas Defeats New England Despite Key Mistakes
New England Takes an Early Lead
Dallas defeats New England in come-from-behind fashion on Sunday despite a myriad of penalties and miscues. The Patriots started off the game with a quick 14 points in the first quarter: one a Damien Harris rushing touchdown and the other a touchdown pass from Mac Jones to Hunter Henry. Dallas found themselves trailing in the early portion of this game and went into half-time down 14-10.
The Cowboys scored to start the second quarter as Dak Prescott found Lamb for his first touchdown of the day. The Cowboys made one impressive defensive stand after another keeping the Patriots off the scoreboard until well into the fourth quarter.
Penalties
Prescott and company had a monster day with 567 total yards. However, self-inflicted wounds kept this a one-score game. The Cowboys set a season-high 12 penalties with 115 yards compared to 5/47 by the Patriots. When the Cowboys would start to find momentum and look to separate from New England, Connor Williams would get slapped with a holding penalty or a Tyron Smith illegal hands to the face.
Kicking Woes AGAIN, Diggs Aggression, and Momentum Swings
The Cowboys won despite the miscues on Sunday. Aside from penalties stifling drives, Dallas broke down on special teams and defensively. Greg Zuerlein had an opportunity to take a three-point lead late in the fourth quarter. The veteran kicker missed another field goal from distance. Zuerlein has been less than great since signing with Dallas and continues to dabble with inconsistency.
As the Cowboys began to lose momentum the defense stepped up with a big play. Jones fired a pass through the hands of Kendrick Bourne, promptly picked off, and returned for a touchdown by Trevon Diggs. Diggs kept his streak alive with seven interceptions in six games, two of which were returned for a touchdown.
RT if you believe in @TrevonDiggs❕#DallasCowboys pic.twitter.com/ysxh7eRnos
— Dallas Cowboys (@dallascowboys) October 11, 2021
This momentum wouldn’t last long as another miscue would give the Patriots the lead. Bill Belichick and the Patriots offense exposed Diggs’ aggressive play on the next snap. Bourne ran a double move baiting Diggs and resulting in a 75-yard touchdown on their next offensive play. New England took a three-point lead with 2:11 left.
Game-Tying Drive
Prescott manufactured a great drive to get Zuerlein into field goal range. Prescott completed a pass to Cedrick Wilson on fourth and four to keep the drive alive. Wilson converted on a miraculous catch leaping and extending to full extension before securing the ball. Dallas continues to pick up chunk plays before getting hit with their final penalty—driving them out of field goal range. Conner Williams was tagged with an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty moving the ball from the New England 40 to the Dallas 45.
[pickup_prop id=”13671″]
Prescott, facing 3rd and 25 yards would make the play of the game. CeeDee Lamb sprang free and caught a pass for 24 yards leaving Dallas with a 4th and 1 inside field goal range. Zuerlein redeemed himself by drilling the 49-yard field goal to force overtime.
Dallas Defeats New England in Overtime
The Patriots won the toss, proving tails does, in fact, fail. After picking up a 1st down, the Patriots punted to the Cowboys for the final possession of the game. Dallas continued to pick up chunk yardage before Prescott found Lamb on a 35-yard walk-off touchdown pass. Dallas defeats New England overcoming kicking woes, defensive miscues, and a myriad of penalties.
Takin' Dubs!#DALvsNE | 📸: AP | #DallasCowboys pic.twitter.com/j3YLqVY2e3
— Dallas Cowboys (@dallascowboys) October 18, 2021
Dallas is Legit
The Cowboys are a legitimate contender. Belichick brought pressure forcing quick decisions and difficult situations for Prescott and the Cowboys alike. Defensive and special teams miscues, as well as penalties, hampered the Dallas offense all afternoon. The Cowboys were able to overcome miscues at every step of the game and manufacturer late-game drives to seal the victory in Foxborough on Sunday. The Cowboys are becoming less and less of a Super Bowl darkhorse as they begin to separate themselves from the rest of the NFC and the NFC East.
Main photo:
Embed from Getty Images
