Trevon Diggs sealed the Dallas Cowboys victory on Monday night against the New York Giants. Diggs and the Cowboys defense was stifling all night with constant quarterback pressure and multiple passes defended. The defense managed five sacks tonight against Daniel Jones and the Giants. The heavily-injured Cowboys offense was able to lean on the defense all night in order to secure a win vs. their division rival.
Trevon Diggs Seals Dallas Victory, Leads Defense in Crucial NFC East Win
A Solid First Half
After a great defensive performance, the Cowboys carried a 6-3 lead into halftime. Dallas was able to strike first with a Brett Maher field goal in the first quarter. The Giants would answer by marching the field and getting Graham Gano into range. New York lined up for a field goal attempt at the Dallas 29-yard line when Dorance Armstrong blocked the attempt, marking the first big defensive play of the night.
Dallas hounded Jones all night and was able to take their lead into the half 6-3 following a missed 59-yard field goal by Brett Maher. The Cowboys were able to hold this revamped New York offense to three points in the first half, keeping their offense within striking distance for a second-half win.
Second Half, Same as the First
Dallas started strong in the second half holding New York to a field goal to keep the score 6-6. The opening drive was led mainly by Cowboys penalties and Jones play-making ability with his legs. After the field goal drive, New York was able to punch in a touchdown. Barkley erupted for a 36-yard rush to take the lead 13-6. This looked to be a huge momentum shift, but the Dallas Cowboys stayed resilient scoring a touchdown of their own on the next drive.
Back-to-back scoring drives had Dallas in the lead 20-13. Dallas would go on to kick one more field goal pushing the score to a double-digit lead. New York responded with a field goal of their own to pull within seven points, but would not cut the lead closer. The final nail in the coffin came late in the fourth quarter when it was obvious the pressure was getting to Jones. A couple of errant throws ultimately lead to a Trevon Diggs interception sealing the victory late in the fourth quarter.
TREVON DIGGS PICKS OFF DANIEL JONES. COWBOYS WIN 😱 pic.twitter.com/3FJkXRRcsQ
— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) September 27, 2022
Pass Rush
The Dallas pass rush was all over Jones tonight with a career-high 22 quarterback pressures leading up to the Giants final drive. Demarcus Lawrence led the pass-rush attack with three sacks tonight. The Giants simply had no answer for Lawrence one-on-one. Lawrence was able to take advantage of one-on-one matchups because the Giants offense doubled-teamed a tight end with Evan Neal against Mica Parsons all night. Parsons was unable to register a sack but pressured Jones several times making his presence well-known.
Passing Defense
Diggs and the passing defense were great tonight as well. The Dallas passing defense was very disruptive tonight with five passes defended. Tonight was a group effort as Donovan Wilson and Anthony Brown contributed with one pass defended each.
Diggs was once again the star of the secondary with three passes defended and the interception to seal the victory. Jones looked very sharp on the ground but had moments where he was sloppy through the air. Diggs and the rest of the defense took advantage of some poorly placed passes to make key stops throughout Monday Night Football.
That defense 💯#DALvsNO | #DallasCowboys pic.twitter.com/LIpZs7C10o
— Dallas Cowboys (@dallascowboys) December 3, 2021
Dallas Cowboys Defense Overall
This Dallas Cowboys team heavily relies on their defense to keep the offense in games. With the injury to Dak Prescott, Dallas will have to find different ways to win football games. With their elite quarterback sidelined, Dallas will continue relying on their defense and defensive stars to keep Cooper Rush and the offense within striking distance.
