Dak Prescott Pilots Dallas Cowboys By Skidding Commanders to Launch Holiday Triple-Header.
The Cowboys' quarterback accumulated 307 yards and two touchdowns, and the Dallas Cowboys blew most of an 18-point lead before edging the Washington Commanders 30-23 on Thursday night.
Dallas (7-8-1) scored touchdowns on their first three possessions to go up 21-3 lead. Washington, falling to 4-12, cut the gap to a touchdown on three different occasions, they couldn’t complete the comeback and absorbed their tenth defeat in 11 games.
Both teams were already out from postseason consideration, which severely lessened the stakes of this contest between longtime NFC East rivals.
Prescott's Record-Tying Outing
Prescott connected on 19 of 37 passes and was instrumental on all six of its fourth-down tries. His pair of touchdown throws gave him 30 for the season, equaling the franchise record of four seasons with at least 30 touchdown passes.
The signal-caller endured six sacks, with three coming from defensive tackle Jer’Zhan Newton.
Washington's QB Dilemma
Forced to play minus their top QBs Jayden Daniels (elbow) and Marcus Mariota (quad, hand), Washington turned to veteran Josh Johnson. Making his 10th career start and first since 2021, Johnson went 15 for 23 for 198 yards with no touchdowns or interceptions.
The Commanders' Scoring Drives
Jacory Croskey-Merritt found paydirt with runs of 10 and 72 yards for Washington. The latter touchdown got the Commanders to 24-17 in the second half, but Dallas restored its double-digit lead with a 52-yard field goal by kicker Brandon Aubrey.
The kicker later nailed a 51-yarder to extend the lead to 30-20 with 3:59 remaining.
After Prescott threw to tight end Jake Ferguson on the first possession, Johnson completed three passes for 68 yards to get Washington to 7-3. A crucial connection was a 41-yard completion to Deebo Samuel, Johnson’s biggest play since 2018.
Dallas' Sustained Possessions
On their second possession, the Cowboys converted three fourth downs on a 17-play march that culminated in a touchdown run by Javonte Williams. Prescott then completed the hat-trick in three drives with an 86-yard touchdown strike to KaVontae Turpin.