Dallas Cowboys: Three Key Takeaways from Week Fifteen

Rumors are rife that Jerry Jones feels it would be safe enough to sign a Johnny Manziel contract by the offseason.

The defensive backs were no match for the short passing of Dak Prescott. Prescott completed 32 of 36 passes, for a completion percentage of 88.9.

Prescott’s 2-yard run on a quarterback draw broke Don Meredith’s mark from 1966.

It doesn’t get much better than this! Add resiliency to his impressive and growing resume.

Elliott wasn’t really anxious about his road roommate after Prescott completed less than 50 per cent of his passes and looked generally uncomfortable in a 10-7 loss to the Giants, the only team to beat Dallas this season. The entire offense had looked out of sync.

It would not be the first time the Giants quieted Dallas’ offense either. The Bears will provide a tough game next week. Cowboys RB Darren McFadden, the team’s leading rusher last season, was active for the first this season.

A win tonight will be no easy task for Dallas, given that they’re going up against one of the hottest teams in the league.

Those penalties were highly frustrating. The Bucs trimmed the deficit in the next possession when they scored a field goal to make the score 17-6. Just like the Cowboys, the Broncos had a quarterback dilemma this season. Every team had several chances to take him and didn’t.

Well, it’s a good thing the Cowboys brass didn’t listen.

Another concern was that the play-calling seemed to get a bit too cute at times. “So they were playing the hurry-up and we were getting exhausted, but they were too”. However, if you’re the Cowboys, why would you even consider doing that? Plus sometimes it can work very well.

The defense needs to hit the re-set button. The Bucs defense did have 3 sacks of Prescott.

Jason Witten led the team with 10 receptions, although he did fumble one of them in the fourth quarter and put the game in danger.

Dallas Cowboys running back Ezekiel Elliott’s success doesn’t exactly come as a surprise.

For the Buccaneers, star Jameis Winston was all over the board. Benson Mayowa continued a late-season surge. Sure, there were some positives to take away from the loss. Winning both the turnover and sack battle was big. Morris Claiborne, who was playing the best football in his career will come back and give this defense a big improvement. If the Giants win their last two games and Dallas loses its last two, NY would win the NFC East and the Cowboys would earn the wild card.

After a quick drive that resulted in a punt after four plays, the Buccaneers took the lead off a 10-play, 81-yard drive that took just five minutes. “I think he had four incompletions”. He is the son of a former Marine, and now plays for a former Marine, Rod Marinelli. Having the ability to flex games certainly helps, but this week’s matchup featuring the Dallas Cowboys (first place, 11-2) and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers (second place, 8-5) is one that will captivate our attention.

Meanwhile, the Cowboys inch closer to the NFC East title, and can claim it next week against the Detroit Lions. Here’s hoping for five more victories to make this a season for the ages.