Brett Davis-Imagn Images Notable headlines surrounding America’s team. Dak Prescott injured in Cowboys Week 9, 27-21 defeat vs Falcons – Mark Heaney, Inside The Star It was a bad day all around. Second Half So, after starting the game by deferring the toss, the Cowboys had the hope of getting the ball at halftime on their side. They only trailed by four and could have taken the lead with a big opening drive. Instead, they had a false start on the first play out of the locker room, went three-and-out, and decided that was a great time for a fake punt that failed miserably. That moment may become a key point in this season. It was a true low point for this organization. What followed was an easy touchdown drive from the Falcons, and a real punt from Dallas after somehow having 12 men in the huddle on a critical 4th and 1 play. The mishaps and blunders were never-ending in this one. 12 players in the huddle on offense when lining up to go for it on 4th and 1… on the first possession after a failed fake punt that immediately led to a touchdown. The Dallas Cowboys are one of the worst-coached teams in the NFL. — RJ Ochoa (@rjochoa) November 3, 2024 The Cowboys did manage to get a stop and score following that, though it was only a field goal as Brandon Aubrey’s leg saved Dallas again. That ended up being the last truly meaningful score of the game, as Jalen Tolbert’s final drive touchdown acted more as a garbage-time statistical boost. Of course, the biggest story here was not the game itself, but the injury to Prescott that I mentioned. Dak Prescott has been ruled out for the remainder of the game with a hamstring injury. ( FOX) pic.twitter.com/Re22ylTnwZ — ESPN (@espn) November 3, 2024 You can say whatever you want about the Cowboys quarterback, but as he goes, they go. If Prescott misses any time, you can essentially pack this season up and move on to 2025. Atlanta took it to Dallas today; they were the cleaner team, especially in the second half, and they deserved the win. Game Recap: Cowboys lose to Atlanta, 27-21 – Kurt Daniels, DallasCowboys.com A brief summary of how the loss transpired. Second Quarter The next 15 minutes got off to a promising start when the second snap of the frame saw defensive end Carl Lawson come off the right side for a strip-sack of Cousins. The bouncing ball was pounced on by safety Donovan Wilson, the Cowboys now with possession. Unfortunately, they couldn’t take advantage of the gift. Head coach Mike McCarthy decided to go for it on fourth-and-1 at the Falcons’ 44-yard line, only to have Lamb’s attempted end-around get stuffed for a 3-yard loss. That led to an easy Atlanta score. The Falcons went for it themselves on fourth-and-3 at the Dallas 36-yard line, but confusion lining up in the Dallas secondary led to Darnell Mooney breaking wide-open down the right sideline, an easy pitch-and-catch for the walk-in touchdown. And then the Cowboys answered with one of the craziest touchdowns you’ll ever see. Thanks to three runs of 15-plus yards – one each by Lamb, Prescott and Dowdle – Dallas found itself on second-and-goal at the Falcons’ 3-yard line. That’s when Prescott, scrambling back and avoiding defensemen all around him, tossed a pass to Dowdle in the end zone. The running back then jumped, bobbled the catch, hit the ball up once on his way down and finally caught the prize while on his back for the improbable score. That closed the gap to just four points, 14-10, at the half. 3 winners & 5 losers from Cowboys loss to Falcons in Week 9 – Randy Gurzi, Sports Illustrated Who are your winners and losers from week nine? Loser: KaVontae Turpin, WR/KR On one hand, KaVontae Turpin was one of the few sparks the Cowboys had on Sunday. On the other, he let them down twice late in the fourth. Turpin showed off his explosiveness once again when he went for 16 yards on a late punt return. The problem is that he stepped out of bounds at the 44. Had he stayed in, there was no way he wouldn’t have scored. A few plays later, Turpin was targeted on 4th-and-11 and should have hauled the pass in. Cooper Rush hit him in the hands, but Turpin left his feet for some reason and the defense was able to hit it out of his hands. Dallas has tried to get Turpin involved on offense more and he did convert a 4th down on the next drive. Still, he seems to be targeted far too often on key plays, and it hasn’t always worked. Dak Prescott injury video creates more questions than answers for Cowboys’ QB – Jerry Trotta, The Landry Hat Hoping for the best for QB1. Dak Prescott injury video creates more concern for the Cowboys While it is encouraging that Prescott was able to walk off under his own power, this creates more questions than answers for the Cowboys. The fact Prescott felt a pull suggests he’s dealing with a hamstring strain at minimum. The recovery time for a strain depends on its severity. A Grade 1 strain can heal in a matter of days or a few weeks, while a strain of the Grade 2 variety generally fall in the weeks-to-month range. Grade 3 strains are normally a complete rupture of the muscle and often require surgery for a full recovery. At the very least, Prescott should be considered a long shot to suit up in Week 10, which is Dallas’ first clash against the Philadelphia Eagles. It would be fitting of the 2024 season if Micah Parsons and DaRon Bland are able to return for that game only for Prescott to be sidelined. It is almost surprising that a hamstring injury forced Prescott from the game. The Cowboys’ offensive line was
Video of cameras catching Cowboys QB Prescott giving blunt assessment of how bad things have gotten
Video of cameras catching Cowboys QB Prescott giving blunt assessment of how bad things have gotten Todd Brock Dak Prescott was only repeating the conclusion most Cowboys fans had already come to themselves. It was late in the fourth quarter of the team’s 27-21 loss in Atlanta, and the Dallas quarterback was watching from the sideline as backup Cooper Rush was embarking on his third series with the offense. Down two touchdowns when he came in, Rush had started 8-of-15 for 54 yards in relief to that point. Upon tossing another incomplete pass to Jalen Brooks to bring up a third down, TV cameras caught Prescott- clad in a baseball cap and done for the day with a hamstring injury- sharing his observation of things with third-string emergency option Trey Lance. “We [expletive] suck,” Prescott seemed to say with a shake of his head. Yep, that pretty much sums it up. The loss dropped the Cowboys to 3-5, looking way up at both the Commanders and Eagles in the NFC East.Team owner Jerry Jones made a rare away-game locker-room visit to address the team and called the Cowboys’ current situation “bleak.” Already perilously thin due to injuries on both sides of the ball, the Cowboys now face the very real possibility of Prescott missing time, too. Last year’s leader in completions and touchdown passes will undergo an MRI on Monday to determine the severity of his injury, which he apparently suffered on a five-yard scramble late in the third quarter. He told reporters he felt something not during the run or even the tackle, but when he got up. On the next dropback, he said, he “felt something I’ve never felt.” Though he wanted to return to the field, Prescott was told by trainers that he wouldn’t be able to protect himself and was pulled in favor of Rush to start the fourth quarter. Over his three quarters of action, Prescott went 18-of-24 passing for 133 yards and a touchdown. Rush finished 13-of-25 for 115 and a score. [affiliatewidget_smgtolocal] As the leader of the team and face of the franchise, Prescott will no doubt face criticism for his NSFW assessment of the Cowboys’ outlook. He’ll likely own the moment and suggest that his teammates all feel the same way about how they’ve performed thus far this season. He’ll explain that it was an honest response to a disappointing day, but he’ll point out that his job- and the responsibility of every man in the Dallas locker room- is to now flush the loss, turn the page, leave that negativity in the past, and look ahead to preparing for Philadelphia’s visit to Arlington in Week 10. It’s the right approach. But it doesn’t mean what Prescott said was wrong. Cowboys fans have been saying it for months. Read all the best Cowboys coverage at the Austin American-Statesman and Cowboys Wire.
Sunday Night Football odds, pick and live discussion: Colts at Vikings
Jeffrey Becker-Imagn Images Who wins tonight… Indianapolis or Minnesota? The Indianapolis Colts play the Minnesota Vikings on Sunday Night Football. FanDuel has the Vikings as 5.5-point favorites over the Colts. Final score prediction: Vikings 27 – Colts 20. Check out FanDuel for all of your NFL betting needs. This is an open thread for game chat.
What we learned in Cowboys’ 27-21 Week 9 loss to the Falcons
This just isn’t their year Brett Davis-Imagn Images The Cowboys have won 12 games in three straight seasons, and to do that, sometimes the ball bounced their way. That is not happening this year, where everything that can go wrong has. Injuries were plaguing the team coming into the meeting with the Falcons, and things only got worse. Quarterback Dak Prescott left the game after the third quarter with a hamstring injury, but he also appeared to be favoring his throwing hand on the bench. That led to backup QB Cooper Rush trying to win the game late. Wide receiver CeeDee Lamb also was banged up in the loss, hurting his shoulder in the first half, which limited his ability later in the game. Aside from the injuries, the Cowboys had chances to win this game. They couldn’t make plays that decent teams make to pull off the upset. There were mistakes everywhere, and they came from the Cowboys’ best players to cost them a chance at victory. Right guard Zack Martin missed a block that could’ve been a possible score on the offense’s first drive. On the second drive, Prescott missed a wide open Jalen Tolbert streaking down the sideline for what would’ve been an easy long score. Instead, he held the ball and took a sack. Prescott then missed a screen throw to tight end Jake Ferguson, who had to adjust to a bad pass, and wound up short of the first down. Two failed plays to get one yard later and the Cowboys turned it over on downs. Cornerback Trevon Diggs missed a tackle that would’ve forced a punt or a long field goal attempt, instead it resulted in a fourth-down conversion that went for a touchdown a play later when Diggs couldn’t fight through traffic. The confusion came after the Cowboys called a timeout to get themselves together. Return man KaVontae Turpin couldn’t keep his balance on a punt return that should’ve been a touchdown late in the fourth quarter, which was only compounded by Lamb’s drop of a perfect pass from Rush that should’ve resulted in a score a few plays later. The Cowboys were 4-18 on third and fourth downs, a percentage that won’t win many games. We learned this team isn’t good enough to make up for the mistakes and nothing is going their way. Sloppy play isn’t being cleaned up Brett Davis-Imagn Images The Cowboys are one of the most poorly disciplined teams in the league, and that continued in the loss to the Falcons. There were nine more penalties for McCarthy’s reckless group, most of which were mental mistakes. There were false starts and infractions at the worst time to keep the Cowboys from being more competitive in the game. Rookie left tackle Tyler Guyton had three false starts to put the offense behind the chains, but he wasn’t the only player who had issues. On the first play of the second half the right tackle, Terence Steele, false started to put the team behind on down and distance. To try and get some momentum going a few plays later, the Cowboys tried a fake punt, which failed, and Falcons scored five plays later to put Dallas in hurry up mode for the rest of the game. The sloppy play isn’t new for the Cowboys, but the team was unable to overcome the mistakes. That’s been the case for much of the season, McCarthy just can’t keep his team from imploding. Rico Dowdle is the answer at RB Nov 3, 2024; Atlanta, Georgia, USA; Dallas Cowboys running back Rico Dowdle (23) reacts after making a juggling catch for a touchdown against the Atlanta Falcons during the first half at Mercedes-Benz Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Dale Zanine-Imagn Images Much was made of the decision to not allow veteran running back Ezekiel Elliott to travel with the team to Atlanta, but Rico Dowdle was the real story. Dowdle proved he could be the answer at RB, running 12 times for 75 yards and catching his second touchdown pass of the season. The 6.3 yards a carry was by far the best from any RB on the year yet McCarthy didn’t feel the need to give him more carries. The Cowboys were having their most successful game in first down yardage, giving the offense opportunities to run it more, but Dowdle didn’t get the call. This is what McCarthy and Jerry Jones have been talking about since the season began, they wanted to be in position to run the ball more and it was effective early, yet they didn’t stick with it. Dowdle’s juggling touchdown catch was the best play from the offense in the game and proof that he’s a good dual-threat RB. The veteran RB went over 100 total yards for the second time on the season. If it wasn’t clear before Week 9, we learned that Dowdle is the best, and most complete, RB the team has, and he deserves to get the lion’s share of the work out of the backfield. Offensive line isn’t very good Brett Davis-Imagn Images Dallas’ offensive line has been one of the biggest problems with the team this season, and if it wasn’t evident just how bad the unit is that became evident in the Week 9 loss. The Falcons have the worst pass rush in the league, coming into the contest with just six sacks. Somehow, Atlanta’s defense got three more against the porous Cowboys’ offensive line. It was a season-high for the Falcons. Even when they didn’t allow the sack, the offensive line was giving up pressure and throws were hurried. When they weren’t giving their QBs headaches, the lack of discipline was making life difficult. The group upfront had penalties and missed too many blocks that could’ve been sprung the offense for big plays. Guyton’s penalties were an issue, and the right side of the line, including Martin, didn’t play well. We knew the Cowboys’ offensive line wasn’t a great group, but
Cowboys are at home next, but open as big underdogs to the Eagles
Tim Heitman-Imagn Images Week 10 is not going to be fun for the Dallas Cowboys Life for the Dallas Cowboys does not get any easier. They are on a three-game losing streak and now may have to play without Dak Prescott at quarterback. Prescott injured his hamstring during the loss to the Atlanta Falcons and will have an MRI done to check on the severity of the injury. We should know more tomorrow or the next day. Wide receiver CeeDee Lamb also came up with an injured shoulder in the game, but he tried to gut it out. There is no word on his injury status but he will also get an MRI. And we still haven’t seen the return of DaRon Bland or Micah Parsons from their injuries. That is a whole bunch of talent missing or possibly missing. Now the 3-5 Cowboys welcome the 6-2 Philadelphia Eagles for an NFC East clash at AT&T Stadium in Week 10. The Eagles barely beat the Jacksonville Jaguars on Sunday, but they are 6-2, and in the NFL the most important thing is to stack wins. The oddsmakers don’t believe in the Cowboys. FanDuel’s early odds for the Week 10 game show the Cowboys as 6.5-point underdogs, at home. Woof. And that’s before we know all the injury statuses this week. Would you take the Cowboys to cover, or is too late for hope?
Cowboys at Falcons: The good, the bad, and the ugly from Week 9
Photo by Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images It was all bad for the Cowboys in Week 9 against the Falcons. And there you have it. The Dallas Cowboys 2024 season is likely over after the 27-21 loss to the Atlanta Falcons in Week 9. We can put any rational thoughts of making the postseason this year to bed and start looking towards the future, even though there is still half of the regular-season to play this year. This matchup against the Falcons was once again a bad all-around performance for the Cowboys if you’re only looking at how things stand presently. If you’re looking at it with the future in mind though, there’s actually some good we can take away from this loss. With that in mind, let’s take a look at the good, bad, and ugly after Dallas’ Week 9 loss. THE GOOD – 2025 NFL Draft season starts early Prepare yourselves, 2025 mock drafts for the Cowboys will start to pop up pretty regularly now that they have dwindling odds of making the playoffs after the 27-21 loss to the Falcons. This team really has nothing left to play for the rest of the season other than selecting as high as possible in the 2025 NFL Draft. The higher the pick, the better the player. This might be the only thing worth keeping track of the rest the year. Right now, it’s looking as if they will be a shoo-in to end up with a Top 10 selection. THE BAD – Only at the halfway point in 2024 There is still half of the 2024 NFL regular-season to play, but for the Cowboys it feels like it is already over. Yes, they still have to play out the remainder of their schedule this year, but there is little hope they can turn things around to make the playoffs. That means things will probably start getting worse as the season progresses, making this team even harder to watch on a week-to-week basis. That’s especially true if they decide to try to finish the year strong, which will only hurt their draft position in the 2025 NFL Draft. THE UGLY – Dak Prescott’s hamstring injury Normally, the thought of Dak Prescott sidelined for any amount of time would be detrimental to the team’s success week in and week out. 2024 though isn’t a normal season for the Cowboys. This year has been bad from the start and it hasn’t really gotten any better over time. What Prescott’s injury does though is open the door for the Cowboys brass to start evaluating younger players with the future in mind. The opportunity to evaluate a few backups who could have starting potential could be invaluable for the draft/free agency. CeeDee Lamb’s injury might also be an issue to monitor,
Cowboys fall to Falcons, 27-21, drop to 3-5 as season is slipping away
Cowboys fall to Falcons, 27-21, drop to 3-5 as season is slipping away K.D. Drummond It’s tough for a fanbase to maintain hope for a season when their team isn’t winning. As long as there are games remaining on a schedule, anything is possible, but when a club continues to suffer major injuries to augment their self-inflicted wounds, sooner or later people stop believing. And that’s for the ones who believed in the first place. The Dallas Cowboys lost quarterback Dak Prescott to a hamstring injury in the third quarter of their game against the Atlanta Falcons in Week 9. He wasn’t the only one who was knocked out of the contest, either. Wideout CeeDee Lamb had several instances where he was in clear shoulder pain. In the end, it may not have mattered whether they were healthy for the full contest, as the Atlanta Falcons defense was able to corral the Dallas offense while their own O was efficient throughout a 27-13 win. The defeat drops the Cowboys to 3-5 on the season, with back-to-back home dates against the Philadelphia Eagles and Houston Texans next up on the slate. In this contest, Prescott had been playing well, completing 75% of his throws without turning the ball over. Rush acquitted himself well in relief, adding 115 passing yards and a late score to Jalen Tolbert to give Dallas a last-second chance until the on-side kick failed. Read all the best Cowboys coverage at the Austin American-Statesman and Cowboys Wire.
Cowboys QB Dak Prescott ruled out of Falcons game with hamstring injury
Brett Davis-Imagn Images Dak Prescott has been ruled OUT of the rest of the game against the Falcons. As the fourth quarter began for the Dallas Cowboys against the Atlanta Falcons, quarterback Dak Prescott was being examined on the sidelines. Shortly after examination appeared on the television broadcast it was reported that Prescott was ruled out for the rest of the game with a hamstring injury. Dak Prescott is out with a hamstring injury, per #dallascowboys radio. — Pat Doney (@PatDoneyNBC5) November 3, 2024 When the broadcast showed Prescott being evaluated it initially appeared to be as a result of some sort of injury to his throwing hand. While that does appear to have been happening, it was the hamstring that caused him to be taken out of the game entirely. Upon sharing the news the FOX broadcast did show the play in which they speculated Prescott may have injured himself on a pass from the pocket. It was clearly serious enough that Dallas pulled him, we will see what happens over the coming week and rest of the season relative to this situation. At the time of his departure from the game Prescott was 18 of 24 for 133 yards and a touchdown. He also had gotten on the move for the first time all season with three rushing attempts for 30 yards, including one that went for 22 on its own.
Cowboys vs Falcons 2024 Week 9 game day live discussion
Matthew Emmons-Imagn Images The Cowboys take on the Falcons in Week 9. The Dallas Cowboys will try to turn their season around with an upset win over the Atlanta Falcons. This is an open thread for game chat.
Is Trevon Diggs playing today? Injury news update for Cowboys CB
Is Trevon Diggs playing today? Injury news update for Cowboys CB K.D. Drummond Update: Trevon Diggs will in fact play on Sunday, he was not one of the inactives. Trevon Diggs has had a trying week. Following last week’s frustrating loss to the San Francisco 49ers, the All-Pro cornerback came out the locker room to confront a media member of a tweet made during the contest. It was a bad look that eventually Diggs made amends for, but that wasn’t the end of Diggs’ time as the center of attention. Diggs also added himself to a ridiculously long list of injured Cowboys when he missed practice on Wednesday with what ended up being identified as a calf tear. Then Diggs missed Thursday, and then Friday. Duggs was given the game designation of questionable for Dallas’ Week 9 roadtrip to take on the Atlanta Falcons. The Cowboys are now sitting under ,500, at 3-4 on the 2024 season, losers of two games in a row. The team came out of their bye week flat, and needed a fell-short fourth-quarter rally to make their game against the 49ers a respectable effort. Now, that same group is traveling to Atlanta in to take on the Falcons and Kirk Cousins. Already missing all of their top edge rushers, the Cowboys have played all season without Diggs’ counterpart DaRon Bland and the last several weeks without his backup rookie Caelen Carson. With Bland out, stopping Cousins and the Falcons aerial attack without Diggs is probably too big of an ask. Expecting a player who missed all three practices to play at all, much less at a high level, is asking for a lot. Week 9 inactives will be announced approximately an hour and a half before kickoff. Read all the best Cowboys coverage at the Austin American-Statesman and Cowboys Wire.
