ARLINGTON, TX — The Dallas Cowboys set an NFL record in the worst of ways on Sunday afternoon when the Cowboys were absolutely steamrolled by Jordan Love and the 7th-seed Green Bay Packers. Green Bay jumped out to an early lead and never looked back. Dallas becomes the first NFL team to have three consecutive 12-win seasons and not make a conference championship game. The Packers embarrassed the Cowboys throughout, and it might have just cost Dallas Head Coach Mike McCarthy his job as the Cowboys fell in the Wild Card Round 48-32.
Green Bay Packers quarterback Jordan Love was on fire early. He found several big-time throws to Romeo Doubs to build a lead early in the 1st quarter. Dak Prescott and CeeDee Lamb struggled in the first half and never found a rhythm until in the final two quarters. Packers running back Aaron Jones had himself a game with 21 carries for 118 yards and three touchdowns.
Green Bay jumped out to a 7-0 lead on a short touchdown run by Aaron Jones. The Packers' defense forced a punt on the Cowboys' opening drive, and the wheels fell off afterward. Following a Green Bay punt, Dak Prescott threw an interception to Jaire Alexander to give the Packers another possession in Dallas territory. Jones would score his second touchdown of the afternoon on a 1-yard run to put the Packers up by 14.
Another punt, this time because of a 3rd down sack that pushed Prescott and the Cowboys out of field goal range, led to another Packers touchdown. Love threw off his back foot to a wide-open Doubs, who took the football 36 yards to the Cowboys' 35-yard line. Love followed that up with a 20-yard dot to Dontayvion Wicks for his first touchdown pass. The Packers led 20-0 after a missed extra point with 3:23 remaining in the first half.
Events went from bad to worse for Dallas on the ensuing drive. Dak focused too much on one receiver and allowed Darnell Savage to undercut the route for an interception. Worse was that he intercepted the ball in such a way that no one was able to catch Savage on his way to a 64-yard pick-six.
Dallas finally got on the board as time expired in the half on a 2-yard touchdown pass to Jake Ferguson. The Cowboys trailed 27-7 at the break.
The Cowboys carried some momentum into the 2nd half as Dallas drove down and kicked a field goal to make the score 27-10 early in the 3rd quarter. However, the Cowboys never had an answer for the Packers' offense as Love drove the Green Bay down the field. Jones scored his third touchdown of the afternoon on a 9-yard scamper to erase the Cowboys' momentum, 34-10.
Cowboys Fans can rest their heads on one single positive aspect of this contest. The Cowboys never gave up. Even as the Packers would put up two additional touchdowns, Dallas scored 22 more points in the 2nd half. However, it was nowhere near enough as the Green Bay Packers shocked the Dallas Cowboys 48-32 in Arlington.
Jordan Love had an outstanding playoff debut for the Packers. He finished 16/21 for 272 yards and two touchdowns through 3.5 quarters before head coach Matt LeFluer decided his day was done. Prescott ended up finishing with an impressive stat line, but anyone could argue that garbage time stats with the game out of reach do not matter. He finished 41/60 for 403 yards, three touchdowns, and two interceptions. Prescott played poorly in the first half, and his two interceptions turned into two Green Bay touchdowns. In fact, the Packers dropped an additional two interceptions that should have gone the other way.
Green Bay Packers Dominate the Dallas Cowboys
(Credit: twitter.com/nfl)
The Cowboys now face an offseason with an infuriated owner, Jerry Jones, and several question marks on the roster. Mike McCarthy once again failed to defeat his former team, and this loss, in particular, was flat-out embarrassing. Jones wouldn't speculate on the future after the game, but it is evident that McCarthy's future is now in limbo. Add that to the fact that one of the greatest NFL coaches of all time is currently without a team, and some would say that McCarthy might as well start packing his bags.
However, despite the loss, how much can Dallas fans really put on McCarthy? He led the Cowboys to three back-to-back-to-back 12-win seasons. Without him, Dallas would still be an unimpressive, floundering, and perennial .500 team. Dallas may look completely different six months from now, but it is safe to say that the Green Bay Packers still own the Dallas Cowboys in Arlington.
The Green Bay Packers (10-8) advance to the Divisional Round next week against the San Francisco 49ers (12-5) in Santa Clara, CA. Kickoff time is still TBD.
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