Prescott Pilots Cowboys By Struggling Washington Commanders to Kick Off Holiday Triple-Header.
Dak Prescott passed for 307 yards and a pair of scoring strikes, as Dallas blew most of an 18-point lead before narrowly defeating the Washington Commanders 30-23 Thursday.
The Cowboys, now 7-8-1, found the end zone on their first three possessions to establish a 21-3 lead. Washington, falling to 4-12, narrowed the margin to a touchdown on three separate instances, they were unable to finish the comeback and suffered their tenth defeat in 11 games.
Both teams were previously eliminated from postseason consideration, which greatly diminished the significance of this matchup between historic NFC East rivals.
Prescott's Historic Outing
Prescott completed 19 of 37 passes and helped Dallas convert all six of its fourth-down attempts. His pair of touchdown throws gave him 30 for the season, tying Tony Romo’s record of four seasons with 30 or more touchdown passes.
The signal-caller endured six sacks, including three credited to Jer’Zhan Newton.
Commanders' Quarterback Dilemma
Forced to play minus injured quarterbacks Jayden Daniels (elbow) and Marcus Mariota (quad, hand), Washington called upon veteran Josh Johnson. In his 10th NFL start and first since 2021, Johnson went 15 for 23 for 198 yards with zero touchdowns and zero picks.
The Commanders' Offensive Highlights
Jacory Croskey-Merritt found paydirt with runs of 10 and 72 yards for Washington. The 72-yard scamper got the Commanders to 24-17 in the second half, but Dallas restored its double-digit lead with a 52-yard kick by kicker Brandon Aubrey.
The kicker later nailed a 51-yarder to make it 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 pass to Deebo Samuel, Johnson’s biggest play since 2018.
Cowboys' 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 made it three TDs in three drives with an 86-yard touchdown strike to KaVontae Turpin.
