Dak Prescott Pilots Dallas Cowboys By Struggling Washington Commanders to Launch Holiday Triple-Header.
The Cowboys' quarterback passed for 307 yards and a pair of scoring strikes, and the Dallas Cowboys blew most of an 18-point lead before squeezing past the Washington Commanders 30-23 Thursday.
The Cowboys, now 7-8-1, found the end zone on their initial three drives to establish a 21-3 lead. Although the Commanders (4-12) closed the deficit to a touchdown on three separate instances, they couldn’t complete the comeback and suffered their tenth defeat in 11 games.
Both teams were previously eliminated from postseason consideration, which significantly reduced the importance of this contest between historic NFC East rivals.
Prescott's Record-Tying Outing
Prescott connected on 19 of 37 passes and helped Dallas convert all six of its fourth-down tries. 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, with three coming from defensive tackle Jer’Zhan Newton.
Washington's QB Situation
Playing without injured quarterbacks Jayden Daniels (elbow) and Marcus Mariota (quad, hand), Washington turned to 39-year-old journeyman 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' Scoring Drives
Jacory Croskey-Merritt scored on runs of 10 and 72 yards for Washington. The 72-yard scamper got the Commanders to 24-17 in the second half, but Dallas reclaimed a double-digit lead with a 52-yard field goal by Brandon Aubrey.
The kicker later nailed a 51-yarder to make it 30-20 with under four minutes to play.
After Prescott threw to tight end Jake Ferguson on the first possession, Johnson went 3 for 3 for 68 yards to get Washington to 7-3. The key play was a 41-yard pass to Deebo Samuel, Johnson’s biggest play since 2018.
Dallas' Methodical Possessions
On their second possession, the Cowboys converted three fourth downs on a lengthy, 17-play drive 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.
