ARLINGTON — With the league’s reigning Most Valuable Player coming to town, it’s only natural that the Cowboys were counting on the man who finished runner-up to Lamar Jackson to step up and lead the fight Sunday against the Baltimore Ravens. Dak Prescott, the game’s newly minted $60 Million Man, did exactly that at AT&T Stadium.
The problem with Dak having a 187-yard, two-touchdown fourth quarter is that the visitors carried a 28-6 lead into that period. The Cowboys got some great work on their two-minute offense and Baltimore knows it still needs help closing out games, but this isn’t a game where you would say the Ravens escaped with a 28-25 win. Once Dallas got close, the Ravens needed to convert one third down. Jackson did that on a throw to Zay Flowers. Needing one more first down just to salt things away, Jackson ran for it as he had done so effortlessly in the first half, and the Cowboys’ second straight home defeat was in the books.
This one was just as bad as the New Orleans game for three quarters. In fact, the Saints ran for 190 yards in last Sunday’s 44-19 rout of the Cowboys here. The Ravens surpassed that total on the first possession of the third quarter. Derrick Henry finished with 151 yards on 25 carries, Jackson added 87 more and the Ravens ran for 274 yards and a 6.1 average against Dallas’ run defense. Mike Zimmer’s unit looks more clueless by the week.
The Cowboys knew they had their hands full Sunday. That’s why, when Dallas won the toss, head coach Mike McCarthy had the Cowboys take the ball instead of the usual decision to defer until the third quarter. “I was planning to get the lead as fast as I could, and that was part of the decision,’’ McCarthy said.
There was good reason to think that Prescott and CeeDee Lamb could have their way with the Ravens’ defense. Baltimore lost at home last week to Las Vegas when journeyman Gardner Minshew rallied the Raiders from a 10-point deficit. That’s the same Raiders who were blown out by the Carolina Panthers on Sunday.
But the Cowboys offense could do no more than put six points on the board through three quarters. It was actually worse than that sounds. One of the Brandon Aubrey field goals was from 65 yards. The Cowboys scored points when they barely breached the midfield stripe.
Dak and Lamb showed none of the chemistry they displayed last year when they compiled the stats that made Prescott second in the MVP chase and CeeDee the league leader in receptions. Lamb had four catches for 67 yards Sunday. He also fumbled inside the Baltimore 10-yard line. He had two drops. He had a penalty. Lamb was as much of a no-show during the game as he was in the locker room afterward.
When I asked McCarthy about Lamb’s performance, he answered in terms of the team but it sounded as if it applied to the team’s go-to receiver. “Sometimes preparation is pretty good, and you don’t play as well as you like. There are times when your preparation is not very good and you play better than that,’’ McCarthy said. “This week our preparation was pretty much in line with the way we played.
”The reality is we’ve got to get off the merry-go-round of 9-, 10-, 11-, 12-play drives where we don’t score a touchdown. We’ve done it now three weeks in a row.’’
Jackson and Henry had no problem making their greatness understood right from the start. This was not a West Coast offense that Dallas has struggled to stop. Apparently, scheme doesn’t matter as much as good players. The Cowboys are immune to getting in their way in the running lanes.
That’s why the club needed the quick start from Dak. Instead, through three quarters, they got 15-for-26 for 192 yards and no touchdowns along with a couple of interception drops and more than a couple throws that missed the target.
”I know the defense didn’t want to allow 28 points, but 28 against an offense like that, that’s a game where we have got to score 30,’’ Prescott said. “It was a very frustrating start, especially when you’re playing a quarterback like that, that explosive. You just can’t do it.’’
The Cowboys’ drives went punt-field goal (65-yarder)-fumble-punt-punt-field goal (51-yarder)-punt for three quarters. When the opponent is going touchdown-touchdown-punt-punt-touchdown-touchdown, then realistically, the game is over. The fact the Ravens had some breakdowns and even punted after recovering an onside kick in Cowboys’ territory allowed Dallas to hang around and save face. But both teams left here with a 1-2 record and the Cowboys have rarely been beaten up so badly in back-to-back home games.
Through three quarters, Baltimore held a 394-221 edge in total yards and 233-43 in rushing yards. I’ve got to think that’s of greater consequence moving forward than the fact the Cowboys got the final margin into single digits.
So are the Dak-to-Lamb numbers through three games that show just 13 completions in 24 targets for 218 yards. That’s not $94 Million Combined Salary Level. It’s not Pro Bowl Level. And, as the 1-2 Cowboys illustrate, it’s not even Winning Record Level.
Find more Cowboys coverage from The Dallas Morning News here.
