10 thoughts on the Cowboys thrilling 40-40 Sunday night tie against the Packers

The Dallas Cowboys didn’t pull out the win on Sunday night against the Green Bay Packers, but they didn’t lose either. It was a crazy back-and-forth contest that featured many opportunities for the Cowboys to come out on top, but they just couldn’t pull out the win. After 70 minutes of football, both teams finished with 40 points, with the game ending in a tie. It was the first time in 56 years that a Cowboys game ended in a tie (1969, 24-24 against San Francisco). Here are 10 thoughts on the Cowboys’ tie-game thriller against the Packers.

1. The defense just can’t make stops

It’s hard to describe the frustration felt by how this Cowboys’ defense plays. They were not terrible all the time, but in a game where their offense did everything in its power to win, the defense couldn’t come through with a single stop in crunch time. Five times the Packers possessed the ball in the second half or overtime, and five times they scored. Even when the defense made plays on early downs, they’d falter on the money down. The Packers were 10/14 on third down and converted their only fourth-down attempt on a crucial play in overtime. In total, the defense surrendered 489 yards. It was terrible. Just one second-half stand would have been enough to give the Cowboys the victory. And that is because…

2. The offense caught fire

As bad as it was to watch the defense repeatedly cave, it was equally satisfying to watch the offense take off. It didn’t start great as the Cowboys punted on their first three possessions of the game, but then strung together six scoring drives on their next seven possessions, five of which went for touchdowns. Dak Prescott was incredible in this game, converting on 78% of his passes for a total of 319 yards. He threw three touchdowns and ran one in as well. He made clutch throw after clutch throw, including a 34-yard heave downfield that was hauled in by Jalen Tolbert thanks to some great sideline footwork. It was an impressive 40-point effort by the Cowboys’ offense that was squandered by a terrible defense.

3. Parsons was just enough of a factor

In a game that many expected Micah Parsons to wreak havoc against a banged-up Cowboys offensive line, the team’s former star pass rusher was held in check almost all night. Dallas did a great job game planning against him, providing help with blocking that included double teams from their tight ends and running backs. Despite a mishmash of tackle arrangements that sometimes included Nate Thomas on either side, the Cowboys did a great job not only against Parsons but the entire Packers pass rush. Prescott was sacked once according to the official stat sheet and that was by Parsons. That proved costly for Dallas as it forced them to settle for a field goal instead of Prescott running it in for a touchdown for the second time in the game. Even though the Cowboys couldn’t seal the deal with a win, the Parsons “factor” serves as a big win for Jerry Jones in how one player isn’t enough of a difference maker when more talent is needed. Speaking of that talent.

4. The WR1

With no CeeDee Lamb in this one, the Cowboys relied on George Pickens to help pick up the slack in the passing game. And boy did he deliver. Pickens had several key catches in this game. He finished with eight catches for 134 yards and two touchdowns, but also hauled in a remarkable contested catch near the sideline that set up another Cowboys’ touchdown. Not only that, but he caught a crucial catch on the team’s only fourth-down play that extended the drive and helped the Cowboys go up 30-27 with less than five minutes to go in the game. It was an amazing performance by a receiver who showed that he is every bit a WR1 when asked to be.

5. The blocked PAT of consequence

The first big play for the Cowboys came on a weird play. After Green Bay scored its second touchdown of the game, it looked like they would go up 14-0, but Juanyeh Thomas was able to block the extra point. The ball bounced into the arms of Markquese Bell, who took it the distance. It didn’t seem like much at the time as the Cowboys still trailed 13-2, but it was a three-point swing that proved extremely relevant in the final score.

6. A big-time takeaway

Just when the Cowboys scored their first offensive points of the game to make it a 13-9 game right before halftime, the defense struck, and it struck big. Pass rusher James Houston came around the edge and knocked the ball out of Packers quarterback Jordan Love’s hand, falling into the arms of Jadeveon Clowney. Suddenly, the Cowboys had the opportunity to take the lead before halftime, and they didn’t squander it, all of which was made possible by a rare takeaway by the Cowboys’ defense.

7. Schotty was in his bag

Credit head coach/playcaller Brian Schottenheimer for some creative plays where he did a good job getting the Packers defense going in the wrong direction. Whether he rolled KaVontae Turpin in motion for a fake reverse to spring Javonte Williams for a good run or a misdirection play to Ryan Flournoy out of the backfield, the Cowboys were trying different stuff. Several times, the offense resorted to these little misdirection plays just to get the Packers’ defense leaning the wrong way. It was a good way to get other players involved with their biggest offensive playmaker out of action. It was an impressive 40-point performance against a Packers defense that entered the week with the fewest points allowed in the league.

8. Can’t defend the screen pass

Okay, we get it. The league gets it. The Cowboys’ defense doesn’t know how to defend a screen pass. After being burned last week against Chicago, teams have taken notice, and the Packers wasted no time exploiting this weakness. Several times, Green Bay would employ some type of screen pass or swing play to catch the Cowboys’ defense out of position or to force them to make good tackles. And most of the night, the Cowboys obliged. It was frustrating to watch.

9. The Liu-Foul

The Cowboys couldn’t afford to have self-inflicted wounds and still expect to have a chance in this game, but that’s exactly how things were playing out. Early on, it felt like every time they made a good play, it would be negated by a penalty. The offense makes a good passing play. It’s called back because right tackle Nate Thomas didn’t line up close enough to the line of scrimmage. Donovan Ezeiruaku makes a great tackle behind the line of scrimmage for a seven-yard loss. Nope, it was washed away by a personal foul penalty. The defense makes a great stop late in the fourth quarter, forcing an incomplete pass, but then linebacker Marist Liufau decides to just ram the empty-handed running back for no apparent reason. There wasn’t a long list of great defensive plays made on this day, so it’s super frustrating when boneheaded mistakes overturned the ones they had.

10. Ezeiruaku was everywhere

The personal foul penalty will be what many remember the most, but it should also be noted that the rookie edge rusher was flying all over the game. He did a great job eluding blocks and sniffing out running plays. The stat sheet will only show five tackles (four solo), but his play awareness, relentless effort, and strength to finish plays were on full display. It was a very good showing by the team’s rookie edge rusher.