On a late-November day in New England, the conditions were less than ideal for the matchup between the New England Patriots and the Dallas Cowboys, a situation that proved to be a major factor in the performances of the respective offenses. It was the Patriots who managed to pull out the win, however, driven by strong defensive play to a 13-9 win.
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The Dallas offense struggled mightily throughout the contest, most notably quarterback Dak Prescott. Prescott finished 19-33 passing for just 212 yards to go along with one interception, as the Cowboys were held out of the endzone for the entire day.
The only touchdown of the day was scored by New England following a blocked punt by Matthew Slater late in the first quarter. That set up the Patriots at the opposing 12-yard line, following which Tom Brady hit N’Keal Henry for a 10-yard touchdown.
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Cowboys’ owner Jerry Jones was not happy with the loss:
“Special teams is a total reflection of coaching,” Jones said, via Jon Machota of The Athletic. “To me, special teams is 100 percent coaching. It’s 100 percent coaching. It’s strategy. It’s having players ready. … Special teams is nothing but coaching. Special teams is effort. Special teams is savvy. Special teams is thinking.”
The Cowboys, at 6-5 are still in command of the NFC East, however, they have certainly had their struggles this year as well.
“This is very frustrating,” Jones said. “It’s frustrating just to be reminded that some of the fundamentals of football and coaching were what beat us out there today. … With the makeup of this team, I shouldn’t be this frustrated.”
On the other hand, the Patriots appear to be on cruise control at 10-1 overall. Their defense has been stalwart throughout the year and Brady continues to lead the offense as per usual. This was certainly not their top form; however, one requisite of a championship-caliber team is the ability to win ugly games as well.
Only time will tell if these two division leaders can get back to firing on all cylinders before the playoffs soon begin.
