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Tag: DaRon Bland

  • Prescott’s Cowboys overcome Mahomes’ fourth-down magic in 31-28 Thanksgiving win over Chiefs

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    ARLINGTON, Texas (AP) — Dak Prescott and the Dallas Cowboys still face long odds in trying to rally for a spot in the playoffs.

    They won’t be short on confidence with a win over last season’s Super Bowl runner-up just four days after beating the defending champs.

    Prescott threw for two touchdowns, Malik Davis sprinted 43 yards for a score and the Cowboys overcame two fourth down TD throws from Patrick Mahomes in a 31-28 Thanksgiving Day victory over the Kansas City Chiefs on Thursday.

    CeeDee Lamb scored the first Dallas touchdown and finished with 112 yards on seven catches after drops plagued the star receiver in a 24-21 victory over reigning Super Bowl champion Philadelphia.

    The Cowboys (6-5-1) have won three straight and dropped the defending AFC champion Chiefs (6-6) back to .500 in a matchup of playoff-chasing teams.

    Dallas is 3-0 since 24-year-old defensive end Marshawn Kneeland was found dead of an apparent suicide during the club’s open week. The Cowboys came back from the emotion-filled break with a 33-16 victory over the Las Vegas Raiders.

    “On top of where we put ourselves right before these games and just the place that we’re in, having to get these wins against two elite teams,” Prescott said. “I mean, two teams that played in the Super Bowl last year. Last year’s last year, but you’re talking about two organizations that obviously know how to win and we just beat them both in two great games.

    “On top of everything that we’ve been through.”

    Mahomes had four touchdown passes in his first professional game at the home of the Cowboys, where he played three times for Texas Tech not far from his East Texas roots.

    “They’re the same desperation that we are and they play better over four quarters than we did,” said Mahomes, who threw for 261 yards and was sacked three times, twice by Jadeveon Clowney. “So even though we have good plays here and there, we have be more consistent at the end of the day.”

    Travis Kelce caught Mahomes’ first fourth-down TD toss on a 2-yarder, and Rashee Rice’s second scoring catch came on fourth-and-3 early in the fourth quarter.

    Kansas City was down 10 when Mahomes was almost tripped in the backfield by Quinnen Williams but kept his feet and found Xavier Worthy wide-open down the field for 42 yards, setting up a 10-yard scoring toss to Hollywood Brown with 3:27 remaining.

    Prescott and company didn’t give Mahomes another chance.

    After two pass interference penalties gave Dallas first downs, Prescott hit George Pickens for 13 yards and a clinching first down at the two-minute warning. Prescott knelt three times after that.

    The Chiefs had five pass interference penalties, one that was declined, and another defensive holding that gave Dallas a first down. Kansas City finished with 10 penalties for 119 yards.

    “Bottom line is we’re having too many penalties, and we have to make sure to take care of that,” Chiefs coach Andy Reid said. “No excuses with it. We’re going to clean it up.”

    Rice had eight catches for 92 yards, his first score coming on a 27-yard catch-and-run on the sideline two plays after Prescott was intercepted by Jaylen Watson on the first Dallas possession.

    Davis had just three carries, but his long run gave Dallas its first lead at 17-14 late in the second quarter. Lead running back Javonte Williams scored on a 3-yard catch early in the fourth quarter, and Pickens’ catch on a 2-point conversion put Dallas back in front 28-21.

    The Cowboys were 10th in the NFC entering the game, same as the Chiefs in the AFC coming off nine consecutive AFC West titles. The schedule doesn’t get much easier, although two of the next four opponents — all playoff teams from a year ago — aren’t in the postseason picture at the moment.

    “We’ve got to continue with the same mentality,” Lamb said. “Obviously it’s been a short week. Now we get a little time to rest, a regular week so to speak. We get our bodies back, relax, build, grow, get better and on to next week.”

    Injuries

    Chiefs: The Chiefs lost two offensive linemen to injuries after beginning the game without RG Trey Smith, who was inactive because of an ankle injury. RT Jawaan Taylor injured an elbow, and rookie LT Josh Simmons went out with a wrist injury. … S Bryan Cook injured an ankle in the first half.

    Cowboys: CB Caelen Carson, who had started the previous two games, was inactive after being listed as questionable. He was added to the injury report during the week. … CB DaRon Bland injured a foot in the second half.

    Up next

    Chiefs: Play host to Houston in prime time on Dec. 7.

    Cowboys: Visit Detroit next Thursday night.

    ___

    AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/nfl

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  • If Cowboys’ defense can sustain success, get ready for this team to go on a run

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    ARLINGTON

    Through seven weeks of the NFL season, the Dallas Cowboys’ defense was — hold on. I’ve used putrid. I’ve used awful. I’ve used demoralizing.

    Google: synonym for bad. Results: Deficient. Inadequate. Substandard. Dreadful.

    Whatever negative word you could possibly use, it probably fits. The unit entered Week 7 dead-last in yards allowed per game (401.6) and third-to-last in points allowed per game (29.4), and has been the cause of multiple losses through the first third of the season.

    Heading into a divisional matchup against the Washington Commanders on Sunday, it was clear that there would be a different approach. Jerry Jones promised more man coverage. Defensive coordinator Matt Eberflus spoke about more pressure and playing more to the strengths of his personnel in place. Then, it was all backed up.

    Against man coverage on Sunday, Commanders quarterbacks Jayden Daniels and Marcus Mariota were 5-for-15 for 67 yards. Against zone coverage, they were 11-for-17 for 152 yards and one interception. It was the most passing attempts against man coverage that a Cowboys defense has had all season.

    “We were able to play fast out there,” cornerback DaRon Bland said. “We showed who we are out there. It was a great day. As a cover guy, I like to be playing man.”

    The changes weren’t just made in the back end. Despite linebacker Jack Sanborn returning from a concussion this week, rookie Shemar James kept the starting job over him and turned in the best performance of his young career with a strip sack of Daniels to go along with seven tackles.

    “It means a lot,” James said. “Because it means the coaches trust you to keep you in there and allow you to do your thing. That’s what I’ve been trying to do since I’ve been here, just earn the coaches’ trust, show them I can play and show them I can be for all 11.”

    Up front, the pressure was dialed up even more as well. On the 40 dropbacks for the Commanders, the Cowboys sent a blitz on 17 of them. They were able to get home for four sacks, including the first for rookie Donovan Ezeiruaku.

    “Amen,” Ezeiruaku said. “First of many. … I finally got that first one, and the guys were hyping me up. I’m happy and grateful that today was the day I got one.”

    The changes were seen on all three levels. From more man coverage to personnel to more pressure, Eberflus’ adjustments on the defensive side of the ball were felt Sunday, and it allowed the Cowboys to play their most complementary game of the season.

    But can it last?

    “There’s definitely things that we got to clean up,” defensive tackle Osa Odighizuwa said. “We’re always chasing the perfect game, but this is definitely something to build off of.”

    “Our main thing is being consistent,” cornerback Trikweze Bridges. “We’re going to keep going with that, and just be consistent.”

    That’s the key to all of this: consistency. If the Cowboys can achieve that elusive word, then maybe we’ll have to start Googling synonyms for that one as well.

    Through seven weeks, we know what the offense is and what it can be. But what is the defense? Was Sunday a mere anomaly, or is it the sign of what’s to come under these new changes?

    If it’s an outlier, then this team is right back to losing against teams it shouldn’t be.

    But if it’s the latter, there’s no reason to not believe that the Cowboys are poised to go on a run. With an upcoming slate of games that will see them take on the up-and-down Broncos next week before a two-game stretch against the lowly Cardinals and Raiders, a consistent defense during that stretch can very easily create a four-game winning streak.

    If it does, remember the Sunday afternoon against the Commanders. It just may end up being the “get-right” game.

    Nick Harris

    Fort Worth Star-Telegram

    Nick Harris is the Dallas Cowboys beat reporter for the Fort Worth Star-Telegram. He has experience working on the beat for DallasCowboys.com and previous work experience at Yahoo Sports/Rivals and 247Sports.

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    Nick Harris

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