Dak Prescott Pilots Cowboys Beyond Skidding Commanders to Launch Holiday Tripleheader.
Dak Prescott passed for 307 yards and two touchdowns, and the Dallas Cowboys blew most of an 18-point lead before edging the Washington Commanders 30-23 on Thursday night.
Dallas (7-8-1) scored touchdowns on their initial three drives to go up 21-3 lead. Washington, falling to 4-12, closed the deficit to a touchdown on three separate instances, they couldn’t complete the comeback and absorbed their 10th loss in 11 games.
Both teams were previously eliminated from playoff contention, which significantly reduced the importance of this matchup between historic NFC East rivals.
Prescott's Record-Tying Performance
Prescott completed 19 of 37 passes and helped Dallas convert all six of its fourth-down attempts. His two TD passes gave him 30 for the season, tying Tony Romo’s record of four seasons with at least 30 touchdown passes.
Prescott shrugged off six sacks, including three coming from Jer’Zhan Newton.
Commanders' QB Situation
Playing without their top QBs Jayden Daniels (elbow) and Marcus Mariota (quad, hand), Washington called upon 39-year-old journeyman Josh Johnson. In his 10th NFL start and his first in over two years, Johnson went 15 for 23 for 198 yards with zero touchdowns and zero picks.
Washington's Offensive Highlights
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 restored its double-digit lead with a 52-yard kick 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 game’s opening drive, Johnson completed three passes for 68 yards to get Washington to 7-3. A crucial connection was a 41-yard completion to Deebo Samuel, Johnson’s longest since 2018.
Cowboys' Sustained Drives
On their second possession, the Cowboys converted three fourth downs on a 17-play march that ended with a touchdown run by Javonte Williams. Prescott then made it three TDs in three drives with an 86-yard touchdown strike to KaVontae Turpin.
