DALLAS — The Dallas Cowboys earned their 12th win of the season with a 27-13 victory over the Tennessee Titans on Thursday Night Football. After picking off one of the top teams in the league last week, the Cowboys could’ve had a let down against a team playing with several of their starters out.
Week 17 wasn’t as pleasing as the Christmas Eve win, but the Cowboys got what they needed, another win to keep the pressure on the NFC East-leading Eagles. Dallas can’t win the division if they don’t win out, and they kept that hope alive in the win over the Titans.
Nevertheless, even with Dallas coming through with the victory, this game didn’t play out quite as expected. Starting quarterback Ryan Tannehill was out for the Titans, and they didn’t have their freight train running back Derrick Henry in the lineup either due to a hip injury. Tennessee didn’t even play heralded rookie quarterback Malik Willis, instead choosing to go with their newly signed third-string QB Josh Dobbs.
Still, even with the odds stacked against them, there was fight in the Titans, who kept the game close. After forcing three turnovers in the first half, Tennessee was down just four points at the break. Christmas was over, but the Cowboys kept gifting the Titans early on. An erroneous QB-center exchange was the cause of one turnover, and a bobbled pass led to another.
There were other mistakes that kept things from getting out of hand. Normally sure-handed cornerback Trevon Diggs dropped an easy pick-six that could’ve broken the Titans’ spirits before halftime. Instead, the Cowboys allowed the Titans to stay in the game with the Dallas defense giving up big plays too often in the first 30 minutes.
Even with the miscues, the Cowboys were still in the lead and in control. Quarterback Dak Prescott did have a bad interception, but he also threw for 282 yards and two touchdowns. The passing game was clicking against a bad Titans passing defense and wide receiver CeeDee Lamb and tight end Dalton Schultz were the main benefactors.
Lamb had 11 catches for 100 yards, marking his third straight 100-yard game. That is the first time a Cowboys receiver has hit the century mark for three in a row since former WR Terrell Owens in 2007.
With Lamb getting the yards to move the chains, Schultz was catching the touchdowns. Schultz tied his season-high with seven receptions and scored twice in the second half.
As expected, with Tony Pollard on the sidelines and against a stout Titans’ run defense, the running game was having trouble moving the ball, so it was up to Prescott and the passing attack to guide the offense. Prescott also got more out of new target T.Y. Hilton, who caught four of his five looks for 50 yards. Three of those catches resulted in first downs.
Propelling the Cowboys to the win was efficiency in two areas where they have been excelling since Prescott returned from his early season injury. The offense was 8-13 on converting third downs and scored touchdowns on three of their four trips into the red zone. Winning in those two key areas helped get the Cowboys snatch a victory on a night where they weren’t at their best.
It was also a night where the Cowboys might have found their third cornerback. Second-year CB Nahshon Wright had a busy night, and he answered with his best performance since entering the NFL. Wright did allow a few big plays in the passing game, but he also had two pass breakups, a team-leading nine tackles, and came up with the game-clinching interception.
With the Cowboys up by 14 points, Wright made a leaping interception with just under six minutes left to play in the fourth quarter. The pick essentially sealed the game and was the second turnover forced by the Dallas defense.
Week 17 wasn’t a cakewalk for the Cowboys, who had to work to beat the banged-up Titans. If you’re looking for reasons for the struggle, it’s safe to assume it’s not easy to beat a rival and then muster up the energy to beat a team still in the playoff hunt on short rest, even if they were down some of their best players.
But even after spotting the Titans three turnovers, the Cowboys still managed to win by double-digits. Prescott still managed to play efficient football, running back Ezekiel Elliott still managed to score a touchdown for an eight consecutive game, Lamb still managed to reach 100 yards receiving, and the defense still managed to force multiple turnovers.
The Cowboys will take the win, get an extended rest before their regular season finale and hope that they still have a shot at the division in the final week of the season. Winning 12 games doesn’t happen often, and they certainly don’t happen in back-to-back seasons often enough in Dallas, with the last time coming during the 1994-1996 seasons.
It wasn’t as uproarious as the win against Philadelphia that gave fans a merry Christmas last week, but the Cowboys came through with an early Happy New Year in Week 17.
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