The Dallas Cowboys continue to struggle to win on the road and are now 10-5 after losing to the Miami Dolphins on Sunday.
During the game, Dallas’ offense had 253 receiving yards, 97 rushing yards, and two touchdowns. Although Dak Prescott said the team took a step forward in their production on offense from the week prior against the Buffalo Bills, it remains a loss they must build off of.
Cowboys’ Struggles Continue on the Road
With this loss, the Cowboys have sealed their fate to play on the road this postseason.
All five of Dallas’ losses have been on the road this season. There are still no answers to how the team looks so different on the road than at home.
With this being the first time the Cowboys have lost back-to-back losses this season, it’s getting difficult to find silver linings for the team’s fate on the road.
Prescott said this loss hurts, but the team still has confidence.
“The confidence is high in these guys. We understand that we can [win on the road]. Obviously, we haven’t done it, but we will, and the road forward looks like we will be going on the road,” said Prescott.
The Cowboys only have one road game left — against the Commanders in Week 18. Dak says the team wants to use a win in that game to carry into the postseason.
Prescott added that although there are no moral victories in this game, the Cowboys are committed to holding each other accountable.
Similarities in the Cowboys’ Losses
For the Cowboys to keep hope alive for the postseason, there are several issues to figure out that have all contributed to their losses. Almost all of Dallas’ losses come down to the same issues, which is worrisome since they continue to occur this late in the season.
The first is the lack of a run game, with all but one loss having less than 100 rushing yards. The loss against the Cardinals where they had 185 rushing yards was the only exception.
Outside of that game, the rushing attack with Tony Pollard and Rico Dowdle has had more than 100 yards in games Dallas has won. Yet, on the road, the offense struggles to get points on the board.
Of their five losses, the most points the Cowboys scored was 23 against the Eagles, a game they couldn’t pull off a win at the end — similar to their loss against the Dolphins. Prescott acknowledged the fact that Dallas must find a way to put up points after the loss to Miami.
As for the Cowboys’ defense, the unit can’t generate turnovers on the road. In all five losses, they didn’t create turnovers.
The issue isn’t putting pressure on the opposing quarterbacks but instead creating big plays that can either help score points or give momentum swings and get the ball back to the offense.
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Another consistent issue in these games has been costly penalties. The fewest penalties came in two of the losses — six against the Dolphins and 49ers.
But the Cowboys’ most penalized games were against the Cardinals, with 13 penalties for 107 yards, and against the Eagles, with 10 for 83 yards.
The Cowboys are second in the league for the most penalties, with 108 for 910 yards in 2,308 total plays.
To put in perspective how much the team is getting penalized, they’re ranked 16th in the league for the most amount of plays this season.
With two games left in the season, the Cowboys need to make adjustments or their downfalls could come back to haunt them and put a nail in the coffin for their season.
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