The Dallas Cowboys are now 2-1 after a deflating loss to the Arizona Cardinals, who went into the game with no wins on the season. QB Dak Prescott described the loss as humbling and broke down what led to the team’s downfall.
How Penalties Kept the Cowboys From Secuing a Victory
An undisciplined and sloppy game on all sides of the ball showed all of the Cowboys’ weaknesses on full display. One of the biggest downfalls of the game was the amount of penalties the Cowboys had, racking up 13 for 107 yards.
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According to the Fox broadcast, that was the most by an NFC team in 11 years.
Prescott acknowledged the self-inflicted wounds that the penalties created for the team, saying, “We’re able to overcome some of them. But even when you’re able to overcome them, I think that’s just you’re making it hard on yourself, and you’re taking yourself out of that rhythm. And it was tough, and obviously, we couldn’t overcome it.”
Red-Zone Struggles Continue
Another domino effect of the penalties was keeping Dallas behind the chains, which made it hard enough to get down to the red zone.
However, the Cowboys’ offense was one of five for successful trips to the red zone.
Prescott acknowledged this as being a reoccurring issue for the team, noting, “Obviously, that’s an area that we haven’t been good in these last two weeks. And even with the win last week, that was the sore spot in the win. And obviously, look at this loss. Move the ball up and down the field and just couldn’t score. And so that’s your reason for this loss.”
The quarterback said they need to get back to the drawing board to figure it out, but it starts with him making plays, big throws, and being more mobile.
The only receiving touchdowns the team has is with tight ends and running backs. No receivers have caught a touchdown this year.
When asked about it, Prescott stated, “We’re taking attempts. We just have to convert, simple as that.”
Dak Prescott Did What He Could With What He Had
Prescott had a decent game, considering three of his starting offensive linemen were inactive.
“They fought their asses off. I thought they did a great job, gave me enough time, allowed us to move the ball up and down the field. We didn’t convert in the red zone. That’s the story of this game, period,” Prescott said when asked how Chuma Edoga, T.J. Bass, and Brock Hoffman played in this game.
The offensive line changes led to Prescott releasing the ball as quickly as possible. He finished with 255 passing yards on 25 completions of 40 attempts, which gave him a 78.0 rating.
After weeks of the critics staying quiet about interceptions, Prescott recorded his first of the season, which ended the game.
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He said he knew it would be a tough throw, as he tried to get the ball behind Arizona LB Kyzir White’s ear.
He said that the team was well aware of the adversity they were facing, but ultimately, they didn’t get the job done. He blamed himself and the offense in the red zone.
How the Cowboys Move Forward Now
Regarding how the team moves forward, the quarterback said they’re staying in the moment because that’s who they are as a team.
“Obviously, we’ve had a lot of adversity just throughout the week, and it wasn’t easy. Nobody was making excuses. We thought we had a great opportunity to come in here, even with the adversity, and get a win. And we didn’t,” said Prescott, who admitted resetting after a loss is easier than resetting after a win.
When asked if this was a wake-up call after everyone built them up within the first two weeks of the season, Prescott said the media did that, and they always knew who they were.