Prescott Guides Cowboys By Struggling Commanders to Launch Holiday Triple-Header.
The Cowboys' quarterback passed for 307 yards and a pair of scoring strikes, as Dallas blew most of an 18-point lead before edging the Washington Commanders 30-23 on Thursday night.
The Cowboys, now 7-8-1, scored touchdowns on their first three possessions to go up 21-3 lead. Washington, falling to 4-12, cut the gap to a touchdown on three different occasions, they were unable to finish the comeback and suffered their tenth defeat in 11 games.
Each squad were already out from postseason consideration, which greatly diminished the stakes of this contest between longtime NFC East rivals.
The Quarterback's Record-Tying Performance
Prescott completed 19 of 37 passes and helped Dallas convert all six of its fourth-down tries. His pair of touchdown throws gave him 30 for the season, equaling Tony Romo’s record of four seasons with at least 30 touchdown passes.
Prescott shrugged off six sacks, with three credited to Jer’Zhan Newton.
Washington's QB Dilemma
Playing without injured quarterbacks 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 no touchdowns or interceptions.
Washington's Scoring Drives
Jacory Croskey-Merritt found paydirt with runs of 10 and 72 yards for Washington. The 72-yard scamper got the Commanders to 24-17 in the third quarter, but Dallas reclaimed a double-digit lead with a 52-yard field goal by Brandon Aubrey.
The kicker later nailed a 51-yarder to extend the lead to 30-20 with 3:59 remaining.
Following a Prescott touchdown pass 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 pass to Deebo Samuel, Johnson’s longest since 2018.
Dallas' Methodical Possessions
On their next drive, the Cowboys converted three fourth downs on a 17-play march that ended with a touchdown run by Javonte Williams. Prescott then completed the hat-trick in three drives with an 86-yard scoring pass to KaVontae Turpin.