Dallas Cowboys Trail San Francisco 49ers At Halftime As Defense Has No Answers

The Dallas Cowboys found a bit of rhythm groove after a disastrous first quarter, but still find themselves behind the San Francisco 49ers after 30 minutes.

The Dallas Cowboys came into Sunday night's matchup against the San Francisco 49ers at Levi's Stadium looking to shed their demons, as their past two seasons came to an end at the hands of their opponent.

Through one half, though, the Cowboys haven't found the answers they were looking for as they trail 21-7 heading into the locker room.

The first quarter was an outright disaster for the Cowboys, as they couldn't get anything going on either side of the ball. After San Francisco marched down the field on its first drive, Dallas' own offense was stuck in neutral. In their three first-quarter drives, the Cowboys had just seven plays for six yards with two three-and-outs and a fumble. For comparison, the 49ers had eight first downs in the first quarter alone.

Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott goes down on a sack during Sunday's game

Once the second quarter rolled around, the Cowboys began to settle in a bit on offense. They put together quite the impressive drive, marching 78 yards on 11 plays while chewing five and a half minutes of game time. Dallas capped off the drive with a great play, with Dak Prescott throwing a rainbow ball to receiver KaVontae Turpin for a 26-yard touchdown.

Prescott completed 10 of 16 passes for 85 yards and the aforementioned touchdown, although he was also sacked three times. Meanwhile, Dallas' running game has struggled to get going with just 21 yards on seven carries.

Defensively, the Cowboys are still searching for answers against the 49ers' arsenal of weapons. San Francisco has moved the ball very well against the mighty Dallas defense, racking up 212 yards in the half. The 49ers have also dominated time of possession, holding the ball for over 19 minutes compared to just over 10 for the Cowboys.

One of few bright spots for the Cowboys' defense came at the start of the second quarter, when they forced a fumble with their backs against the wall to stop a promising 49ers drive.

San Francisco quarterback Brock Purdy had an efficient half, completing nine of 15 passes for 133 yards and two touchdowns. Tight end George Kittle has been a monster, with 57 yards and two touchdowns on as many receptions. Running back Christian McCaffrey had 13 carries for 35 yards and a touchdown, marking the 14th straight game he has found the end zone.

The Cowboys will get the ball to start the second half, hoping to close the gap even more.