Cowboys Country

Cowboys 44, Giants 20: Top 10 Whitty Observations

Despite a sluggish start, Dak Prescott and the Cowboys buried bad memories and steamrolled the outmanned Giants

Richie Whitt

10. DOWNSIZED GIANTS - Injuries significantly shrunk the Giants. The Cowboys entered Sunday the better, more talented team playing at home. Their advantage grew immense in the first half. The Giants, who came in 1-3 and without two of their leading receivers (Sterling Shepard and Darius Slayton), lost star running back Saquon Barkley to a sprained ankle in the first quarter and quarterback Daniel Jones to a concussion in the second. Without their top three offensive weapons - they also lost receiver Kenny Golladay to a knee injury - the Giants were forced to resort to Mike Glennon at quarterback and Devontae Booker at running back. In other words, not enough firepower for the best team in the NFC East.

9. OU STILL SCORING IN 'DALLAS' - CeeDee Lamb's 49-yard touchdown catch early in the second quarter was seemingly a continuation of what occurred Saturday in North Texas. Lamb's alma mater - the Oklahoma Sooners - shredded the Texas Longhorns' defense for 662 yards and 55 points to win their annual Red River Showdown at the Cotton Bowl. A day later, with his Cowboys bumbling to only an early 3-0 lead, Lamb effortlessly sped past the Giants' double-coverage and caught Dak Prescott's perfect bomb in stride for an easy score. Boomer Sooner, Act II. 

8. MEN WATCHING 'BOYS - Spotted in a luxury suite munching popcorn together were two of the greatest all-time Dallas Mavericks: Luka Doncic and Dirk Nowitzki.

7. SLOW START - Cowboys entered as the NFL's highest-scoring team in the first quarter with 42 points. But the first 15 minutes were a complete mess. Prescott threw an interception and was just 3 of 8. Tight end Dalton Schultz dropped a pass in the end zone that he had both hands on. The Cowboys failed on a 4th-and-2 in Giants' territory. Then, to cap off the comedy of errors, Prescott bobbled and booted a decent-but-not perfect shotgun snap for a fumble inside New York's 10. Despite the two turnovers and array of miscues, Dallas somehow led, 3-0.

6. JABRIL FOR JAYLON - Didn't take long for rookie linebacker Jabril Cox to make an impact, and make us diminish the departure of Jaylon Smith. Late in the first half, Jones sneaked out left on a naked bootleg and appeared headed for an easy path to the end zone. But Cox's speed ran him down and the fourth-round draft choice from LSU delivered a ferocious tackle that not only stopped Jones short of scoring, but also knocked him woozy and out of the game. Just for grins, Cox recovered an onside kick to protect Dallas' late 14-point lead.

5. SNAP TO IT - We regularly bemoan center Tyler Biadasz' lack of strength. But Sunday it was lack of snaps. Prescott spent most of the afternoon reaching, grabbing and lurching for snaps that threw off the rhythm of the offense. Biadasz may not have been throwing wild pitches, but he was certainly wild in the strike zone. 

4. ANKLE ANNIVERSARY - It was 52 Sundays ago - Oct. 11, 2020 - that Prescott suffered the gruesome, season-ending ankle injury. Sunday he played on the same field. In the same Week 5. Against the same opponent. With vastly different results. After a wobbly start that included an interception and a fumble on Dallas' first three possessions, Prescott finished 22 of 32 for 302 yards and three touchdowns. Most importantly, he left this Giants' game with a smile - and without a cart.

3. ALL SYSTEMS GO - For the third time in three home games, the Cowboys' offense essentially did what it wanted, when it wanted. In a seven-possession stretch midway through the game, the Cowboys scored four touchdowns, a field goal and fumbled at New York's 1. They punctuated their dominance with a nine-play, 98-yard drive that overcame a 15-yard penalty and pushed the lead to 34-13 midway through the fourth quarter. Like the Philadelphia Eagles and Carolina Panthers before them, the Giants had no clue how to stop the Cowboys' diversified offense that implemented two passers, five rushers and seven receivers. With Sunday's 44 points and 515 yards, Dallas averaged 40 points and 446 yards in three home wins by an average of 17 points. The scary thing? Dallas is still operating without starting right tackle La'el Collins and receiver Michael Gallup.

2. DIGGIN' IT - Ho hum, Cowboys' cornerback Trevon Diggs had another interception. Not only did he snatch his league-leading sixth pick of the season on a deep throw by Glennon in the third quarter, he came within a whisker - okay, maybe a toe-tap - of having one, possibly two more. It's not just that Diggs is in position to make plays. It's that he always sees the ball with the eyes and catches the ball with his hands. Sounds simple enough, but watch enough NFL games and you know that's a rare combination for a cornerback. Back to his rookie season, Diggs has nine interceptions in his last 10 games. Not to be outdone for one afternoon at least, Anthony Brown produced a 45-yard Pick Six with 1:28 remaining.

1. CRUSIN' COWBOYS - Prescott is now 12-1 in his last 13 starts against the NFC East and has won his last eight starts against the Giants ... Cowboys have won four in a row for the first time since a five-game winning streak late in 2018 and are 4-1 for the first time since 2016 ... With the blowout win that easily covered the 7.5-point spread, Dallas is now 5-0 against the line. Even Cowboys' bettors are having a successful year.

Published
Richie Whitt
RICHIE WHITT

Home/News