Cowboys Country

3 winners & 4 losers from Cowboys humiliating loss in Week 8 vs 49ers

The Dallas Cowboys fell to 3-4 and we have 3 winners and 4 losers to highlight from their latest meltdown.

Randy Gurzi

Dallas Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott
Dallas Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott / Neville E. Guard-Imagn Images
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It was another rough outing for the Dallas Cowboys. They gave it all they had for the first 30 minutes, even going into the locker room with a 10-6 lead at the half.

Then, the third quarter began, and the San Francisco 49ers took over. They scored in the blink of an eye to take the lead back. That led to desperation for Dallas, which is a recipe for disaster for this team.

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Turnovers, penalties, and missed opportunities were the theme in the second half as the Cowboys fell to 3-4 despite a late comeback attempt. With this one behind them, let's identify some winners and losers for Dallas.

Loser: Terence Steele, RT

Cowboys offensive tackle Terence Steele
San Francisco 49ers defensive end Nick Bosa (97) rushes Dallas Cowboys offensive tackle Terence Steele (78) / Kyle Terada-Imagn Images

Jerry Jones is a confusing man. He drew out contract extensions for Dak Prescott and CeeDee Lamb this past offseason despite each coming off a career year. This is after he went out of his way to give an extension to Michael Gallup in 2022 following an ACL tear and one to Terence Steele in 2023 following the same injury.

Steele, who signed a five-year, $86.8 million extension, had developed into a great starter at right tackle. The problem is that he hasn't been the same player since returning from knee surgery. This Sunday was another example of Steele struggling to get the job done.

To be fair, he was facing Nick Bosa, but at $17 million per season, Steele is supposed to be able to hold his own.

Bosa spent the entire evening in the Dallas backfield. He had just one sack but added three quarterback hits, including one that led to a pick.

Winner: Chauncey Golston, DE

Dallas Cowboys defensive end Chauncey Golston
Dallas Cowboys defensive end Chauncey Golston / Kyle Terada-Imagn Images

With Micah Parsons, DeMarcus Lawrence, Marshawn Kneeland, and Sam Williams all injured, Dallas has been desperate for someone to step up on their defensive line. On Sunday night, Chauncey Golston did exactly that.

A third-round pick from Iowa in 2021, Goltson came into this game with 18 tackles and two sacks. He added five tackles to that total, as he had his name called all night. He even made a huge play that won't show up on the stat sheet.

With a 7-3 lead, Dallas appeared to have given up a 66-yard touchdown to Deebo Samuel. The busted coverage ended up being a moot point since Golston was held by tight end Eric Saubert. Golston would have recorded a sack on the play if not for the hold, but he still pushed the offense back 10 yards. He also made back-to-back stops in the run game on that same drive, helping the defense force a turnover on downs.

Loser: Donovan Wilson, S

Dallas Cowboys safety Donovan Wilson
Dallas Cowboys safety Donovan Wilson / Neville E. Guard-Imagn Images

George Kittle had his way with the Cowboys, which is a recurring trend. This weekend, he seemed to find himself matched up with Donovan Wilson often and it wasn't a fair fight. The worst example was on the opening drive in the third quarter when Kittle went for 30 yards on a catch and run.

Wilson wasn't just beaten on the route, but he couldn't bring his guy down. That's been the norm for him this season, and it might be time to see if Juanyeh Thomas can handle the job.

Dallas Cowboys linebacker DeMarvion Overshown
Dallas Cowboys linebacker DeMarvion Overshown / Neville E. Guard-Imagn Images

Winner: DeMarvion Overshown, LB

DeMarvion Overshown was able to stand out despite the loss. The second-year linebacker was flying all over the field and had eight tackles. He also nearly made a play that could have given his team the win.

Late in the fourth quarter, trailing 30-24, Dallas needed to get a stop to finish their comeback attempt. A seven-yard run on first down had the momentum meter pointing in the 49ers' direction but Overshown flipped it in the blink of an eye. He flew into the San Francisco backfield and drilled Brock Purdy from behind for a sack and a loss of seven yards.

Purdy nearly fumbled the ball but somehow held onto it. Had he lost it deep in his own territory, that might have set the Cowboys up for the win. Still, it was a great play from Overshown and did lead to a punt and one final chance for Dallas.

Loser: Mike McCarthy, Head Coach

Dallas Cowboys head coach Mike McCarthy
Dallas Cowboys head coach Mike McCarthy / Scott Galvin-Imagn Images

The Cowboys are a team known for piling up penalties, turning the ball over, and making mistakes in key moments. Simply put, they don't play smart football.

That all goes back to their head coach, Mike McCarthy.

Now in his fifth season, McCarthy continues to make baffling decisions. He did this from the opening drive as they elected to receive the ball after winning the coin toss. This is a common theme for McCarthy, who claims they want to "set the tone."

That tone is typically a porous first drive and a quick punt. That was the case again on Sunday as they gained just 16 yards before giving up the ball to the Niners — who moved down the field and took a 3-0 lead.

They also allowed the Niners to actually set the tone in the second half as they erased the 10-6 lead with a 60-yard scoring drive that took just five plays. Every fan knew what was coming when McCarthy took the ball first, and he remains the only one who hasn't caught on.

McCarthy also made things tougher on himself by going into this game with the belief that it was a good idea to have Terence Steele block Nick Bosa one-on-one. It doesn't take a genius to realize that wasn't going to work.

Dallas could be a much better team if there was more thought put into their planning. Or if they were to learn from the times they failed. That's not how they operate, however, and that's on McCarthy.

Winner: CeeDee Lamb, WR

Dallas Cowboys wide receiver CeeDee Lamb
Dallas Cowboys wide receiver CeeDee Lamb / Kelley L Cox-Imagn Images

The Cowboys' offense didn't offer much on Sunday, but CeeDee Lamb was one of the few exceptions. During the bye week, Lamb spoke on his slow start and the criticism he's been hearing. He was honest and said he would be better. On Sunday, he was.

Lamb caught nearly everything that came his way, even when the pass wasn't perfect. That led to his first 100-yard game of the season, and he scored two touchdowns as well — both in the fourth quarter.

Lamb ended the day with 146 yards and two touchdowns on 13 catches. It was an elite performance but not enough to carry the team to an improbable comeback.

Loser: Dak Prescott, QB

Dallas Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott
Dallas Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott / Kelley L Cox-Imagn Images

Week after week, we have heard Dak Prescott say he needs to be better. Week after week, he continues to struggle.

We're past the point of saying this is a slump as Prescott is in the midst of a terrible season. In seven games, he already has eight interceptions. Even worse, he's now had three games in a row with at least two picks.

While interceptions happen, the turnovers from Dak are 100 percent avoidable. His first in this game is one example. With pressure right in his face, Prescott tried to go deep for KaVontae Turpin, who had several defenders around him. The pressure kept him from getting as much air under the pass as he wanted, and Ji'Ayir Brown came down with the ball.

In the third quarter, he again made an awful decision. Trailing 13-10, Prescott rolled to his left and threw an ill-advised pass on third-and-four. Demmodore Lenoir was in front of CeeDee Lamb, but Prescott still threw the ball, which never had a chance.

A late comeback attempt found Dallas with a chance to win, but again, Prescott failed to deliver. He nearly threw a pick on the first attempt before throwing three more incompletions to seal the loss. All four attempts on the drive were questionable decisions, especially a desperation bomb for Jalen Brooks of all people on fourth-and-10.

We can find any excuse we want. It's true that Jerry Jones failed this offseason and didn't put together a good enough roster. Dallas has also dealt with several injuries that have impacted them.

Having said that, Prescott is the highest-paid player in the league, so his team should be able to lean on him. That hasn't been the case, and it's getting tougher to find a way to defend his poor play and failures in the high-pressure moments.

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Randy Gurzi
RANDY GURZI

Arizona State grad

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