Leave it to the Dallas Cowboys to provide excitement when you absolutely least expect it, in a season where they haven’t provided much excitement at all.
On the road Sunday facing longtime NFC East Division rival Washington, Dallas led, 27-26, with 21 seconds left in the game. Jayden Daniels hit Terry McLaurin for an 86-yard touchdown for that one-point lead. And it was a one-point lead because Austin Seibert missed the extra point.
The Commanders tried an onside kick, but Dallas’s Juanyeh Thomas grabbed it at the Washington 43, and returned it all the way for a score.
That gave Dallas a 34-26 lead with 14 seconds left, and the eventual final score.
Of note:
- The Cowboys and Commanders combined for 31 points in the final four minutes of the game.
- Dallas’s KaVonte Turpin had a 99-yard kickoff return for a score.
- According to the Associated Press, the game was the first in NFL history to have two kickoff returns for scores, a blocked punt and two missed extra points.
- Streaks on opposing ends of the spectrum: Dallas ended a five-game losing streak and Washington’s continued, as the Commanders (7-5) lost their third straight game.
Dallas backup quarterback Cooper Rush, starting for Dak Prescott (out for the season after surgery), went 24-of-32 for 247 yards and two scores, to Jalen Tolbert and Luke Schoonmaker.
The Cowboys (4-7) will host another division rival, the swooning New York Giants, this Thanksgiving Thursday on FOX, a 3:30 p.m. kickoff.
Washington will host the Tennessee Titans on Sunday at noon on CBS.
