The Cowboys Raiders game on Thanksgiving day was one that was defined by stupid penalties, some questionable calls, and a few missed calls; but mostly, it can be summed up in two words by Cowboys fans; heart break. The Las Vegas Raiders (6-5) ended a three-game losing streak with their first Thanksgiving victory since 1968. It was their fourth appearance on the holiday since then, with the previous two losses coming at the expense of the Dallas Cowboys. For the Dallas Cowboys (7-4) it was a missed opportunity to gain some ground in the NFC seeding race. More importantly, it opens the door to the NFC East another inch or two giving hope to Philadelphia and Washington, when most fans thought the division was all but wrapped up for Dallas.
Raiders placekicker Daniel Carlson kicked a 29-yard field goal in overtime after Anthony Brown‘s fourth pass-interference penalty kept the drive alive, and the Las Vegas Raiders beat the Dallas Cowboys 36-33 on Thursday. The moment seemed to drag on forever as multiple penalties resulted in four consecutive game winning field goal attempts, the fourth being the dagger giving the Raiders a walk off win. The game winning kick was set up after Brown was called for interference on Zay Jones on third-and-18 after Micah Parsons single handedly took the Raiders well out of field goal range. All four of Brown’s interference penalties came on third-down incompletions. The final call was questionable, but Brown should have known better as the officials had been trigger happy all game. The rule which penalises defending players if they do not turn their head around, even if the offensive player initiates contact, is a lousy one. Nevertheless, Anthony Brown and the Dallas Cowboys should be well aware of it and there is no excuse for allowing it to happen in that situation. Allowing Derek Carr to sit back for an eternity and launch the deep ball on 3rd and 18 also proved to be a monumental error in judgement on the part of the Dallas Cowboys.
Many Cowboys fans were frustrated with the officiating in this one, and both Micah Parsons and head coach Mike McCarthy spoke out about it after the game. Both teams had season highs in penalties and yards. Dallas had 14 for 166 and Las Vegas 14 for 110. A lot of the penalties were a result of poor discipline on the part of both teams but overall I felt that it was overkill on the part of the officials. It really took away from the quality of the game and a far cry from the style of officiating in the previous game against Kansas City. That said, the Dallas Cowboys need to do a better job of adjusting to the situation by playing more physical if the refs allow it and backing off it they are going to get flagged. In this game, bringing some additional pressure on Derek Carr may have limited his ability to sit in the pocket and throw the ball down the field to benefit from some of those calls.
Officiating aside, the Dallas Cowboys really failed to take advantage in a very winnable game. The Dallas offense struggled early without top receivers Amari Cooper (COVID-19 protocols) and CeeDee Lamb (concussion). Running back Ezekiel Elliott was clearly impacted by his right knee injury and he couldn’t manage much in the run game. In the passing game, he was consistently thrown short passes in the open field and expected to try to make something happen on his own which he could not. Dak Prescott had 209 of his 375 yards passing in the fourth quarter. His 32-yard touchdown pass to Dalton Schultz and 2-point conversion toss to the tight end pulled the Cowboys even at 30 with 2:54 remaining after they trailed almost from the start. Then in overtime, a drive that started inside the Cowboys ten yard line resulted in the last of many uninspiring 3 and outs. On third down of that drive, Dak Prescott rolled out to the right and had Noah Brown wide open. The pass was behind Brown but it was still an easy catch for Brown. Brown, who has struggled with drops, couldn’t haul it in and so ended the Cowboys hopes of an overtime walk off victory.
The Raiders offense was able to move the ball at will against the Cowboys. The run game continues to be an issue for the Cowboys defense and Raiders were able to get chunks of yardage on the ground throughout the game. Derek Carr operated from a clean pocket for most of the game and had time to set his feet and throw all over the field. Early in the game, he hit long time Cowboys nemesis DeSean Jackson on 56 yard TD strike. Jackson didn’t celebrate in his usual manner but still made Cowboys fans blood boil as he is a notorious Cowboys killer. Jackson proceeded to kill the Cowboys further by drawing a couple of pass interference calls on poor Anthony Brown.
The overall effort by the Cowboys was solid. They fought and clawed back to force the game into overtime and had some players like Michael Gallup and Micah Parsons come up with some clutch plays when the Cowboys needed it most. Tony Pollard also came through with a 100 yard kickoff return for a touchdown in the second half. What killed the Cowboys in this one were costly mistakes. The referee’s have taken their share of the blame from Cowboys fans and there was just cause on a few occasions. Namely, the early fumble that was ruled an incomplete catch. The call on Micah Parsons for roughing the passer. A missed holding call on Micah Parsons that resulted in a big play for the Raiders, and few more along the way; but, in fairness the Raiders had some questionable calls go against them as well. The Cowboys made several inexcusable mistakes that cost them just as badly as some of those questionable calls. Repeat penalties like Micah Parsons lining up offside and C.J Goodwin unsuccessfully trying to time the Raiders snap count on the game winning field goal attempt were frustrating for Cowboys fans to see. This applies to the coaching staff as much as it does for the players. For Mike McCarty, the decision to take an extra point off the board and go for a 2 point conversion was a questionable one. The game surely would have played out differently had that extra point stood but it cannot be ignored when the game was tied at the end of regulation. Advanced analytics may dictate that it was the right decision statistically, but the psychological impact cannot be measured. Ultimately, just as the team is expected to overcome questionable officiating and injuries, they too must overcome questionable decisions and mistakes. Next week against the Saints, hopefully the injuries will be one less excuse as Amari Cooper, CeeDee Lamb, DeMarcus Ware, and Randy Gregory all have a shot at playing.
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