Prescott Pilots Dallas Cowboys By Reeling Washington Commanders to Launch Christmas Three-Game Slate.
Dak Prescott passed for 307 yards and a pair of scoring strikes, as Dallas blew most of an 18-point lead before narrowly defeating the Washington Commanders 30-23 Thursday.
Dallas (7-8-1) found the end zone on their initial three drives to establish a 21-3 lead. Although the Commanders (4-12) narrowed the margin to a touchdown on three separate instances, they couldn’t complete the comeback and suffered their 10th loss in 11 games.
Each squad were previously eliminated from playoff contention, which significantly reduced the importance of this contest between longtime NFC East rivals.
The Quarterback's Historic Outing
Prescott completed 19 of 37 passes and helped Dallas convert all six of its fourth-down tries. His two TD passes gave him 30 for the season, matching the franchise record of four seasons with at least 30 touchdown passes.
Prescott shrugged off six sacks, including three credited to Jer’Zhan Newton.
Washington's QB Dilemma
Forced to play minus injured quarterbacks Jayden Daniels (elbow) and Marcus Mariota (quad, hand), Washington turned to 39-year-old journeyman Josh Johnson. In his 10th NFL start and first since 2021, Johnson went 15 for 23 for 198 yards with no touchdowns or interceptions.
The Commanders' Scoring Drives
Jacory Croskey-Merritt scored on runs of 10 and 72 yards for Washington. The latter touchdown got the Commanders to 24-17 in the second half, but Dallas reclaimed a double-digit lead with a 52-yard kick by kicker Brandon Aubrey.
Aubrey added a 51-yarder to extend the lead to 30-20 with 3:59 remaining.
After Prescott threw to tight end Jake Ferguson on the game’s opening drive, Johnson completed three passes for 68 yards to get Washington to 7-3. The key play was a 41-yard pass to Deebo Samuel, Johnson’s longest since 2018.
Cowboys' Sustained Drives
On their next drive, the Cowboys converted three fourth downs on a lengthy, 17-play drive that ended with a touchdown run by Javonte Williams. Prescott then made it three TDs in three drives with an 86-yard touchdown strike to KaVontae Turpin.
