Half a yard. There are four plays and 27 seconds remaining.
That was all that stood in the way of the Cowboys’ historic, game-changing triumph on Sunday.
And they actually withdrew from the situation.
three penalties: sack, incomplete pass, and delay of game. All of a sudden, third-and-26 at the 27 became first-and-five at the 6.
A pass that was completed four yards short of the endzone was the game’s last play.
Undoubtedly, the final series of downs was mishandled and prevented the Cowboys from winning by a large margin.
But this wasn’t the reason behind Dallas’ 28-23 defeat to the Eagles. There were a couple more variables at play.
SO MANY MISTAKES
Yes, it felt like the officials on Sunday heavily favored the Eagles. However, they weren’t the cause of the Cowboys’ defeat.
Passes that ought to have been intercepted—Michael Gallup, take note.
Passes that should have been thrown into the endzone, not short of it, are partly to blame too.
If the fourth quarter pass to Schoonmaker gets thrown a few inches higher it would have carried him in.
Instead, replay ruled that he was just short.
And why didn’t Dallas shoot a field goal on the inches-short ball to Schoonmaker on the fourth down?
They were down 11-0 and needed a field goal and another score to tie. Take the points whenever possible while driving.
Dallas didn’t, then attempted a missed two-point attempt to chase points later.
After that field goal, the score, and the unsuccessful two-point attempt, Dallas is only behind 28–26.
THE ATTACK
Despite playing well, Dallas’ defense gave up a touchdown to the Eagles on a drive that they were unable to stop on third down.
The Dallas defense was playing far too soft, allowing the Eagles to convert a second-and-23 on three consecutive pass completions.
It was formerly known as the “Prevent Victory” defense.
Three fumbles were forced by the defense, but none were recovered. After two of them, Philadelphia went on to score touchdowns.
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