Prescott Leads Cowboys Past Reeling Commanders to Kick Off Christmas Three-Game Slate.
The Cowboys' quarterback threw for 307 yards and two touchdowns, and the Dallas Cowboys blew most of an 18-point lead before edging the Washington Commanders 30-23 on Thursday night.
Dallas (7-8-1) scored touchdowns on their first three possessions to go up 21-3 lead. Washington, falling to 4-12, closed the deficit to a touchdown on three different occasions, they couldn’t complete the comeback and suffered their tenth defeat in 11 games.
Both teams were previously eliminated from playoff contention, which severely lessened the importance of this matchup between historic 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, tying Tony Romo’s record of four seasons with 30 or more touchdown passes.
The signal-caller endured six sacks, with three coming from defensive tackle Jer’Zhan Newton.
Commanders' QB Dilemma
Forced to play minus their top QBs Jayden Daniels (elbow) and Marcus Mariota (quad, hand), Washington called upon 39-year-old journeyman Josh Johnson. In his 10th NFL start and first since 2021, Johnson was 15 for 23 for 198 yards with no touchdowns or interceptions.
Washington's Offensive Highlights
Jacory Croskey-Merritt found paydirt with runs of 10 and 72 yards for Washington. The latter touchdown got the Commanders to 24-17 in the third quarter, but Dallas restored its double-digit lead with a 52-yard field goal by kicker Brandon Aubrey.
Aubrey added a 51-yarder to extend the lead to 30-20 with 3:59 remaining.
Following a Prescott touchdown pass to tight end Jake Ferguson on the first possession, Johnson completed three passes for 68 yards to get Washington to 7-3. A crucial connection was a 41-yard completion to Deebo Samuel, Johnson’s biggest play since 2018.
Dallas' Methodical Drives
On their second possession, the Cowboys successfully executed three fourth downs on a lengthy, 17-play drive that culminated in a touchdown run by Javonte Williams. Prescott then completed the hat-trick in three drives with an 86-yard scoring pass to KaVontae Turpin.
