ARLINGTON, Texas – All games have those plays that can be easily lost among the plenty of highlights that occurred on Sunday.
Here are the five you can't forget about that played a big factor in the outcome.
Penalty negates NYG trick play – The Giants were bringing out all the stops and nearly pulled off a fake field goal for a touchdown just before the half. The game was tied at 17 and the Giants snuck Evan Engram down the field on a field goal for a touchdown catch. But on the other side of the field, a flag was thrown for New York having an illegal shift. The 5-yard penalty was assessed and the Giants still made a field goal, but it made the score 20-17 instead of the seven-point lead.
Penalty after CeeDee's catch – With the Cowboys driving just before the half, it seemed as if they were going for a field goal until CeeDee Lamb made a nice catch over the middle and was blasted by three defenders, including safety Adrian Colbert, who was flagged for a helmet-to-helmet hit at the 22-yard line with 23 seconds left. While the penalty moved the ball 11 yards to the 11, it also stopped the clock and kept the Cowboys' only timeout in their pocket. That allowed the team to still be aggressive and it led to a touchdown pass from Cedrick Wilson to Dak Prescott, which gave Dallas a 24-20 lead.
Another Giants TD nullified – For the second time, at the same spot on the field, the Giants seemingly had a touchdown catch that was called back due to a penalty. This time, the Giants were flagged for an illegal pick that freed up Darius Slayton for a 31-yard touchdown. The 10-yard penalty pushed the ball back to where the Giants eventually kicked another field goal after a 12-players-on-the-field penalty on Dallas. Still, wiping out a touchdown for New York proved to be costly for the Giants.
Dalton's first completion to Lamb – With the entire stadium trying to collect their breath after Prescott's scary injury, Andy Dalton came into the game and immediately took a 5-yard sack on his first snap. But on third-and-6 from the Giants' 23, Dalton connected with Lamb for an 11-yard completion to the 12. That seemed to calm down the offense enough for Ezekiel Elliott to score on the next play, giving Dallas a 31-23 lead.
Cooper provides breathing room – With the game tied at 34 in the final minute, the Cowboys had the ball on their own 12-yard line with 48 seconds left. At that point, the Giants could be thinking about getting a stop and getting a field goal. But, Dalton connected with Amari Cooper over the middle for 15 yards to the 27, followed by a timeout. That put the Cowboys in position to go win the game. Had it not been for that catch by Cooper, it would've been third-and-10 from the 12 and the Giants would've been in position to try and win it.
