ARLINGTON, Texas – After an 0-1 start to the season in New York, it was paramount that the Cowboys return to AT&T Stadium and get to .500.

And they did on Sunday afternoon, defeating the Commanders 37-20. Cowboys owner/GM Jerry Jones was able to breathe a sigh of relief because of it.

"It would've been hard to walk down here and talk to y'all tonight 0-2," Jones said. "I really was worried about what it was going to be like if we did end up 0-2. I can't say that I was a color of strength in my mentality coming into the game because I've got a lot of respect for the coaching over on the Washington Commanders side. Having said all of that, this was a very important win for us, important to these guys who put the work in, the coaching staff, for Brian, and I'm really proud of them."

The Cowboys offense found their rhythm for the most part back on home turf, with Dak Prescott throwing for 279 yards and four touchdowns as well as Brandon Aubrey hitting three field goals from 25, 44 and 60.

But it was Dallas' defense, despite giving up more yards to Washington than the Cowboys posted themselves offensively, that gave Jones some confidence as the night went along.

"We're better than we've been in the last two years on defense," Jones said. "And offensively, we saw some really impressive things tonight. And I want to give Washington a lot of credit for what they do defensively, but I like some things that I saw out there."

That said, Jones understands the Cowboys defense will still need time to come together. With Prescott's success and the offense being able to put points on the scoreboard, that may allow them some time to find their footing.

"We all know what he means to the team, the success of the team, and we've got to build the complimentary things around that to take advantage of what he can do," Jones said of building off Prescott's play. "And we've done that to a big degree. I was really pleased with the way our offensive line [played], I saw some good things out there tonight with Guyton in particular. So I was pleased with the way they've played. Particularly, we've got to understand we're working with a work in progress over on defense, but it was a lot better."

Prescott was the center point of an emotional night in Arlington, as he surpassed Tony Romo to become the franchise's all-time leader in touchdown passes with 249. Jones credited Prescott's work ethic for helping him reach the top of yet another Cowboys quarterback record.

"I just think it's such a statement for how he did it, how he does it," Jones said. "And he does it with hard, hard work. He makes it look pretty easy out there, but anybody that knows it, you guys that see him at practice and training camp, knows that he's the hardest working guy on the team. I'm proud for him, and boy he stands in with pretty good company to have broken that record."

On the receiving end of Prescott's record-setting touchdown throw was CeeDee Lamb, who caught two touchdowns from Prescott on Sunday to pair with 153 yards on eight total receptions. Jones saw a man on a mission in Lamb.

"CeeDee was just driven, it looked like," Jones said. "Looked like everything he was doing was a part of his destiny, if you will, about today. I think he was out here to show everybody what he means to the Cowboys, what kind of career he's had. It's a great way to put that on the cake, and at the same time, Dak break Cowboy records."

After opening the year on the wrong foot, Jones felt his team came out to show the world what it meant to play the Cowboys brand of football in 2026.

"I'm so proud of the team, the coaches rising to the occasion. It was very important to us," Jones said. "What I think the team did was basically do what it's been doing all spring and training camp. We did it against New York, and they stuck it up our you-know-what. Tonight, the thing we've been working on all this time, were more apparent. They stayed with the plan, and I think the results speak for it…"

"I didn't feel in any way that this thing was going to be a given right at the end of the first half. I felt that they would adjust and we had a lot of football left. But really proud of these guys, because it was important to us to have a good taste in our fan's mouth to be here for the opening game of this year in front of our fans, home fans, all of that means a lot."

The Cowboys will look to build on that momentum next Sunday in their first regular season international game since 2014 against the Baltimore Ravens in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.