Pic 6: Penalties, big plays haunt Cowboys in 44-24 loss to Broncos

Under Duress

The Cowboys knew coming in that they were going up against the best pass rush unit in the NFL in the Denver Broncos. Denver had 34 sacks, eight more than the next closest team in the NFL, going into Week 8.

Denver constantly was in the back field, making things difficult for the Cowboys offensive line. Dak Prescott was sacked twice, and the Denver defense recorded 21 total pressures on Prescott over the course of the afternoon.

While facing pressure, Prescott was able to complete six of his 11 passing attempts for 62 yards and an interception. He was also able to escape the pocket and scramble more than he wanted, finishing with six rushes for 31 yards and actually leading the Cowboys rushing attack in yards per carry.

Dallas' Defensive Depth

Coming into the game, the Cowboys were already very shorthanded, especially in the secondary. They entered the game without Trevon Diggs, Donovan Wilson and Juanyeh Thomas, meaning they'd have to turn to Markquese Bell and Alijah Clark to start at safety and Trikwese Bridges at corner. Additionally, Jack Sanborn was ruled out following a pregame work out and did not play.

Well, things initially got off to a good start as Bridges got his first NFL interception on the opening drive off a missed throw from Bo Nix. After that though, it was tough sledding for the Cowboys defense, especially because they had to move so much personnel around.

In the third quarter, Clark left the game with a rib injury, meaning the Cowboys would have to move Reddy Stewart to safety in his place, as there weren't many more options available for Dallas deep in the secondary. They certainly hope to get healthier on the back end ahead of their home matchup against the Cardinals.

Out of Sorts

The Cowboys' offense, which came into Week 8 as the #1 offense in the league in yards per game, had one of their worst offensive showings of the season against one of the league's best defenses.

Dallas finished with 339 total yards and 24 points on the afternoon, but could never seem to find a consistent rhythm on the ground or through the air. Javonte Williams had two rushing touchdowns, but the Cowboys finished with just 108 net rushing yards on 31 carries, good for 3.5 yards per carry.

In the passing game, Dak Prescott's four-game streak of not throwing an interceptions came to an end with two picks thrown against the Broncos defense, one to Jahdae Barron and one to Dondrea Tillman. Overall, it wasn't a day that anybody was satisfied with for Dallas.

"Frustrating," Dak Prescott said when describing the loss. "What we've been doing, what we're capable of doing, didn't really ever get it going."

The Big Play

The Broncos finished with 11 plays that went for 10 or more yards, with two of their touchdowns coming on explosive plays as well.

The big play has been something that Dallas' defense has largely looked to take away under Matt Eberflus' defense, but has been unable to do so consistently. Another issue today was the aforementioned lack of personnel available, as DaRon Bland and Kaair Elam were the only two regular starters in the lineup for Dallas.

"Just a lot of inconsistencies, just something that we've got to continue to stay together and correct at the end of the day." Kenny Clark said of the defense postgame.

Homecoming

Javonte Williams did not make much of his return to Denver in the week leading up to Sunday, and was focused on the task at hand instead.

Still, his teammates had his back throughout the week and wanted to make sure he put out a good performance against the team that drafted him back in 2021. In the end, Williams finished with 13 carries and 41 yards to go along with two touchdowns, good for just 3.2 yards per carry, and his longest rush coming on just nine yards. It was an overall frustrating afternoon for Dallas, as they continue to have inconsistencies running the football in some games.

Penalty Problems

From early on in the first quarter, it was very clear that penalties would be a role in this game for the Cowboys. As things went on, they only got worse and worse. There were plenty more penalties that weren't accepted because of explosive plays from the Broncos offense and big plays from Denver's defense, but the accepted total finished out at nine for Dallas that was good for 80 penalty yards. Brian Schottenheimer has said in the past that he's okay with penalties that come as a result of maybe being a bit aggressive on plays, but isn't as tolerant on procedural penalties, of which there were many on Sunday.

Coming into Week 8, Dallas was seventh in the NFL in penalties with 58.