Prescott Guides Cowboys By Reeling Washington Commanders to Launch Holiday Three-Game Slate.
The Cowboys' quarterback accumulated 307 yards and two touchdowns, as Dallas blew most of an 18-point lead before squeezing past the Washington Commanders 30-23 on Thursday night.
Dallas (7-8-1) scored touchdowns on their initial three drives to build a 21-3 lead. Although the Commanders (4-12) narrowed the margin to a touchdown on three separate instances, they were unable to finish the comeback and absorbed their 10th loss in 11 games.
Both teams were already out from postseason consideration, which significantly reduced the importance of this contest between longtime NFC East rivals.
Prescott's Historic Outing
Prescott completed 19 of 37 passes and was instrumental on 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, including three coming from defensive tackle Jer’Zhan Newton.
Commanders' Quarterback Situation
Forced to play minus their top QBs Jayden Daniels (elbow) and Marcus Mariota (quad, hand), Washington turned to 39-year-old journeyman Josh Johnson. Making his 10th career start and his first in over two years, Johnson was 15 for 23 for 198 yards with no touchdowns or interceptions.
The Commanders' Scoring Drives
Jacory Croskey-Merritt scored on runs of 10 and 72 yards for Washington. The latter touchdown got the Commanders to 24-17 in the third quarter, but Dallas reclaimed a double-digit lead with a 52-yard field goal by Brandon Aubrey.
Aubrey added a 51-yarder to make it 30-20 with 3:59 remaining.
After Prescott threw to tight end Jake Ferguson on the first possession, Johnson went 3 for 3 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 Possessions
On their next drive, the Cowboys successfully executed three fourth downs on a 17-play march that ended with a touchdown run by Javonte Williams. Prescott then completed the hat-trick in three drives with an 86-yard scoring pass to KaVontae Turpin.
