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The Dallas Cowboys are winners of six in a row and didn’t suffer a loss throughout the entire month of October. As the cooler weather is starting to arrive, life is good for America’s Team.
Sunday night marked the latest victory for the Cowboys as they emerged from their bye for a road date against the Minnesota Vikings who were also fresh off of an off week. Dallas dealt with questions all week as to whether or not their star quarterback would play in Dak Prescott and ultimately rested QB1 for the purposes of the greater good.
We broke down everything that happened during Sunday night’s win on The Postgame on the Blogging The Boys podcast network. Make sure to subscribe to our network so you don’t miss any of our shows! Apple devices can subscribe here and Spotify users can subscribe here.
Dallas had their cake and ate it too as Cooper Rush helped lead them to victory. There were many people who played a hand in the latest Cowboys win and we are here to discuss them all in greater detail.
It’s time for winners, losers, and honorable mentions. Buckle up.
Winner: Mike McCarthy
This win reminded me of another Mike McCarthy win, one that hurt a lot of us deeply.
You will recall McCarthy bringing a Green Bay Packers team to AT&T Stadium in December of 2013 without Aaron Rodgers at quarterback. You will also remember that it was Matt Flynn who started at quarterback for them that day, and that he helped engineer a comeback after the Cowboys led 26-3 at halftime.
Those are the types of losses that always stung for the Cowboys, the types where you wondered how other teams managed to find a way to deal with adversity like that. Well my friends, we have arrived on the other side and Sunday night was the welcome party to it.
Mike McCarthy rolled his dice on playing Cooper Rush at quarterback and came out as the top winner. The way that this team played without their primary leader was something that simply would not have happened under previous regimes.
Good for Mike McCarthy and his staff.
Winner: Cooper Rush
How could we forget the man of the hour?!
Truth be told Cooper Rush is a rather important person as far as recent Cowboys history is concerned. It was his beating out Kellen Moore in 2017 that helped propel Kellen into the coaching profession, something that we are all grateful for. It is certainly interesting to look back on the events of the last 20 or so months and remember that Dallas cut Rush only to bring him back and eventually lean on him.
While he did not have a shred of experience to lean on Rush was exactly what the Cowboys needed on Sunday night. He was the ideal backup quarterback. Cooper proved his worth to the team and helped keep the group’s chances at something bigger happening this season all the more alive.
Winner: Randy Gregory
We have reached the point where Randy might be the undisputed best defensive player on the Cowboys. He is remarkable.
Dallas has a dominating edge rusher that impacts game after game and in the case of Randy Gregory also draws some suspect penalties (seriously, what was that?).
The Cowboys stood by Randy’s side off of the field for all of this time which is admirable, but they also believed in who he could be as a football player. He continues to prove them right.
Winner: Cedrick Wilson
The emergence of Cedrick Wilson last season was cut short when Dak Prescott was injured, but Michael Gallup’s absence lately has provided more opportunities for him to shine. And shine he has.
Wilson has played so well that many want to trade Michael Gallup (please stop it with that). He had the first huge play of the night on offense with his 73-yard touchdown against the Vikings and showed what kind of pop he can bring to things when he threw a pass to CeeDee Lamb.
Winner: Amari Cooper
Big players make big plays, and that’s all that Amari Cooper did on Sunday night.
Obviously the game-winner was incredible, but Amari was clutch all throughout the final drive. We can sit here and talk about how wonderful other elements of this team’s offense are but Amari Cooper being elite remains one of the most inevitable qualities of it.
Winner: Micah Parsons
It is difficult to remember what this defense was like without Micah Parsons. The energy that he brings is - to be frank - something that this group was sorely missing.
Micah had four TFLs in this game. Four! He is an unstoppable force that opposing offenses are having to specifically gameplan around now.
Loser: Bradlee Anae
Ultimately the Cowboys won and that’s what matters most, but they did so by a margin of four points.
Bradlee Anae jumped offsides on a Vikings punt that would have seen Dallas get the ball. By committing his penalty Anae breathed life into a Vikings drive that netted them three points. Those are mistakes that cannot happen.
Loser: Ty Nsekhe
It should be said that replacing Tyron Smith is not an easy chore, but Ty Nsekhe really struggled when he was called upon during this game. Many thought Nsekhe would be the team’s primary swing tackle this season and that reality was put to bed by Terence Steele, thankfully La’el Collins is now available if the Cowboys have to deal without Tyron for a while.
Loser: Tyron Smith
Speaking of... after the game it was reported that Tyron was dealing with an ankle sprain which obviously puts his status in doubt for a bit. Time will tell how seriously it ultimately is.
Obviously when Tyron is available he is one of the best tackles on the planet and up until the New England game two weeks ago had been the pinnacle of health this season. His play is in no way meriting of being a loser, but the situation is now one that is a bit chaotic which is why we are here.
Loser: Tony Pollard and CeeDee Lamb
You can point to moments that they both had and hoist up their performances in this game, but they also both had some critical mistakes.
Tony Pollard missed a block that led to a Cooper Rush fumble and CeeDee Lamb had a huge drop on a third down. Those are mistakes that are easily avoidable and will cost the Cowboys against better teams.
Honorable Mention: Anthony Brown
Early in the game Anthony Brown fell down and Justin Jefferson got wide open (only to not make a catch due to Kirk Cousins overthrowing him), but he settled in and played well for the most part.
Often times Brown is compared to Trevon Diggs and therefore looked down upon by a lot of Cowboys fans. He is a stable presence in the secondary. Those are valuable.
Honorable Mention: Ezekiel Elliott
There is an argument to be made that Elliott deserves to be in the winners category for his huge third down conversion alone, but he had a really solid game overall, especially in pass protection.
Zeke continues to do what the team needs him to. His value cannot be overstated.
Honorable Mention: The defensive line
The Dallas Cowboys harassed Kirk Cousins all game long. We have already mentioned Randy Gregory but the likes of Tarrell Basham, Osa Odighizuwa, and Carlos Watkins were all in and around the action.
It is nice having depth. Really nice.
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