This was the season the Dallas Cowboys were expected to do something in the NFL playoffs. The NFL stats showed the Cowboys had the team to possibly bring the franchise’s first Super Bowl since 1996 back to the Lone Star State.
However, the Cowboys season has come to an end. The biggest issue is Dak Prescott and the fans blaming the referees for the loss. The referees had nothing to do with the Cowboys’ loss. Dallas is now on vacation because they did not show up against an inferior San Francisco 49ers squad.
Cowboys Season Ends
The game ended on a run from Prescott that began with 14 seconds remaining. The Cowboys needed a touchdown to win, and Mike McCarthy called a designed quarterback run. Prescott slid and did not have time to spike the ball.
This is partially because he tried to snap the football without allowing the referee to touch the football. There are a lot of people to blame, but the officials are not the reason Dallas is done.
Kyle Shanahan and the 49ers bench rushed the field as time expired, and the Cowboys thought they should have been given one final snap to win.
Following the win, the media asked Shanahan about the game’s final few seconds.
“I’m still trying to figure out where I’m at. It’s pretty emotional out there. Lots of opportunities to win the game. Those guys (Cowboys) just kept fightin’. We made a couple mistakes there at the end. We shouldn’t have let it get there.”
The 49ers will now advance to the NFC Divisional Round game to face the Green Bay Packers. The Packers are coming off a bye, so the money should be on Green Bay.
The second half appeared like it would be all Niners, but this did not end up being the case. Dallas deserves credit for fighting back, but they showed up too late to the party.
Deebo Samuel had a 26-yard rushing touchdown to give the team a 23-7 lead in the third quarter. The fourth quarter belonged to the Cowboys as they scored ten unanswered points.
This season will mark the 27th year that the Cowboys have not reached the NFC Championship Game.
Cowboys Mistakes
The story of this game was all the mistakes made by the Dallas Cowboys. Dallas was the most penalized team in football heading into the game, and they exceeded these bad expectations. The team had 14 penalties for 89 yards.
However, this was not the worst stat for the Cowboys. The team gave the Niners four first downs on penalties. San Francisco only gave the Cowboys one first down by a penalty. This occurred when the Niners roughed the kicker on a punt deep in Dallas territory.
Although, the Cowboys were unable to make anything out of the extra life given by the Niners. Another problem for Dallas was in the trenches.
The Cowboys, who has been good on the line of scrimmage this season, were dominated inside by the Niners on both sides of the ball. The Cowboys gave up five sacks for 40 yards compared to San Francisco, who gave up no sacks. They limited the negative plays and converted on fourth down.
When it came to running the ball, the 49ers dominated inside. They ran for 169 yards on 38 attempts. Dallas only had 77 rushing yards. The Cowboys won the yardage battle, but their inability to run the ball cost the team. They did not control the clock at any point in the game.
The most sickening part of the game was how the whole franchise blamed others for their loss. Following the game, McCarthy was asked about the game.
He said, “The communication that I was given on the sideline was they were reviewing it. They were going to put time back on the clock. And the next thing I know, they’re running off the field.”
Dallas can blame the referees, but this will not change the fact their season is over.
