In what was the biggest game of the day, the Dallas Cowboys were thoroughly humiliated by the San Francisco 49ers in front of a national audience on Sunday Night Football.
The 42-10 beatdown was complete and total domination. As a matter of fact, the lopsided score doesn’t even do the game justice.
Simply put, Dallas showed that they are nowhere near San Francisco’s level … In fairness, no one might be.
Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott was far from the only problem for Dallas – but of course most of the blame will fall at his feet.
Once again, Prescott failed miserably in a primetime game against a Super Bowl contending opponent.
He was clearly shellshocked following his three interception performance.
“Didn’t see it coming,” Prescott said. “Put everything into it and got punched in the mouth. Called it a couple of weeks ago ‘humbling’ against Arizona, but this may be the most humbling I’ve ever been a part of.”
“Felt good about the preparation and felt good about everything, honestly, coming into this game, matchups, and they beat us in every aspect,” he added.
This devastating defeat marked the second-worst loss of head coach Mike McCarthy’s career, with the only worse one being a 35-0 shutout against the New England Patriots in 2006 when he was with the Green Bay Packers.
For Prescott, it was the largest defeat of his career, surpassing a 39-9 loss to the Philadelphia Eagles in 2017.
“It’s a punch in the gut, it’s a kick in the ass, whatever phrase you want to put on it,” McCarthy said. “We’ve been knocked down, clearly. They beat us in all three phases. We will clearly acknowledge it.”
“I’ve never been a burn-the-tape guy. I think that is a crock of sh*t. We’re going to go through it, make sure we’re clear on exactly what the expectations are and make sure we’re giving the players what they need to be successful.”
“They played extremely well, and we did not,” he concluded.
The Cowboys’ normally strong defense faltered, allowing 21 points in just six possessions, while Brock Purdy threw four touchdown passes against them. The run defense also struggled, yielding 170 yards and two touchdowns on 41 carries.
On the offensive side, things were equally grim, with Prescott completing only 14 of 24 passes for 153 yards and one touchdown pass with three interceptions before being pulled from the game.
Running back Tony Pollard lost his first fumble since his rookie year in 2019. Nine of the 11 possessions with Prescott at quarterback lasted three plays or less.
“I don’t foresee a whole lot of winning grades coming out of this performance,” McCarthy said. “I think the most important thing for all of us, and I expressed it, just be accountable for what you did tonight, how you played. We’ve got to clean our own house up.”
The Cowboys also suffered injuries to key players, including linebacker Leighton Vander Esch, KaVontae Turpin, and special teams ace C.J. Goodwin.
Despite the devastating loss, some Cowboys players remained resolute. Dallas left guard Tyler Smith stated, “This game is not indicative of who we are as an offense. This game isn’t indicative of who we are as a defense. It’s not indicative of who we are as a team.”
It’s true the Cowboys aren’t nearly as bad as what they displayed last night … However, the result is the result.
Now, the questions will continue to be raised about if Dak Prescott is truly the right quarterback for Dallas going forward.
Of course, McCarthy will ride Prescott the rest of the season. Dallas will probably make the playoffs and may very well run into San Francisco again.
However, considering that the same exact issues keep arising for Prescott, you have to wonder if Jerry Jones and company already have their eye on finding a future replacement for him.
Needless to say, social media was not a friendly place for Cowboy Nation last night…
“Trying to find a Cowboys fan on social media right now.”
Hold up let me call them for you pic.twitter.com/1wGyIFjhfH
— Da Virus 🦠 (@DaVirusOfficial) October 9, 2023
“Cowboys fans hitting the transfer portal.”
“Them boys are who they always are.”
Them boys are who they always are 😂
— Carlos (@Florida_Dad20) October 9, 2023
“The Texas Rangers ended up outscoring the Dallas Cowboys today.”
— Hollywood Mitch (@MitchHollywood) October 9, 2023
“Cowboys need to start having serious discussions about Dak Prescott … This is a guy who makes the same mistakes every season. Clearly has reached his max potential as a QB and is genuinely a low IQ passer who has lost almost all of his mobility. His contract is killing the roster.”
“Since 2018 dak has played 32 games against teams that finished with a winning record … 14-18 43% winnings percentage … Take away nfc east opponents hes 7-17 29% winning percentage.”
Since 2018 dak has played 32 games against teams that finished with a winning record.
14-18 43% winnings percentage.
Take away nfc east opponents hes 7-17 29% winning percentage.
— Victor Lugo (@theGOATsPR) October 9, 2023
“New year, same story.”
New year, same story 🤣 pic.twitter.com/acJRP2E4cR
— Danielle (@WhoIsDanielle) October 9, 2023
Dak Prescott & the Cowboy offense. #SNF #DallasCowboys #NFL pic.twitter.com/pDe3inrtUM
— Front Row Joe (@FrontRow_Joe) October 9, 2023
Looking at the big picture, what do you think the future holds for Prescott?
Should he be in the Cowboys long-term plans?