Prescott Leads Cowboys Beyond Struggling Commanders to Begin Christmas Triple-Header.
The Cowboys' quarterback accumulated 307 yards and two touchdowns, and the Dallas Cowboys blew most of an 18-point lead before narrowly defeating 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.
Each squad were already out from playoff contention, which greatly diminished the stakes of this matchup between historic NFC East rivals.
The Quarterback's Historic Performance
Prescott connected on 19 of 37 passes and was instrumental on all six of its fourth-down attempts. His pair of touchdown throws gave him 30 for the season, equaling Tony Romo’s record of four seasons with at least 30 touchdown passes.
Prescott shrugged off six sacks, including three coming from defensive tackle Jer’Zhan Newton.
Commanders' Quarterback Dilemma
Playing without injured quarterbacks Jayden Daniels (elbow) and Marcus Mariota (quad, hand), Washington called upon 39-year-old journeyman Josh Johnson. In his 10th NFL start and his first in over two years, Johnson was 15 for 23 for 198 yards with no touchdowns or interceptions.
Washington's Offensive Highlights
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 restored its double-digit lead with a 52-yard kick by kicker Brandon Aubrey.
Aubrey added a 51-yarder to make it 30-20 with 3:59 remaining.
Following a Prescott touchdown pass to tight end Jake Ferguson on the first possession, Johnson went 3 for 3 for 68 yards to get Washington to 7-3. The key play was a 41-yard pass to Deebo Samuel, Johnson’s longest since 2018.
Dallas' Sustained Possessions
On their next drive, the Cowboys converted three fourth downs on a lengthy, 17-play drive that ended with a touchdown run by Javonte Williams. Prescott then completed the hat-trick in three drives with an 86-yard touchdown strike to KaVontae Turpin.
