Don’t think about how pathetic it is that the Dallas Cowboys are 4-8, and only a game out of first place. Focus on how you won’t be able to erase the butt-ugly final two minutes of that Monday Night Football stinker, that the ‘Boys won, 19-16, over the Washington Redskins, out of your mind anytime soon.
Dan Bailey connected on a 54-yard field goal with nine seconds left to cap a wild, sloppy final two minutes that saw DeSean Jackson fumble a punt and score a touchdown, and saw the Cowboys run out of bounds and then score a touchdown when they could have bled the clock.
At least the final moments were exciting. For the first 58 minutes-plus, the game was a battle of field goals and pass-interference penalties.
It was 3-3 at the half, and the ‘Skins (5-7) led 9-6 in the fourth with a chance to put the game away, with a first-and-10 at the Dallas 28.
A Matt Jones 1-yard run and a short Kirk Cousins pass to Chris Thompson left Washington with a third-and-seven, and a Cousins-to-Thompson pass for no gain forced a Dustin Hopkins field-goal attempt.
Hopkins pushed the 43-yarder right with 7:29 left.
Dallas drove inside the Redskins 5 on their next drive, but the Washington D stiffened and forced a short Bailey field goal that tied the game with 4:25 to go.
The teams traded three-and-outs, and the Redskins sent wideout DeSean Jackson out to return a Cowboys punt with 1:47 left. Jackson pumped his fists to pump up the crowd, then gesticulated his way into one of the dumber plays you’ll ever see, taking the punt just inside the 20, advancing to the 24, then retreating all the way back to the Washington end zone before being caught at the Washington 11 and fumbling just before going to the ground.
Dallas recovered at the 15 and had the ball and a chance to close the game out, with Washington at two timeouts and 1:26 on the clock.
But Darren McFadden went out of bounds on a 9-yard first-down run, and scored from six yards out on second-and-one, leaving the Redskins with their timeouts and 1:14 on the clock.
A big return and a Cowboys penalty set up Washington inside Dallas territory, and the ‘Skins needed just four plays, with Cousins connecting with Jackson on a 28-yard pass down the right sideline, to tie the score at 16-16.
The ‘Boys got a big return to start at their own 44, and quarterback Matt Cassel connected twice with Dez Bryant, for 12 and 8 yards, to set up the game-winning Bailey field goal.
The result leaves Washington in a three-way tie for first place in the NFC East with the New York Giants, whose coach, Tom Coughlin, blew the endgame in a loss to the New York Jets on Sunday, and the Philadelphia Eagles, who just a week ago seemed destined to fire coach Chip Kelly, and still might.
And those Cowboys. They’re 4-8, and they’re a game out of the playoffs.
– Story by Chris Graham
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