If there was anything that separated the Cowboys from the Lions in their 44-30 loss on Thursday night in Detroit, it was the defensive front. In 60 plays in which Dak Prescott dropped back to pass, according to Pro Football Focus, he was hurried 22 times, allowing three sacks, four hits and 15 hurries. Additionally, the Cowboys were whistled for three penalties in pass protection.
The Lions, meanwhile, kept Jared Goff clean on the night, despite the Cowboys having rebuilt their defensive front into what had looked like a vaunted unit over the previous three weeks. The Cowboys managed only 12 pressures on Goff, with no sacks, five hits and seven hurries.
That was, ultimately, the difference in the game. A team never wants to see its $60 million, 32-year-old quarterback deal with that level of duress, but it was the Lions who brought the violence to this game, and it was Prescott who absorbed most of it.
Dak Prescott: ‘I’ll Be Sore’
After the loss, Prescott tried not to be deflated, and did not criticize the Cowboys offensive line. But when asked about his health after some particularly rough hits, he admitted he was not feeling chipper.
“I’ll be sore. But I am fine,” Prescott said. “Like you said, took some hits, bumps and bruises but I will be completely fine.”
Coach Brian Schottenheimer echoed that sentiment.
“He’s sore,” Schottenheimer said. “He should be sore after getting hit that much and that’s—again, we talked a lot about it, we have been one of the best teams in the league at protecting him, and so kudos to them. They did a great job. We’ve got to look at how we protected up front, and certainly there were issues because you can’t have your quarterback taking those kinds of hits and be successful.”
Cowboys Need to Protect Dak Prescott Much Better
As much as the Cowboys would like to focus on their flagging playoff chances now, at 6-6-1, they’re also going to have to focus on keeping Prescott upright and healthy for the remaining four games of this season. That starts with getting tackle Tyler Guyton back in Week 15.
The expectation is that Guyton will play, and the Cowboys need him. His replacement, Nate Thomas, was one of the big reasons the Dallas line was so dreadful on Thursday. Thomas allowed eight of the 22 pressures, one of which was a sack, and was whistled for a penalty.
His bookend, right tackle Terrence Steele, was only slightly better, allowing six of the pressures on Prescott, including a sack.
GettyCowboys LT Nate Thomas failed to protect Dak Prescott much vs. the Lions.
Cowboys Figure to Be an Angry Team in Week 15
Prescott, as is his manner, tried to rally his Cowboys teammates in his postgame press conference. The Cowboys’ three-game winning streak that followed the trade deadline is over, and likely their playoff chances, too. But Prescott his hoping his teammates use the whipping this team took on Thursday to fuel a rebound.
“I think you’re gonna get a team that’s (expletive),” Prescott said. “Especially since, we talked about, this is a team that has changed since the bye week, this is the first time this group, to an extent, suffered it. We’re going to use this as fuel and I know, starting with myself, we’ll have a great week of prep for next week.”
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