Game Recap Week 4: Washington Commanders at Dallas Cowboys

October 3, 2022

By Noonefromtampa

First Half

Washington won the coin toss and deferred until the second half. The Commanders did well on first and second down, holding the Cowboys to 5 yards.  However, on 3^rd and 5, Ezekiel Elliott caught a checkdown pass and took it 31 yards, after Cole Holcomb failed to cover him. Washington’s defense held the Cowboys after that but Brett Maher was able to convert a 53 yard field goal.

The Commanders offense started well on their first series, picking up two first downs and moving the ball to the Dallas 48 yard line. Then the mistakes started. A false start on Trai Turner cost them five yards to make it second and twelve. Then, Neville Gallimore sacked Carson Wentz for a 9 yard loss. On Wentz had to throw the ball away under a strong pass rush on third down.

Washington’s defense held the Cowboys to a three and out on the next series.  The Commanders’ next series saw them pick up an apparent first down on an Antonio Gibson 12 yard run; however, center Nick Martin, starting in place of injured Wes Schweitzer, was called for holding. On third down, Wentz threw deep to Terry McLaurin, but it was incomplete. There was a questionable no-call of pass interference on the play, where it looked like the defender impeded McLaurin and grabbed his jersey.

After the Tress Way punt and a great tackle by Darrick Forrest, the Washington defense kept trying to cover CeeDee Lamb in the slot with Jamin Davis. Lamb had three straight receptions of 23 yards, 16 yards and 17 yards. Jonathan Allen tackled Terry Pollard for a two-yard loss. Then, Cooper Rush threw an incompletion to Lamb and scrambled for 6 yards on third down. Maher kicked a 45 yard field goal.

Washington started another promising drive with a 11 yard run by Gibson and an 18 yard run by Jonathan Williams. A mistake then came again when Wentz was called for intentional grounding to make it second and 22. The Commanders picked up on 11 more yards before being forced to punt the ball away.

The Cowboys went three and out again on their series behind one short run by Elliot and two incompletions. Washington got the ball back on their own 35 yard line. The Commanders were able to avoid a drive killing mistake on this series. After picking up a first down, J.D. McKissic picked up 33 yards on an off-tackle run moving the ball down to the Dallas 17. After picking up 7 yards, Wentz hit rookie Jahan Dotson with a fade for a 10 yard touchdown pass.

After the Joey Slye kickoff into the end zone, Benjamin St-Juste intercepted Rush after a Washington blitz pressured him. Unfortunately, St-Juste was called for illegal contact, which gave the Cowboys the ball back with a first down. Dallas ended up going 75 yards in 17 plays with Michael Gallup scoring on a 9 yard touchdown reception. Efe Obada blocked the extra point.

Wentz threw a deep interception to Trevon Diggs who was covering Dotson after Washington ran a lot of time off the clock while picking up only a first down. Dallas elected to run out the clock with only 10 seconds left.

Dallas 12, Washington 7

Second Half

Washington was able to pick up only one first down on their opening second half drive behind a 14 yard catch to Curtis Samuel on third and 12. The Commanders failed to convert after that and were forced into another Way punt, pinning Dallas on their own 15 yard line.

William Jackson III tackled Pollard for a 7 yard loss on first down. On the next play, Kamren Curl intercepted the ball, but Jackson was called for defensive hold, which gave Dallas a first down. The Commanders defense held strong though, when Daron Payne tackled Pollard for a two yard loss and forced Rush into two incompletions with a good pass rush.

After the Bryan Anger punt, Washington did nothing except accumulate 15 yards in penalties and losing 2 yards on offense, and had to punt. Dallas quarterback Cooper Rush then hit a 45 yard completion to Noah Brown. Bobby McCain was late over the top with safety help but made the tackle. Washington’s defense, helped by a false start penalty, then stiffened to force a 28 yard Maher field goal.

Washington answered with a 9 play, 67 yard drive that ended with a Slye 45 yard field goal. The key plays on the drive were a 31 yard completion to Dotson and a 23 yard run by Williams. The drive killer was a 14 yard penalty on Wentz for intentional grounding. McKissic caught a 9 yard pass to move them back into field goal position.

On their next possession, Dallas quickly scored a touchdown in four plays behind a 38 yard defensive pass interference penalty on Jackson and then a 30 yard touchdown catch by Lamb, who blew by Jackson with a double move. The Commanders responded by gaining a first down on a 15 yard completion to Samuel, but only picked up 7 yards on the next three plays, are were once again forced to punt.

The Washington returned to form on Dallas’ next series, with Allen taking over. He tackled Pollard for a three yard loss.  Then, on third down and eleven Allen tipped Cooper Rush’s throw up in the air, only to have the ball fall nearby, unaware of how close it was to him. Anger shanked the punt and it only traveled 22 yards to give the Commanders great field position.

On their next series, Washington was able to pick up one first and get a second courtesy o,  a defensive holding penalty. They only gained one yard after that with Wentz taking another sack for a six yard loss. Samuel caught ball against his helmet but came down out of bounds in the end zone. Being down 22-10, Washington elected to go for in on 4^th and 15, but Diggs knocked the pass away from McLaurin in the end zone.

Jackson was called for a 27 yard defensive pass interference penalty on the next series, but the defense forced a Cowboys punt after that. Wentz threw an interception two plays later deep in Washington territory that led to another Dallas field goal, effectively putting the game out of reach.

On its next series, Washington moved19 yards before turning it over on downs again. Dallas ran time off the lock before punting and pinning the Commanders deep in their own territory. With less than two minutes to go and no timeouts left, Washington was able to pick up 25 yards before the clock ran out.

Dallas 25, Washington 10

Game Thoughts

Saahdiq Charles replaced Trai Turner at right guard. I’m not sure how much of an improvement it was but Charles didn’t blindly miss a guy leading to a sack.

William Jackson III owes the team a refund.  It was like he wasn’t even trying out there.  He committed with multiple penalties that cost big yardage and gave Dallas first downs.

The offensive play calling was incoherent at times.  If something worked, they stopped doing it. If an adjustment was needed, they didn’t make one. Wentz ended up looking shell-shocked by the end of the game.

Defensively, I don’t understand why Washington continually putt a linebacker, either Davis or Holcomb, on a wide receiver they cannot cover.

Jonathan Allen continues to play well.  He had a sack and 4 tackles for a loss.