'A Crock!' Dallas Cowboys Coach Mike McCarthy Reacts to San Francisco 49ers' 42-10 Blowout
Leading up to the Dallas Cowboys' Sunday night game against the San Francisco 49ers at Levi's Stadium, owner Jerry Jones claimed the Niners to be his current Super Bowl favorite.
"A win against them would would be inspiring and substantive," Jones said. "Right now they're the most likely team to get to the Super Bowl. We have aspirations to go by them this weekend, and probably have to do it again later this year."
If this game was meant to be a measuring stick for the Cowboys, then they still have a long way to go as they were blown out 42-10 in front of a national audience. And are the Cowboys now going to "burn the tape'' and pretend it didn't happen?
Said coach Mike McCarthy of the loss - and of that concept: “It’s a punch in the gut. It’s a kick in the (rear). … I’m not a burn-the-tape guy. I think that’s a crock of (bleep)
OK. And when Dallas does "watch'' rather than "burn'' the tape, what will it see?
From the opening kickoff, the 49ers were one step ahead and their advantage only grew as the game went on. When San Francisco marched down the field for a touchdown on its opening drive, and Dallas proceeded to go three-and-out on its first possession, it looked to be a long night for America's Team.
49ers tight end George Kittle evades Cowboys cornerback Jourdan Lewis on one of his three touchdowns on the night.
The 49ers jumped out to a 14-0 lead early in the second quarter, but Dak Prescott hit KaVontae Turpin for a 26-yard touchdown to give the Cowboys some life. That hope quickly faded, though, as the 49ers would continue to impose their will. Eventually, the game spiraled out of control as San Francisco scored the final 21 points of the game.
To see just how much the 49ers dominated this game, one need look no further than just the basic team stats. San Francisco had 421 total yards, 25 first downs and over 37 minutes of possession. Comparatively, Dallas had just 197 total yards, eight first downs and just under 23 minutes with the ball.
Prescott completed 14 of 24 passes for 153 yards, one touchdown and three interceptions, all of which came on consecutive drives in the second half. He was also sacked three times as Dallas' battered offensive line was no match for a ferocious San Francisco pass rush. With the game well out of reach, the Cowboys pulled Prescott and many other starters in the fourth quarter to give them more time to shake it off.
Dallas' ground game was similarly ineffective, accounting for just 52 yards on 15 carries. Tony Pollard had his worst game of the season thus far, rushing nine times for 29 yards with a fumble that led to a San Francisco touchdown.
Many of the 49ers starters also exited early due to them being so far ahead. Brock Purdy had arguably the best game of his career thus far, completing 17 of 24 passes for 252 yards and four touchdowns with a career-high 144.4 quarterback rating. Three of his touchdowns went to tight end George Kittle, while the fourth went to fullback Kyle Juszczyk.
Christian McCaffrey and Jordan Mason both scored rushing touchdowns for the 49ers, with the former scoring for the 14th consecutive game.
San Francisco moved to a perfect 5-0 on the season, being just one of two undefeated teams left alongside the Philadelphia Eagles. On the other hand, Dallas fell to 3-2 and is now well behind the eight ball in the NFC playoff picture.
The Cowboys will look to bounce back when they travel to face the Los Angeles Chargers on Oct. 16. Can they? Will they?
"This was clearly humbling,'' McCarthy said. "It is (just) one game. … (But) it clearly just shows where we are as a team. ... We got a lot of work to do.”
