Cowboys Stifled by Saints 12-10 in Defensive Struggle

Cowboys Stifled by Saints 12-10 in Defensive Struggle

Winning football games begins at the line of scrimmage. Despite all of the offensive innovation or the defensive complexities, that is where it begins and ends. 

Without the ability to control the line of scrimmage, essential facets of the game such as running the football, stopping the run, getting pressure on the opposing quarterback, or passing downfield become very difficult. 

Since Jason Garrett has been at the helm, the Dallas Cowboys have accustomed to controlling that aspect of the game. On Sunday night, however, the Saints beat the Cowboys at their own game, dominating the trenches on both sides of the ball en route to a 12-10 win in a stifling defensive effort. 

The Saints defensive line had the Cowboys offensive line on their heels for the majority of the contest, holding Ezekiel Elliott to just 35 yards on 18 carries with a goal-line score, and breathing down Dak Prescott's neck for all 60 minutes. 

The Cowboys would also have two critical turnovers in the game, but it was the pressure from the Saints defense that did not allow Prescott time to get settled in the pocket or to push the ball down the field, resulting in a sluggish offensive outing.

"This is on us," Prescott said. "This was a lack of execution. There were a lot of plays left out there." 

Indeed there were a lot of plays left out there, and Dak was only sacked once, but he was also hit seven times, pressured many more. The solo sack, which came at arguably the most critical moment of the game, and resulted in an ankle injury to star left tackle Tyron Smith, also threw the Cowboys completely behind schedule from the first snap of the final drive. 

#dallascowboys LT Tyron Smith left the locker room with a walking boot on his right leg. Jerry Jones called it a high ankle sprain.#DALvsNO pic.twitter.com/0zrwSPM3rN

— Joe Trahan (@JoeTrahan) September 30, 2019

With all of that said the Saints defensive backs were also excellent against the Cowboys pass-catchers, particularly Marshon Lattimore, who held Amari Cooper to just 48 yards on five catches. 

Prescott finished the game 22-33 for just 223 yards and an interception on the game's final Hail Mary attempt. 

On the other end, the Saints did nothing spectacular offensively through the air, but they were able to manhandle the Cowboys defensive line and open holes for Alvin Kamara and Latavius Murray to make plays and keep drives alive. 

Alvin Kamara breaking tackles is majestic 😮 @A_kamara6 pic.twitter.com/cX5i8zkhzW

— The Checkdown (@thecheckdown) September 30, 2019

The Cowboys did manage to get pressure on Saints stand-in quarterback, Teddy Bridgewater, sacking him five times (including two from Robert Quinn) and hitting him an additional seven times, but were unable to phase the veteran backup, as he completed 23 of his 30 passes for 193 yards.

He wasn't Drew Brees, but Bridgewater managed the game efficiently and allowed the running backs to dictate the game, especially in the fourth quarter, where they were able to control the clock. 

As a team, the Saints carried the ball 27 times for 116 yards, averaging 4.3 yards per carry. Again, nothing outstanding, but good enough to keep the Cowboys from getting some key stops in the fourth quarter. 

In the end, Sunday night's loss was simply a matter of the Cowboys identity being taken away from them, and for a team that makes it living being dominant along the front, that is a problem that. 

Following the loss, the now 3-1 Cowboys will head back to Arlington where the Green Bay Packers, a team who excels at rushing the passer, will be waiting. The Cowboys, however, at least according to Prescott, will remain confident. 

"We got a great team," said Prescott. "There's no confidence lost with this loss, I can promise you that."