Packers Storm Past Cowboys in 48-32 Wild Card Victory
The Green Bay Packers did the unthinkable by storming into AT&T Stadium and dominating the Dallas Cowboys 48-32 on Wild Card weekend.
While the final score looks close, the Packers had the upper hand all day, having a lead as big as 48-16 with 10:23 left in the game. The Packers' dominance over the Cowboys was thanks to an outstanding performance from their young offense and a stellar performance from their defense.
Offense
Photo Credit: Evan Siedge, Packers.com
The Green Bay Packers offense, led by quarterback Jordan Love, opened the day with a 67 yard drive that lasted 7:52 and was capped off by a touchdown. The opening drive showed the Packers weren’t afraid to throw against the Cowboys' defense, as Love completed all four of his pass attempts on this drive for 42 yards. His biggest completion of the drive was a 22-yard strike to wide receiver Romeo Doubs.
The Packers also ran the ball eight times on the opening drive, with running back Aaron Jones getting seven of the carries for 25 yards and a touchdown. Jones’ biggest run on the opening drive was a 13-yard scamper that put the Packers on Dallas’s 24-yard line.
After a successful first drive, the Packers’ offense was forced to punt on their second drive. That was only one of two times the Packers punted during the game.
The rest of the game, Love and the offense dominated by consistently exploiting holes in Dallas’s defense. Those holes, along with Love's pinpoint precision, allowed him to go 16/21 passing with 272 yards and three touchdowns. Love’s best touchdown pass came on a 3rd&7 in the second quarter, where he threw a dart off his back foot to wide receiver Dontayvion Wicks.
Jones also had quite a day, finishing with 118 yards in 21 carries and had three touchdowns.
While putting together an offensive performance together like that is impressive, the Packers' offense will face an even bigger challenge next week against the San Francisco 49ers.
Defense
Photo Credit: Evan Siedge, Packers.com
The Packers' defense shut down the potent Dallas Cowboys offense for three quarters. They accomplished this by pressuring Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott and forcing him into mistakes. Prescott threw two costly interceptions. One interception was made by star cornerback Jaire Alexander in Cowboys territory.
That interception was cashed in for a touchdown by the offense. The other interception the defense forced was a pick six. Prescott did not see safety Darnell Savage sitting between himself and wide receiver CeeDee Lamb.
Both turnovers happened in the first half, which helped the defense hold Dallas to only seven points in the first two quarters. Holding the Cowboys to seven points allowed them to be more aggressive, rushing the passer in the second half. During the third and fourth quarters, the defense gained three of their four sacks, which ended up making the comeback insurmountable for the Cowboys.
While the Packers’ defense may have played the best they have all season against the Cowboys, they will need to play even better against the San Francisco 49ers to defeat them in Santa Clara.