Dallascowboys.com
The Dallas Cowboys were dominated by the Green Bay Packers on Sunday when they were defeated 34-24. The Cowboys were out of synch right from the start and never really had a chance to win after allowing the Packers a 24 -0 lead.
Recap
For the second week in a row Dallas has turned the ball over a few more times than their opponent, and once again came out on the losing end of the game. Don't let the score fool you, the Cowboys gained a lot of empty yards and points late in the second half.
Quarterback Dak Prescott was 27/44 for 463 yards, 2 touchdowns, and 3 INTERCEPTIONS. He also ran 4 times for 27 yards. With the Cowboys playing catch-up basically from the start, receivers Amari Cooper and Michael Gallup had big days. Cooper had his best day as a Cowboy with 11 catches for 226 yards and 1 touchdown. It was Gallup's 1st game back since injuring his knee three weeks ago. He had 7 catches for 113 yards and 1 touchdown as well.
With the team trailing all game long, Pro Bowl running back Ezekiel Elliott was kept in check by the Green Bay defense. He only had 14 touches total. Zeke carried 12 times for 62 yards, a 1 yard rushing touchdown and 2 catches for 29 yards. Without Elliott leading the way for the Cowboy offense, the Packers were able to control the game and cruise to an easy win.
Dallas now falls to (3-2) and is now tied with the Philadelphia Eagles for 1st in the NFC East.
3 Things to Watch For
1.Ezekiel Elliott (Running Back): The Cowboys need to feed Zeke the ball and not stop in order to get back to their winning ways. There is no reason he should not get less than 20 touches in every game.
2.Michael Gallup (Wide Receiver): Didn't show any signs of slowing down in his return to the field. He has caught 6 or more passes in every game he has played this season and I would expect it to keep going due to the great chemistry he has with Prescott.
3.Brett Maher (Kicker): 2nd year man had some issues in the Preseason and it looks like he hasn't fixed them. He is 4/7 on field goal attempts for the season, which is 57.1%. That is not good, that isn't even close to average.If this continues, the Cowboys are going to need to find themselves another kicker.
Coming Up
This Sunday October 13th, the Dallas Cowboys (3-2) will be going to the Big Apple to take on the New York Jets (0-4) at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford New Jersey. Kickoff is set for 3:25 pm Central time. With the Cowboys losing 2 in a row, I expect them to come out and let Zeke run over the Jets defense. A good mix of run and pass plays should allow Dallas to stay in rhythm and roll to an easy victory. The Jets #1 quarterback Sam Darnold will be back from missing a few games due to illness but he will probably not be 100 percent game shape ready.
If you have any fantasy players, the only must start players are:
Cowboys:Ezekiel Elliott (RB), Amari Cooper (WR), Dak Prescott (QB), Michael Gallup (WR)
JETS:Le'Veon Bell (RB)
For you gamblers out there, the Cowboys are currently -7.5 and the over/under is 43.5. I would only take Dallas at -7 or less would be even better but I think the over is the best play, just like last week!
Most Popular
SportsMap Emails
Are Awesome
Listen Live
The Astros and the Yankees in the Bronx this weekend. Fun! And important. Both teams have been in results ruts for a while. The Astros have gone 9-16 over their last 25 games while the Yankees’ funk is longer extending, producing a 19-29 mess over their last 48 games. Despite the Seattle Mariners closing in, the Astros still lead the American League West. The Yankees’ hopes of again winning the AL East are fading toward the point of no return. They have tumbled six and a half games behind the Toronto Blue Jays and also lag three games behind the rampaging Boston Red Sox. Hence, the Yankees are under clearly more pressure than are the Astros this weekend. The pitching matchups in the first two games strongly favor the Astros. Friday night it’s Hunter Brown opposite rookie Cam Schlittler who makes his fifth big league appearance. Saturday afternoon it’s Framber Valdez versus Luis Gil, who was the 2024 American League Rookie of the Year, but missed the first four months of this season with a lat injury. Gil made his 2025 debut Sunday, and was terrible. The Astros’ quality rotation depth beyond Brown and Valdez is non-existent at this point. Their Sunday starter will be a lesser starter than the Yankees’ Max Fried. Of course, in one game you never know.
The Astros have thoroughly owned the Yankees in their most meaningful meetings over the last decade. In 2015 the ousted the Yankees in a one-game Wild Card matchup. Then came the real soul-crushers with the Astros vanquishing the Yanks in the 2017, 2019, and 2022 American League Championship Series, with it getting easier for the Astros as time went on. The 2017 series went the maximum seven games, 2019 took six, 2022 was a four-game Astros’ sweep. The regular season has been a different matter. The Yankees have beaten the Astros in 11 of 14 games over the last two years. Last season the Yankees walloped the Astros six wins to one. They only play six times this regular season: the three in New York this weekend then three at Daikin Park in early September.
Here comes the Judge
While the Astros (and their fans) endure a seemingly never-ending wait for Yordan Alvarez’s return to the lineup, the Yankees have Aaron Judge back after a 10-day stint on the injured list. Judge carries the burden of soft career postseason stats (though he has 16 home runs in just 58 postseason games and his career playoffs OPS is just 21 points lower than Alex Bregman’s), but this is a legendary player. Judge’s career OPS stands at a whopping 1.024. That number will drop during the decline years remaining in his career, but here’s the list of all time Major Leaguers higher than 1.024: Babe Ruth, Ted Williams, Lou Gehrig, Barry Bonds, and Jimmie Foxx. Those are arguably the four greatest offensive players in MLB history, plus Foxx who probably rates in the top 20. If he holds up the rest of the season, Judge is a cinch for his third AL Most Valuable Player Award in four years.
Turn back the clock
Should they choose to check it out, the Astros can watch the Yankees’ Old-Timers' Game Saturday. Though most of the greatest of Yankee legends have died, there will still be a fabulous cast of alumni who soak up cheers during introductions, with many of them then taking part in a two or three inning game. The Yankees are by far the most storied franchise in MLB. The Astros have plenty of history and beloved players over multiple generations to copy the concept, and have their own Old-Timers' Day at Daikin Park. Would it not be a blast to see Roger Clemens pitch to Craig Biggio? Roy Oswalt to Lance Berkman? As I said during our Stone Cold ‘Stros podcast this week, I wouldn’t bet against 78 (as of Friday)-year-old Jose Cruz squaring up a ball for a line drive. Make Astros’ Old Timers’ Day happen in 2026 Jim Crane!
Angry birds
The best team in the American League is Toronto, best for now anyway. The Blue Jays have been the best over the last two months-plus. The Jays woke up May 29 at 27-28. Since then they are 41-20. Over that time frame the Astros have the third-best record in the AL behind the Jays and Red Sox. A notable part of Toronto’s success the past month is Joey Loperfido. He didn’t make the Jays’ big league squad coming out of spring training, and wasn’t called up until July 6. Over 72 at bats since getting back to “The Show” Loperfido is batting .389 with a .978 OPS. Reminder that Loperfido hit .372 over his first 43 at bats with the Astros. Full credit to Joey for a magnificent month. Still, there is no reason for the Astros to be wracked with regret for having included Loperfido in last season’s trade for Yusei Kikuchi.
For Astro-centric conversation, join Brandon Strange, Josh Jordan, and me for the Stone Cold ‘Stros podcast which drops each Monday afternoon, with an additional episode now on Thursday. Click here to catch!
_____________________________________________
*Looking to get the word out about your business, products, or services? Consider advertising on SportsMap! It's a great way to get in front of Houston sports fans. Click the link below for more information!