COWBOYS REPORT

Cowboys outplayed by Bills; Bears up next

Roger Rivero
Dec 3, 2019, 9:48 am
Dallascowboys.com

The Dallas Cowboys (6-6) were beat 26-15 by the Buffalo Bills (9-3) on Thanksgiving Day.

Recap

For the first time in five weeks, the Cowboys quickly scored first on their opening possession that gave them an early 7-0 lead. The problem was that drive was the only good thing they did on offense. They didn't score again until late in the 4th quarter when the game was out of reach.

Quarterback Dak Prescott was 32/49 for 355 yards, 2 touchdowns, and 2 turnovers (1 interception and 1 fumble). Yes, when you look at the stat line, it looks like he had a great game but they are mostly empty numbers. Prescott connected with 8 different receivers and Amari Cooper led the team in receptions (8) and yards (85).

Pro Bowl running back Ezekiel Elliott looked like he was set for a big day after the Cowboys' first drive but ended up becoming a non-factor once Dallas started trailing by double digits. Zeke finished the game with 12 carries for 71 yards and 7 catches for 66 yards.

Dallas drops to (6-6) but stay in first place atop the NFC East because their division rival Philadelphia Eagles (5-7) lost on Sunday.

3 Things to Watch For

1.Ezekiel Elliott (Running Back): Zeke had a decent game this past week but will have to be better to carry his team to a victory. He will be going against another top 10 defense and will have Khalil Mack who is one of the best players in the NFL across from him.

2.Cowboys Defense (All): Look for the defense to have a big day. The Bears offense is average to below average and their quarterback has a tendency to turn the ball over. I can see multiple players recording a sack.

3.Brett Maher (Kicker): 2nd year kicker has not had the best season so far and needs to start making his field goal attempts. He missed 2 last week that would have helped Dallas stay in the game. Hopefully he can get his game back on track.

Coming Up

The Dallas Cowboys (6-6) will be on the road taking on the Chicago Bears (6-6) on Thursday night in Chicago, Illinois at Soldier Field. Kickoff is set at 7:20 pm Central time. The Cowboys still have not beat a team with a winning record this year, luckily the Bears area .500 team and Dallas should be able to come away with a win. The Cowboys should have a good mix of both run and pass plays that will allow their athletes to make big plays.

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)

Bears: Allen Robinson (WR), David Montgomery (RB)

For you gamblers out there, the Cowboys are currently -3 and the over/under is 42.5.I love Dallas this week. I would definitely take them at -3. I believe their #1 offense will overcome a terrible Chicago offense.

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Astros improve to 6-4

Astros overpower Diamondbacks in blowout win to start series

Photo by Mike Stobe/Getty Images

After grinding through back-to-back extra-inning games in the series with the Los Angeles Angels where they would ultimately come away with the victory, the Astros had a day off on Monday before getting back into action on Tuesday. They were in Arizona for the first of three games against the Diamondbacks. Here is a rundown of the series opener:

Final Score: Astros 8, Diamondbacks 2.

Record: 6-4, first in the AL West.

Winning pitcher: Cristian Javier (1-0, 1.42 ERA).

Losing pitcher: Madison Bumgarner (0-2, 7.04 ERA).

Houston takes an early lead against Bumgarner and then piles on

Houston wasted no time going after Madison Bumgarner, with George Springer going after the first pitch of the game for a groundout, then Jose Altuve launching a solo home run on the next pitch to get an early 1-0 lead in the top of the first. They added to that lead in the second inning, with Carlos Correa leading it off with a solo home run of his own, making it 2-0. After two hit batters and a single, the Astros had the bases loaded for George Springer with one out, and he would deliver a sacrifice fly to push the lead to 3-0.

They would put runners on base in the next two innings, but would not score again until the fifth when a Bumgarner fielding error on a potential double-play would bring in a run and extend the inning. Houston would go on to load the bases, setting up Kyle Tucker for an RBI-single to make it 5-1 and end Bumgarner's night. Against Arizona's new reliever, Martin Maldonado worked a bases-loaded walk to make it 6-1, then Springer followed with a two-RBI double, blowing the game open at 8-1.

Javier gets first-career win in another impressive start

With a lead in hand when he went to the mound, Cristian Javier had another strong performance in his second-ever start. He allowed just one baserunner over the first three innings, a single in the second. After those three efficient innings, he would face some adversity in the bottom of the fourth. After allowing a double and one-out walk, he would give up his first run of the night on an RBI-single to make it a 3-1 game. Luckily, a great double play behind him would get him out of the jam and the inning.

Javier was able to settle back in after that rougher inning, getting quick, scoreless innings in the fifth and sixth, earning him the win. His final line: 6.0 IP, 4 H, 1 ER, 1 BB, 2 K, 0 HR.

Yet another rookie pitching debut as Houston's bullpen finishes the win

Bryan Abreu was first out of Houston's bullpen, taking over for Javier in the bottom of the seventh. He would not have an inning to remember, allowing a leadoff double followed later by two walks to load the bases. He then walked in a run, making it 8-2, and prompting another call to the bullpen. Enoli Paredes would enter and get the final out of the seventh inning.

Paredes ran into trouble of his own in the bottom of the eighth, loading the bases after a walk and two singles, but with some help from Houston's defense would keep it a six-run lead heading to the ninth. In yet another Astros debut for a pitcher in 2020, Humberto Castellanos entered in the bottom of the ninth, and he recorded the final three outs to close out the victory for Houston.

Up Next: This series continues on Wednesday with the middle game of this three-game set at 8:10 PM Central. Lance McCullers Jr. (1-0, 5.40 ERA) will return to the mound in another start for the Astros, while Robbie Ray (0-2, 8.64 ERA) will look to turn things around in his early season with the Diamondbacks.

astros recap mlb astros vs diamondbacks madison bumgarner cristian javier jose altuve carlos correa george springer astros

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