Cowboys Deliver Thanksgiving Beatdown at Home VS Washington

Of the four division rivalry games to take place on Thanksgiving, no other rivalry goes back as far as the Dallas Cowboys and Washington Commanders franchises. In their 127th meeting, Dallas added another dominant victory to its winning record 76-48-2. The Cowboys delivered a 45-10 blowout at home to add more joy to the people of Texas's Thanksgiving.

Dak Prescott and the Cowboys offense continued to power their way through opponents at home. Dak launched four touchdown passes with 331 yards on 69% passing for the day. Prescott and the Cowboys have strung together an impressive stretch of games these past weeks. Dallas is 5-1 in their last six games, with the lone loss being to the reigning NFC champion Philadelphia Eagles. Dak has been playing football as well as anyone in the league during this stretch. Prescott has thrown for 1874 yards and 18 touchdowns through those six games with only two interceptions. Dak currently sits at 23 passing touchdowns this season, which matches his season total a year ago. Part of his success is due to the plethora of weapons at his exposal. Wide Receivers Brandon Cooks and Ceedee Lamb headline the Dallas offensive repertoire, both of which caught a touchdown on Thursday. Tony Pollard hasn't been as effective as in years past, but he has consistently been a critical factor in the offense. Pollard caught six passes for 24 yards while rushing for 79 yards and a touchdown on the ground. Dallas has been on an offensive tear and shows no signs of slowing down moving forward.

While Dallas's offense was clicking on all cylinders, their defense again established themselves as one of the league's best. The Dallas defense was relentless, garnering four sacks against rookie Quarterback Sam Howell. Standout Cornerback Daron Bland also picked Howell off for a touchdown, breaking the NFL record for pick-sixes in a season with five. This defense, led by superstar Micah Parsons, is continuously making quick work of opponents, especially at home. AT&T Stadium has not seen a Cowboy loss this season, as the team is undefeated on home turf. Not only are they winning, but they are also succeeding impressively, having won every game at home by at least 20 points or more.

I don't believe much more can be expected on the Commanders’ side. Sam Howell has proven to be a gunslinger and could have a promising career, having shown multiple flashes thus far. However, his offensive line play is bottom of the barrel, allowing the second most sacks out of any team with 55. Howell performed as well as one could hope against this elite defense, especially with the stagnant run game.

Washington's defense, which used to be viewed as a strength, has become a glaring weakness and needs to be addressed. Defensive Coordinator Jack Del Rio should face severe pressure for his job because of how poorly his defense has performed. Coming off a game in which the Giants trotted out a practice squad QB as their starter and you let him throw for 250 yards and three touchdowns, you would expect Washington to look to make a change. If that performance didn't sell you on Jack not being the guy, then maybe this week's 35-point blowout will. In his defense, the Commander's defense is lackluster from a talent perspective, especially after trading its two best pass rushers in Chase Young and Montez Sweat. Still, you have a job to prepare your team to at least compete, and as things stand Washington is incapable of doing so.