Here’s an instant analysis of the Cowboys’ 30-10 win over Giants at Met Life Stadium.
WHAT IT MEANS: The Cowboys find themselves a game over .500 with three games left and they remain in the playoff hunt. Now, if they can beat Oakland, which essentially had its playoff hopes end with their seventh loss on Sunday, the Cowboys will find themselves two games over .500 - the same spot they were in when Ezekiel Elliott was suspended - and poised for their star runner to return.
TURNING POINT: On third-and-two from the Dallas 26, The Giants’ blitzed and Dak Prescott threw a quick out to Cole Beasley, who spun away from one defender. He maneuvered down the field picking up blocks from Dez Bryant and Terrance Williams for a 54-yard gain to the Giants’ 20. On the next play, Prescott threw a 20-yard touchdown pass to Jason Witten.
PLAYER OF THE GAME: Sean Lee, spectacular in his first game back after missing the previous three with a strained hamstring, finished with 18 tackles and an interception. His biggest play was dropping Sterling Shepard for a nine-yard loss on a reverse that wrecked a fourth-quarter drive and led to a punt. Dallas scored on the next possession.
KEY STAT: Dak Prescott had four completions of 20+ yards - 81, 54, 50 and 20 - against the Giants. He had four completions of 20 yards or more in 110 passes over the last four games.
WHAT'S NEXT: The Cowboys will visit the Black Hole and play the Oakland Raiders on Sunday Night Football. The Raiders, soundly beaten by Kansas City, have lost seven games so they’re essentially out of the playoff race. The Cowboys still have something to play for after beating the Giants - and now they have just one more game without Ezekiel Elliott. They can use that as extra motivation to get a win that would keep them in the playoff conversation, if they can pull out a W.
