The Cowboys managed a 30-23 win over the Commanders to snap their three-game losing streak.
The Dallas Cowboys managed a 30-23 win over the Washington Commanders at Northwest Stadium to have a happy Christmas Day.
Dak Prescott and the offense put up 480 yards of total offense, ran 87 plays, and had the ball for a little over 38 minutes.
But the defense was again horrific, allowing Josh Johnson and Co. to carve them up routinely, resulting in an average of 8.0 yards per play. That was despite converting just one third down for the game.
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Prior to Christmas Day, we highlighted five things Dallas needed to do to get a Christmas Day win.
Let's see how they did.
1 - Healthy dose of Javonte/Malik - Grade A
With Williams still troubled by that bothersome shoulder injury, the carries were split.
Javonte posted 54 yards and a touchdown from his 13 carries, and Davis had his best day in recent memory with 103 yards from 20 carries.
With Williams not seen in the second half, Hunter Luepke had 30 rushing yards from seven carries.
The Commanders gave up on average, 141 rushing yards per game, and Dallas ran for 211.
2 - Win third-down battle - Grade D
The numbers don't look good with the Cowboys only converting 8 of 20 third downs.
Normally, that would be an "F" grade, but going 6 for 6 on fourth down, bumps the grade up.
Dallas was 4-of-9 on third down in first half, but went 4-of-11 in the second half.
Once again, the second half struggles continued.
3 - Get Lamb and Pickens rolling - Grade C
The star duo didn't dominate the game, but did their part.
Lamb finished with 46 yards from five receptions, while Pickens totaled 78 yards from four receptions, including a third-down conversion to tilt the game in Dallas' favor late in the fourth quarter.
4 - Contain McLaurin, Deebo and run game - Grade F
Samuel had gains of 41, 27, and 29 yards to finish his day with 68 receiving yards and 25 rushing yards. Terry McLaurin posted 63 yards from five catches.
Both had their moments against Matt Eberflus' defense.
As for the run game defense, well, it was horrific.
Jacory Croskey-Merritt hit a 72-yard TD run in the third quarter, and ended his day with 105 yards and two touchdowns from 11 carries.
Oh, and the Commanders' offense averaged 8.0 yards per play.
The fact this game was so close was gross.
5 - Give Prescott time - Grade D
This is an interesting game to look at for Dak and the offense.
Prescott would go 19 of 37 for 307 yards, two touchdowns and have a 97.5 rating.
But he got sacked six times.
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After a good first half, the offense put up 24 points, including an 86-yard touchdown strike to KaVonte Turpin, but managed just six points in the second half as their troubles continued.
In a meaningless game, Dak getting sacked six time and hit countless more, that wasn't great.
Joe Milton next week, please Mr. Schottenheimer.