Prescott leads Cowboys past skidding Commanders to kick off Christmas triple-header | NFL
Dak Prescott threw for 307 yards and two touchdowns, and the Dallas Cowboys lost most of an 18-point lead before beating the Washington Commanders 30-23 on Thursday.
Dallas (7-8-1) scored touchdowns on its first three possessions to lead 21-3. Although the Commanders (4-12) reduced the gap to a touchdown three times, they were unable to complete the comeback and suffered their 10th loss in 11 games.
Both teams had already been eliminated from the playoffs, which significantly reduced the importance of this game between longtime NFC East rivals.
Prescott completed 19 of 37 passes and helped Dallas convert all six of its fourth-down attempts. His two TD passes gave him 30, tying Tony Romo’s franchise record of four seasons with at least 30 touchdown throws.
Prescott shrugged off six sacks, including three by Jer’Zhan Newton.
Playing without injured quarterbacks Jayden Daniels (elbow) and Marcus Mariota (quad, hand), Washington turned to 39-year-old journeyman Josh Johnson. Making his 10th career start and first since 2021, Johnson went 15 of 23 for 198 yards with no touchdowns or interceptions.
Jacory Croskey-Merritt scored on runs of 10 and 72 yards for Washington. That final touchdown brought the Commanders to 24-17 in the third quarter, but Dallas restored its lead to double digits with a 52-yard field goal from Brandon Aubrey.
Aubrey added a 51-yarder to make it 30-20 with 3:59 left.
After Prescott threw a seven-yard touchdown pass to tight end Jake Ferguson on the game’s first drive, Johnson went 3-for-3 for 68 yards to bring Washington within 7-3. The key play was a 41-yard completion by Deebo Samuel, Johnson’s longest since 2018. Samuel finished by hitting Donovan Wilson, knocking off the safety helmet.
On their second possession, the Cowboys converted three fourth downs on a 17-play march that ended with a touchdown run by Javonte Williams. Prescott then had three touchdowns in three drives with an 86-yard scoring pass to KaVontae Turpin.
