Giants-Cowboys: 5 impactful plays from the loss against Dallas

The New York Giants were defeated in convincing fashion by the Dallas Cowboys for the second time this season on Sunday. New York lost 49-17 in Dallas, as the Cowboys out-gained the Tommy Devito led Giants, 640-172.

Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott threw for 404 yards with four touchdowns, but did have an interception to Cor’Dale Flott. The Giants defense was torched, their offense did little until the end of the game, and various arguments broke out on the Giants’ sideline throughout the affair.

New York’s secondary could not stop CeeDee Lamb or Brandin Cooks, as the duo amassed 173 yards and 151 yards, respectively. Each receiver had a receiving touchdown; Lamb also had a rushing touchdown. Cooks did his damage on nine catches, Lamb on 11.

Lamb had a catch late in the game that put him over 150-yards. He became the first receiver in NFL history to catch at least 10 passes for 150-yards in three consecutive games. Seemingly, Dallas could do no wrong. It’s going to be a long, arduous, journey till the end of the season for Giants’ nation. Here are five notable plays, or sequences of plays, that led to the outcome.

Play(s) 1: CeeDee Lamb (11 catches, 151 yards, 2 total TDs)

We don’t need to go through all 11 of Lamb’s catches, but this was the most notable. This one handed snag was Lamb’s second catch of the game that went for 30 yards. The Giants did not have an answer for Lamb. They attempted to shadow Lamb with rookie Deonte Banks early in the game, but that didn’t work. New York’s defense didn’t just struggle with Lamb, but Brandin Cooks also had his true Cowboys’ breakout in Week 10.

The inability to cover Cooks winds up as the second sequence of plays in this article. But first, here’s Lamb’s touchdown from Week 10:

Play(s) 2: Couldn’t stop Brandin Cooks

The Giants’ man coverage was carved up by Dak Prescott (4) in the game, and in the touchdown above. Dallas caught the Giants in man coverage with inside leverage; Cor’Dale Flott (28) was caught inside as Cooks (3) ran a corner route. Prescott recognized the coverage, attacked, and Dallas scored their third touchdown of the first half.

Cooks entered the game with 165 receiving yards on 17 catches (29 targets). He caught nine of 10 targets for 173 yards as well as the touchdown above. The Giants had no answers for the veteran receiver.

Play(s) 3: Dak Prescott cooked

Prescott threw the ball all over the place on Sunday, but the veteran quarterback also scored Dallas’ fourth touchdown with this run on third-and-nine. Maybe, just maybe, he benefitted from a pretty egregious hold on Kayvon Thibodeaux (5), but did it really matter? Prescott finished with two carries for 17 yards with the touchdown.

Play 4: Cor’Dale Flott’s interception

Any positive plays from potential building blocks on the roster should be highlighted. Was it impactful toward the outcome of the Week 10 game? No, but it a sliver of positivity in this dank reality that is the Giants’ 2023 season.

This was one of two interceptions (the other was thrown by Cooper Rush to Darnay Holmes). In a game where Dak Prescott was near flawless, it was nice to see Flott use his eyes and undercut a route for the takeaway.

Play 5: The Gallup dagger

Not that the Giants had much momentum, but Prescott’s 41-yard strike to Michael Gallup (13) put the Cowboys up 35-7, as the receiver defeated sixth-round rookie Tre Hawkins III (37) for the score. This capped off the drive that was in direct response to the Giants’ first touchdown drive. Everything from the pocket, to the throw, to the catch, to the points was enough to collectively make Giants’ nation shake their head in disappointment.