Dallas Cowboys hand New York Giants their first defeat

• Dallas Cowboys hand New York Giants their first defeat.
• Rush was at his finest in the second half.
• Rush led back-to-back touchdown drives after the Giants grabbed a 13-6 lead in the third quarter.

Dallas Cowboys hand New York Giants their first defeat. Rush was at his finest in the second half, which is when the Cowboys needed him the most. Rush led back-to-back touchdown drives after the Giants grabbed a 13-6 lead in the third quarter, completing 12 of his next 13 throws for 129 yards. Ezekiel Elliott tied it with a score against New York on the first drive, his fifth in a row.

With 8:30 remaining in the second, Rush threw a flawless fade to the corner of the end zone, where receiver CeeDee Lamb made a one-handed grab. Rush and Lamb successfully completed a crucial fourth-and-4 earlier in the drive, and they later connected for a 26-yard pass to the Giants’ 1-yard line.

Rush’s final stats, 21-of-31 for 215 yards and a touchdown, weren’t spectacular, but they were plenty to secure the victory. The only other Cowboys quarterback to have won his first three career games is Rush. The other two were Roger Staubach, a member of the Hall of Fame, and Jason Garrett, his former head coach. And he is only the second quarterback in the Super Bowl era to have scored game-winning drives in all three victories, which came in overtime and the fourth quarter (Virgil Carter).

A promising pattern: The Cowboys have the most sacks in the NFL with 13 through three games. They bugged Daniel Jones all game long on Monday. Everyone is familiar with Micah Parsons. Before suffering a left foot injury against the Giants, DeMarcus Lawrence made his presence known by recording his third career game with three sacks. Six defenders have contributed to the 13 sacks. The Cowboys can wear down an offensive line with their diverse pass rush, which can stay fresh throughout a game.

Eye-popping Lamb was grinning afterward, but a second-quarter slump had to be excruciating for him. He might have scored if he had held onto the Rush pass during a long over. Instead, he made history by being the only player this season to miss a wide-open target at least 30 yards down the field. According to NFL Next Gen Stats, he had 6 yards of separation, making it the fourth drop of its kind since 2020.

But on the crucial fourth-quarter drive that gave the team the lead, Lamb was outstanding. He completed a fourth-down throw, gained 26 yards, and then made the one-handed TD catch that had fellow No. 88 Dez Bryant excited in one of the suites at MetLife Stadium. Toby Archer

Unappreciated fact: Ezekiel Elliott is the only Cowboys player ever to score a running touchdown against the Giants in five straight games.

The Giants had followed this strategy to win the previous two games: keep the score low, generate enough offense in the second half, and eke out a victory.

However, Wink Martindale’s defense did not hold up as effectively this time. The Giants (2-1) were eliminated from the unbeaten club. Right now, the only unbeaten teams are the Miami Dolphins and the division foe Philadelphia Eagles. Even yet, New York is still in good shape going into the Chicago Bears game at MetLife Stadium the following week.

QB breakdown: Despite having not particularly spectacular numbers, Jones really performed quite well. Following wide receiver David Sills’ slip, he completed 20 of 37 passes for 196 yards, no touchdowns, and one interception on the last drive.

For the majority of the game, Jones’ legs were the Giants’ greatest offensive option. Jones has the most first down rushes this season with seven on Monday night. He rushed nine times for 79 yards during the game despite constant pressure. He had 16 rushes for 46 yards as of Monday night. Jones is projected to make 142 tries at running this season, which puts things into perspective. Jalen Hurts of Philadelphia led all quarterbacks in rushing attempts last year with 139.

The Giants have yet to score a touchdown in the first half of this season, which is a troubling trend. The Giants scored nine points in each of their first three games. They are continually adjusting, according to coach Brian Daboll’s statement from last week. But no matter what the Giants tried this week, it was unsuccessful. However, the halftime tweaks have been admirable. In the second half of its last three games, New York has scored 46 points. — Jordan R.

Unimportant fact: Jones was pressured on 24 dropbacks and spent the entire evening running for his life. It was the most pressure he has ever experienced in his four-year career, the most this season for a quarterback, and the second most in the previous two seasons. Evan Neal, a rookie right tackle, had a difficult game in pass protection. Lawrence single-handedly defeated Neal for three sacks, and Neal also made a crucial false start on the game’s last drive.

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