The preseason is over. The real games can begin.
In the last opportunity for the lower ranked players to make an impact, the Dallas Cowboys fell to the Los Angeles Chargers 26-19. The Cowboys made it exciting, but in the end too many turnovers ruined their efforts.
Trey Lance played quarterback from start to finish, showing both moments of brilliance and persistent inconsistency. He threw for 323 yards and a touchdown and led all runners with 90 yards on the ground. But he also threw five interceptions that day, which made the difference.
In total, Dallas ran 246 yards and reached a whopping 558 yards on offense. The team also dominated the time of possession with 40:57 to 19:03, but Dallas only managed 1 of 4 in the red zone.
While the Dallas defense was already reeling from the news before the game that DaRon Bland would be out for six to eight weeks with a stress fracture in his foot, the game itself brought some relief to the unit. They allowed some big plays early on, but Mike Zimmer’s troops settled down and kept Los Angeles from scoring in the second half.
The Cowboys got off to a promising start as Lance led the team 85 yards in 14 plays and reached the Chargers’ 5-yard line, picking up five first downs along the way. Unable to get the ball into the end zone, Brandon Aubrey was able to kick the 23-yard field goal, giving the home team an early 3-0 lead.
So much for that. On Los Angeles’ very first snap, wide receiver Derius Davis, a TCU product, took the handoff on a reverse, outran defensive end Viliami Fehoko on the left side and ran 70 yards through the secondary for a touchdown.
Like déjà vu, the Chargers’ first snap of the second quarter produced the same result as their opening snap of the first period. This time, former Cowboys draft pick Simi Fehoko ran down the right sideline, got behind cornerback Andrew Booth, caught the pass and ran 78 yards for a touchdown.
When Los Angeles Chargers safety Tony Jefferson lunged for a pass from Lance to Jalen Cropper and intercepted the pass, the visitors were back in action at Dallas’ 38-yard line. And they were able to reach the Cowboys’ 3, but linebacker Buddy Johnson thwarted a pass attempt on third-and-goal after two tackles earlier in the drive. The Chargers had to settle for a 21-yard field goal.
After struggling on their previous three possessions, the Cowboys finally got back in front. Lance recovered from his turnover by leading the team 74 yards in 13 plays, a drive in which he twice struggled to first downs. The quarterback then capped it off with a perfectly placed 11-yard pass to wide receiver Ryan Flournoy in the back left corner of the end zone for Dallas’ first touchdown of the game.
For a moment, it looked like the Cowboys would allow Aubrey another field goal attempt before halftime. Lance threw a dart up the middle to John Stephens, but the big tight end dropped the ball and Los Angeles took the prize at their own 41-yard line.
And with 50 seconds left on the clock, that was enough time for the Chargers to get in position for a 48-yard field goal. The kick sailed through the goal posts with three seconds left, and the Cowboys went into halftime with a 20-10 lead.
The Chargers came out of the break and immediately became dangerous again after working their way to the Dallas 33-yard line. But quarterback Easton Stick’s pass was intercepted at the line of scrimmage by defensive tackle Justin Rogers, caught again by linebacker Nick Vigil and then by safety Julius Wood, his second interception of the preseason.
And the Cowboys almost took advantage of this gift. Lance completed passes of 13, 14 and 20 yards, reaching the visitors’ 11-yard line, but his next pass attempt, a pass to Deontay Burnett in the end zone, was instead intercepted by Jefferson of the Chargers – a missed opportunity.
After a three-and-out by the Chargers, Dallas at least retained the advantage of field position and got the ball back after the punt at their own 43-yard line. Five plays later, Lance was in the end zone. He darted around the left end and then ran untouched 46 yards to the goal. Head coach Mike McCarthy opted for the two points, but Lance overshot Cam Johnson with his throw and the conversion failed.
By the end of Dallas’ next series, the lead was down to one point. Lance again did the heavy lifting on the 14-play, 65-yard drive, completing 6 of 7 passes for 52 yards that eventually led to a 33-yard field goal for Aubrey, who continued his impressive preseason.
Unfortunately, the good times didn’t last. On the Cowboys’ next possession, Lance missed linebacker Tre’mon Morris-Brash, who leapt up to intercept and then catch the pass before running 25 yards for the pick-6. But similar to Dallas’ two-point conversion attempt, the Chargers tried to turn the trick around and were also unsuccessful. Linebacker Damien Wilson darted in from the left side to bring down running back Jaret Patterson.
Shortly thereafter, Chargers cornerback Matt Hankins beat the Cowboys’ Johnson on a 50/50 ball, giving Los Angeles its fourth interception of the day. However, Dallas had one last chance to win.
Lance and his team got the ball back at their own 10-yard line with 1:51 left, quickly fought their way through midfield and found themselves at the Chargers’ 20-yard line with 8 seconds left. But Lance’s pass to Johnson sailed high and landed in the waiting arms of cornerback Robert Kennedy. The game was over.
With the defeat, Dallas finished the three test matches with a score of 1:2.
