Over the last two days, following the Cowboys’ road win over the Steelers on Sunday Night Football, NFL observers have engaged in lively discussions about whether that Week 5 victory salvaged the Cowboys’ season or if the win was significant enough to warrant further analysis.
During a segment on ESPN’s “Get Up” on Tuesday, analyst and former quarterback Dan Orlovsky responded to a question about his impressions of the Cowboys’ 20-17 comeback victory, stating, “Not impressed at all. Bad offense from Dallas bailed out by bad offense from Pittsburgh. … They avoid catastrophe; I’ll give you that, but this is not an impressive win by the Dallas Cowboys.”
Similarly, the popular Dallas radio show “K&C Masterpiece” on 105.3 The Fan dedicated an entire segment to debating whether the Cowboys’ win over the Steelers was truly impressive.
Defensive back Jourdan Lewis, one of the standout players for the Cowboys this season, weighed in on the discussion. He took to Twitter/X to address the chatter directly, stating, “We don’t gaf about impressive. A win is a win, and football by nature is supposed to be a beautifully ugly sport.”
Cowboys Racked Up 445 Yards on Sunday
Indeed, the Cowboys’ victory had its fair share of flaws. Dallas managed a season-high 445 yards of offense, which, according to Pro Football Reference, should have translated to 31 points. However, two critical turnovers—one a first-half fumble at the Pittsburgh 11-yard line and the other an interception from the Steelers’ 15-yard line—had the Cowboys squandering promising drives.
Entering the fourth quarter, Dallas had only six points, and Prescott added another interception in the final frame.
An unusual occurrence also happened in the third quarter when a field-goal attempt by Brandon Aubrey was blocked by the Steelers, thanks to 6-foot-7 Isaiahh Loudermilk’s reach.
If the performance was underwhelming, the Cowboys deserve credit for not making excuses. A heavy downpour before the game left the field wet and muddy, which Aubrey could have cited as a reason for the blocked kick. However, special teams coach John Fassel did not attribute it to the weather, stating, “It was a mishit.”
He elaborated: “I asked Brandon about the kick. You could tell after the rain when the big boys started mushing it down, it got a little bit muddy and pasture-like between the hashes. But that had no factor on the kick. Our footing was good on that. He just mishit it.”
Dak Prescott Came Through in the End
The reality is that the Cowboys struggled through much of Sunday’s game, particularly on offense and with Prescott’s mistakes. However, it’s only Week 5.
When the Cowboys needed Prescott the most—trailing 17-13 with just over four minutes remaining—he delivered. Although the overall game may not have been impressive, the four-yard touchdown pass to Jalen Tolbert on fourth down with the game hanging in the balance certainly was.
“It’s one of our most comfortable plays,” Prescott explained. “It was special to get it back to Tolbert. He did a great job coming across the field, getting open. The offensive line did a great job on that play of allowing me to stay in the pocket. The persistence and resilience of the team just really showed on that drive.”
