Game Recap: Behind Lance Cowboys win 27-12
The Dallas Cowboys traded |A|
for Trey Lance last |B|
season in hopes they |C|
could tap into the |D|
talent that made him |E|
the third overall pick |F|
in the 2021 NFL |G|
Draft. In this preseason |H|
matchup against the Las |J|
Vegas Raiders, he finally |K|
gave a glimpse of |L|
that potential. Entering the game |M|
in the second quarter, |O|
Lance would lead the |P|
Cowboys to a 27-12 |Q|
victory over the Raiders |R|
behind a pair of |S|
scoring drives. He completed |U|
15 of 23 passes |V|
on the night for |Y|
151 yards and a |Z|
touchdown to finish with |A|
a 98.3 passer rating. |B|
Just for good measure, |C|
he also added a |D|
rushing touchdown and tied |E|
for the team lead |F|
with 34 yards on |G|
the ground. Overall, the Cowboys |H|
recorded 294 yards of |J|
offense, which included 137 |K|
rushing yards as a |L|
group. Deuce Vaughn sat |M|
out the preseason opener |O|
at the Rams due |P|
to injury, but he |Q|
made up for it |R|
with an impressive showing |S|
in Las Vegas. The |U|
second-year man shook and |V|
shifted for 34 yards |Y|
on five carries, an |Z|
impressive 6.8 yards per |A|
carry average. Mike Zimmer's defense |B|
again was effective. While |C|
the unit allowed the |D|
Raiders to total 315 |E|
yards of offense, Dallas |F|
only allowed one touchdown |G|
for the second straight |H|
week. Cornerback Andrew Booth |J|
led the Cowboys with |K|
eight tackles with safety |L|
Juanyeh Thomas shining in |M|
limited action with a |O|
pair of pass breakups. First |P|
Quarter The game was soon |J|
tied, though. The Raiders |K|
started their possession at |L|
the 40-yard line after |M|
Aubrey's kickoff went out |O|
of bounds. On their |P|
first snap, quarterback Gardner |Q|
Minshew then connected with |R|
Tre Tucker on a |S|
deep post pattern for |U|
a 48-yard gain. The |V|
Cowboys defense held its |Y|
ground, though, as Vegas |Z|
settled for a 29-yard |A|
field goal. Second Quarter The defense again did |P|
its job, though. The |Q|
Raiders decided to go |R|
for it on fourth-and-5 |S|
at the Dallas 18, |U|
but Minshew's pass sailed |V|
high, the Cowboys taking |Y|
over on downs. Lance came |Z|
in at the start |A|
of the second quarter, |B|
but his first two |C|
series resulted in three-and-outs. |D|
And special teams again |E|
had its difficulties. This |F|
time the Raiders' Tucker |G|
found a lane down |H|
the left sideline and |J|
was able to return |K|
the punt 43 yards. |L|
With a 5-yard penalty |M|
on Dallas tacked on, |O|
Vegas was back in |P|
business at the Cowboys' |Q|
28-yard line. The Dallas defense |R|
again did its job, |S|
but this time the |U|
Raiders decided to take |V|
the easy points, kicking |Y|
a 27-yard field goal |Z|
for a 6-3 lead. However, |A|
Lance came back and |B|
displayed some of that |C|
talent that warranted the |D|
Cowboys taking a chance |E|
on him. He completed |F|
all five of his |G|
pass attempts for 34 |H|
yards, and ran for |J|
a first down on |K|
third-and-1 at the Raiders' |L|
8-yard line. The last |M|
of his throws was |O|
a perfect 1-yard fade |P|
to Ryan Flournoy in |Q|
the back right corner |R|
of the end zone |S|
for the Cowboys' first |U|
touchdown of the preseason But |V|
Lance and company weren't |Y|
done yet. Getting the |Z|
ball back at his |A|
own 14-yard line with |B|
28 seconds left, the |C|
young quarterback threw a |D|
pair of 8-yard passes |E|
to tight end John |F|
Stephens, scrambled for a |G|
2-yard gain, and then |H|
took off on a |J|
20-yard scamper before calling |K|
a timeout with 1 |L|
second left. That gave Aubrey |M|
a chance to try |O|
a 66-yard field goal, |P|
and his kick went |Q|
right down the middle |R|
to give Dallas a |S|
13-6 advantage at the |U|
half. Third Quarter Fourth Quarter With the Dallas |G|
defense continuing to take |H|
care of business, Lance's |J|
night just kept getting |K|
better. He later took |L|
the offense on a |M|
13-play, 88-yard drive that |O|
saw him complete passes |P|
of 17, 15, 12 |Q|
and 30 yards, but |R|
took the scoring honors |S|
himself, dashing up the |U|
middle on a quarterback |V|
draw from 2 yards |Y|
out for the touchdown |Z|
to wrap up the |A|
scoring, 27-12.
Although the Raiders began |Q|
the game with their |R|
first-stringers while Dallas went |S|
largely with backups, the |U|
reserves held their own |V|
against the starters. In |Y|
fact, after stopping Vegas |Z|
on a fourth-and-3 at |A|
the Cowboys' 47-yard line, |B|
starting quarterback Cooper Rush |C|
then moved his side |D|
close enough to allow |E|
Brandon Aubrey to kick |F|
a 54-yard field goal |G|
for an early 3-0 |H|
lead.
Despite the |B|
Raiders starters still being |C|
in the game, the |D|
Dallas defense forced a |E|
three-and-out on Vegas' first |F|
series of the second |G|
quarter. But on the |H|
ensuing punt, a booming |J|
69-yarder, returner Jalen Cropper |K|
fumbled the ball with |L|
the home side recovering |M|
at the Cowboys' 23-yard |O|
line.
Unfortunately, the lead |V|
was soon cut to |Y|
one. After the Cowboys |Z|
were forced to punt |A|
on their first possession |B|
of the third frame, |C|
the Raiders marched 57 |D|
yards in 13 plays |E|
for the score. The |F|
touchdown came on a |G|
5-yard pass from Aidan |H|
O'Connell to tight end |J|
Harrison Bryant, but when |K|
the pair tried to |L|
connect again on the |M|
two-point conversion, the toss |O|
fell incomplete.
The Raiders |P|
were on the move |Q|
when the clock ticked |R|
into the final quarter, |S|
the home side lined |U|
up at the Dallas |V|
35-yard line for the |Y|
first play of the |Z|
fourth. But Cowboys cornerback |A|
Kemon Hall stepped in |B|
front of another O'Connell |C|
pass attempt to Bryant |D|
and took the interception |E|
back 69 yards for |F|
a pick-6.
