2 weeks Ago
ARLINGTON - In a harsh reminder that Week 1 doesn’t foreshadow the rest of the season, the Dallas Cowboys saw their fortunes reversed on Sunday. The New Orleans Saints trampled the Cowboys in front of the some of the visiting Bayou faithful, 44-19, scoring on their first six drives. Safety Donovan Wilson intercepted quarterback Derek Carr for Dallas’ first stop of the game with 12 minutes remaining in the fourth quarter, a bleak highlight amidst a barrage of broken plays.
Running back Alvin Kamara left his mark on the Week 2 contest, finding four touchdowns and passing the century mark on the ground. Time and time again, he broke free against a Cowboys defense that seemed flustered from the start. And the crowd here at AT&T Stadium? No, it wasn't cheering "Who Dak?'' in honor of the $60 million APY quarterback; those were chants of "Who Dat?,'' the Saints chant .
.. mixing in melodiously with Dallas fans booing the home team in a rare regular-season loss in this building.
"We were on Cloud 9 last week,'' coach Mike McCarthy said of the Week 1 win at Cleveland. "We didn't handle adversity here very well.'' © Stephen Lew-USA TODAY Sports The tone was set early.
Carr hit receiver Chris Olave for a 39-yard pitch and catch on the first drive, and on the second drive of the game, he found a one-play, 70-yard bomb to receiver Rashid Shaheed. Dallas attempted to keep pace with a pair of field goals, and receiver CeeDee Lamb would put himself on the highlight reel with a 65-yard reception – the Cowboys’ best play of the afternoon. The Saints entered the half with a 35-16 lead and wouldn’t face much of a threat the rest of the way.
Dallas was unable to take advantage of its fourth quarter interception, with quarterback Dak Prescott returning the favor by getting picked off on the next play. While coordinator Mike Zimmer’s defense calmed down in the second half, limiting the explosives that turned the first half upside down. Even so, the Cowboys’ fate was sealed by their poor first-half performance.
Related: Cowboys' Zack Martin Exits; Injury Update vs. Saints The Saints would extend their lead on a Blake Grupe chip shot field goal, an extra nail in an already sealed coffin. Prescott finished with a deceivingly decent box score and 293 passing yards.
But the real numbeer belongs to Kamara, with 180 total yards and four touchdowns. Setting Dallas back to .500, the Week 2 loss is more than a gut punch in a potentially impactful intra-conference matchup.
It raises the alarms ahead of the home opener next week against an elite Baltimore Ravens squad. With one of the most feared run games in the sport looming on the schedule, the Cowboys are back to scrambling for defensive answers. "We play another playoff-caliber team next week,'' acknowledged McCarthy .
.. surely with some trepidation.
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