3 Stars: Jourdan Lewis shines, Prescott, Lamb lead offensive explosion
The Dallas Cowboys needed a strong performance in Week 10 after having their six-game win streak snapped by the Denver Broncos. They got just that, and the Atlanta Falcons were the unfortunate victims of their wrath. Offense, defense, and special teams played their parts in the Cowboys’ 43-3 win.
Several players stepped up to contribute for Dallas. Rookie linebacker Micah Parsons got his sixth sack of the season, forcing a fumble, and once again led the team in tackles. Defensive end Dorance Armstrong recorded a sack as well and blocked a punt, which was recovered for a touchdown by rookie cornerback Nahshon Wright. Trevon Diggs hauled in his league-leading eighth interception and Anthony Brown registered his third of the season and tipped a pass that ended up in the arms of another defender. Ezekiel Elliott made it in the end zone on three separate occasions.
How good was the team’s performance? None of those players made this week’s edition of 3 Stars.
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Prescott had his worst game of the season with his second-fewest completions (19) and yards (232) and lowest completion percentage (48.7) against the Broncos. Like all great quarterbacks do though, Prescott came back with a vengeance against the Falcons.
He completed 24 of his 31 passes (77.4%) and tossed two touchdowns while posting an outstanding 93.4 QBR. Prescott shared the wealth, completing passes to 10 different players. It was Prescott’s fifth game of the season with a completion percentage over 70 and he’s thrown 11 touchdowns to just three interceptions in those contests. He also scored a touchdown on the ground, his first of the season.
Prescott has thrown touchdown passes in seven of the eight games he’s played in and hasn’t recorded less than two in any of them. He has an amazing four-to-one touchdown-to-interception ratio (20 touchdowns to five interceptions) and is right in the thick of the MVP race.
(AP Photo/Michael Ainsworth)
Lewis did enough in 2020 to earn a three-year extension worth up to $16.5 million. Against the Falcons, he proved the Cowboys were smart for dishing out the coins to the former third-round pick out of Michigan.
He set the tone defensively on the Falcons’ second possession with back-to-back pass breakups on third and fourth down. Lewis then added his second interception of the season which came early in the fourth quarter.
Lewis’s 94.5 grade according to Pro Football Focus was his best for any game of his five-year career and the highest for any Cowboys player in Week 10. Postgame, Lewis spoke about the performance of the Cowboys’ defense against the Falcons in which they forced three turnovers.
“It’s just the standard,” Lewis said. “I mean, that’s what we’re supposed to do. That’s supposed to happen. We’re supposed to take the ball away, fly around on defense and play how we did today.”
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Lamb just keeps making plays. The first-round selection from 2020 kicked off the scoring bonanza for the Cowboys on their first possession which was the team’s first opening-drive touchdown since Week 3 against the Philadelphia Eagles.
With about a minute to go before halftime, Lamb hauled in his second touchdown as a part of a 29-point explosion by the Cowboys in the second quarter. It was Lamb’s second game of the season with two touchdown catches and he did so by snagging six of his seven targets.
.@dak unloading it !!!🏈#ATLvsDAL | 📺: @NFLonFOX pic.twitter.com/y2G7pZZWhn
— Dallas Cowboys (@dallascowboys) November 14, 2021
Lamb leads the Cowboys in targets (73), receptions (47), receiving yards (726), receiving touchdowns (6), and yards per catch (15.4). Also, he ranks 10th overall in the NFL in receiving yards. In just his second season, Lamb has established himself as one of the brightest stars at the wide receiver position.
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