3 takeaways from the Washington Commanders’ brutal loss vs. Dallas Cowboys

Mark the Washington Commanders down for three straight losses. They just ended their midseason skid to three games when the Dallas Cowboys came into their home field and defeated them 34-26.

Rookie quarterback Jayden Daniels and star wide receiver Terry McLaurin gave the team a great chance to win the game. With less than 30 seconds left, trailing by seven points, the two connected for an 86-yard touchdown.

However, Austin Seibert missed the PAT and the Cowboys scored on a one-hop onside kick, putting the game away. They were almost able to pull off another miracle that would have ended their losing streak, which has instead now extended to three games.

NFL.com’ Michael Bacha provided three takeaways of what was learned from the Commanders after their loss to their NFC East rival. The first of what was “Highs and lows in special teams play determine wild affairs.“

This is a completely valid takeaway. Dan Quinn’s team must be sharp in all three phases. Seibert’s missed PAT wasn’t the only special teams event that impacted the game. Cowboys’ Brandon Aubrey missed a couple of kicks, crediting Washington’s efforts to stop them.

The next takeaway is quite simple, and it falls into the hands of offensive coordinator Kliff Kingsbury as “The Commanders’ offensive problems continue.“

“It was tough sledding for Washington’s offense before the late comeback (198 of 412 total yards gained in the final 5:16 of play), and it all started at the point of scrimmage as the Commanders’ offensive line struggled to create running lanes and let the Cowboys’ pass rushing to harass Jayden Daniels all afternoon,” Bacha wrote.

The Commanders are simply not doing enough on that side of the ball. Kingsbury is slowly being found out and he has to counter, which he hasn’t done well. Brian Robinson Jr., leaving with an injury, was brutal, and his lack of impact on the ground helped feed into the team’s offensive woes.

The final takeaway of all may be the most brutal as “The Cowboys D shines largely against Dan Quinn.“

“A long season for the Cowboys defense saw some reprieve on Sunday when they went up against their former defensive coordinator. It was a collaboration of Quinn’s former students and one of his favorites, Micah Parsons, leading the way with two sacks, three QB hits and two tackles for loss,” Bacha wrote.

Quinn entered the game with a chance to prove, as head coach, why the Cowboys shouldn’t have moved on from him. However, it was not the melody that was sung. Dallas’ defense, in turn, was able to put a ton of pressure on Daniels while slowing down the Commanders’ offense.

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• Commanders embracing all things ‘weird’ after Cowboys loss

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• Terry McLaurin’s 86-yard touchdown is surprising, but the Commanders miss extra points