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ARLINGTON, Texas — Jerry Jones looked sick. As the Cowboys owner and general manager walked out of the locker room and toward a group of reporters Sunday afternoon, he appeared stunned.
Dallas’ season wasn’t supposed to end this way. There was too much talent, ideal health and an experienced coaching staff. There had been talk inside and outside The Star about Super Bowl aspirations. It was talked about as a special group with the ability to get the Cowboys back to the conference championship game for the first time since 1995. Instead, the Cowboys’ season ended in the wild-card round, 23-17, to the San Francisco 49ers in front of 93,470 inside AT&T Stadium.
“Very disappointed,” Jones said. “I’m disappointed for our fans. They deserved to win this game tonight, and they deserved for us to go farther. So it was quite a letdown.”
When was the last time Jones was this disappointed after a loss?
“I can’t remember,” he said.
San Francisco, the NFC’s sixth seed, wasn’t an ideal matchup for the third-seeded Cowboys. The 49ers, who entered the postseason having won seven of their previous nine games, are built to run the football and stop the run at an elite level. Dallas is built to throw the football and shut down opposing passers who try to keep up. But matchups might not have mattered much with the way the Cowboys started Sunday. The Los Angeles Rams or Arizona Cardinals would have been in a great position to advance in a similar situation.
The 49ers marched down the field on their opening possession and scored a touchdown, then added field goals the next three times they had the ball. On offense, the Cowboys started like they have when playing anyone not called Washington, New York or Philadelphia, trailing 10-0 before they knew what hit them, 16-7 at halftime and 23-7 late in the third quarter.
Frankly, if 49ers quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo had been more accurate, this game could’ve been a blowout. After Dallas’ first score, Garoppolo underthrew wide receiver Brandon Aiyuk on the first play of the next series. The completion went for a 37-yard gain, but a decent throw would have resulted in a touchdown. The 49ers settled for a field goal. San Francisco was up 23-10 with less than 10 minutes to play when Garoppolo attempted a poor throw near the Cowboys sideline that was intercepted by cornerback Anthony Brown. Dallas scored its second touchdown five plays later, making the score 23-17.
The Cowboys had their best opportunity to put together a game-winning drive when they got the ball back at their 16-yard line with 2:51 remaining and all three timeouts. More important, the 49ers were without their top two defenders, edge rusher Nick Bosa (concussion) and linebacker Fred Warner (ankle).
Dak Prescott, who completed only 23 of 43 passes for 254 yards, one touchdown, one interception and a 69.3 passer rating, looked to have the Cowboys in a good spot after a 38-yard completion to tight end Dalton Schultz. But the drive stalled as the next four plays were a sack and three incomplete passes. The Cowboys offensive line was far from a strength again, putting Prescott in some tough situations throughout, including on that possession.
“Not good enough,” Prescott said. “Simple as that. I take a lot of pride in my job and take accountability in this loss. I’ve got to play better to help this team win and overcome some of the things that we put ourselves into.”
Trevon Diggs sits dejected on the sideline. (Kevin Jairaj / USA Today)
Dallas actually had one more chance with 32 seconds remaining, needing to go 80 yards for the win. But with 14 seconds left and the ball on San Francisco’s 41, Prescott took off on a run, sliding after a 17-yard gain. But with no timeouts, the clock continued to run, and the Cowboys were unable to get off another play.
The officials did a poor job of spotting the ball. One official even ran into Prescott as he was getting under center. Dallas should have probably been able to spike it with a second left on the clock, meaning one more play from the 49ers’ 24-yard line. However, when that didn’t happen, the officials ruled the game was over. Angered fans then threw bottles and other objects onto the field.
In an odd postgame moment, Prescott at first was disappointed when asked about fans throwing objects at Cowboys players. But when later told that the fans were actually targeting the officials leaving the field, Prescott responded: “Credit to them then. Credit to them.”
Prescott was then given the opportunity to clarify his response.
“If they weren’t (throwing it) at us and the fans felt the same way as us, and if that’s what they were doing it for, then yeah,” Prescott said. “I guess that’s why the refs took off and got out of there so fast. So, I mean, yeah, I think everybody was upset about the way that this thing played out, and as I said, I’m sure a fan would be the same if it was the same way that we do.”
The officials have been a hot topic with the Cowboys all season. Dallas was the NFL’s second-most penalized team during the regular season. Head coach Mike McCarthy and several players throughout the season have complained about the officiating after losses. The Cowboys were flagged 14 times for 89 yards Sunday.
After the game, the officiating was again a big topic. But is it the officials, or are the Cowboys an undisciplined team?
They certainly looked like one Sunday. They look unprepared, too. And those things ultimately fall on McCarthy.
Jones was asked about a potential head coaching change after the game.
“I don’t even want to discuss anything like that at this particular time,” he responded. “No discussion about anything. I’m not going to discuss coaching, the preparation, any of those things. That’s not on the table.”
McCarthy was asked if he has any concerns about his future in Dallas.
“I don’t have any concerns,” McCarthy said. “I’m proud to be standing here today. I’m proud of my football team.”
McCarthy will likely be back for his third season with the Cowboys, but some changes to his staff are certain. Offensive coordinator Kellen Moore and defensive coordinator Dan Quinn are popular head coaching candidates around the league. Other coaches might end up being replaced. The roster certainly won’t look the same, either, with several key players hitting free agents.
And that’s what disappoints Jones the most.
“When you get this combination of players together, you need to have success,” he said, “because we all know how it goes in the NFL, the whole thing is set up to take away from the best and add to the ones that need improvement. And personnel-wise, I think we have one of the best (teams).”
Dallas’ season wasn’t supposed to end this way. There was too much talent, ideal health and an experienced coaching staff. There had been talk inside and outside The Star about Super Bowl aspirations. It was talked about as a special group with the ability to get the Cowboys back to the conference championship game for the first time since 1995. Instead, the Cowboys’ season ended in the wild-card round, 23-17, to the San Francisco 49ers in front of 93,470 inside AT&T Stadium.
“Very disappointed,” Jones said. “I’m disappointed for our fans. They deserved to win this game tonight, and they deserved for us to go farther. So it was quite a letdown.”
When was the last time Jones was this disappointed after a loss?
“I can’t remember,” he said.
San Francisco, the NFC’s sixth seed, wasn’t an ideal matchup for the third-seeded Cowboys. The 49ers, who entered the postseason having won seven of their previous nine games, are built to run the football and stop the run at an elite level. Dallas is built to throw the football and shut down opposing passers who try to keep up. But matchups might not have mattered much with the way the Cowboys started Sunday. The Los Angeles Rams or Arizona Cardinals would have been in a great position to advance in a similar situation.
The 49ers marched down the field on their opening possession and scored a touchdown, then added field goals the next three times they had the ball. On offense, the Cowboys started like they have when playing anyone not called Washington, New York or Philadelphia, trailing 10-0 before they knew what hit them, 16-7 at halftime and 23-7 late in the third quarter.
Frankly, if 49ers quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo had been more accurate, this game could’ve been a blowout. After Dallas’ first score, Garoppolo underthrew wide receiver Brandon Aiyuk on the first play of the next series. The completion went for a 37-yard gain, but a decent throw would have resulted in a touchdown. The 49ers settled for a field goal. San Francisco was up 23-10 with less than 10 minutes to play when Garoppolo attempted a poor throw near the Cowboys sideline that was intercepted by cornerback Anthony Brown. Dallas scored its second touchdown five plays later, making the score 23-17.
The Cowboys had their best opportunity to put together a game-winning drive when they got the ball back at their 16-yard line with 2:51 remaining and all three timeouts. More important, the 49ers were without their top two defenders, edge rusher Nick Bosa (concussion) and linebacker Fred Warner (ankle).
Dak Prescott, who completed only 23 of 43 passes for 254 yards, one touchdown, one interception and a 69.3 passer rating, looked to have the Cowboys in a good spot after a 38-yard completion to tight end Dalton Schultz. But the drive stalled as the next four plays were a sack and three incomplete passes. The Cowboys offensive line was far from a strength again, putting Prescott in some tough situations throughout, including on that possession.
“Not good enough,” Prescott said. “Simple as that. I take a lot of pride in my job and take accountability in this loss. I’ve got to play better to help this team win and overcome some of the things that we put ourselves into.”
Trevon Diggs sits dejected on the sideline. (Kevin Jairaj / USA Today)
Dallas actually had one more chance with 32 seconds remaining, needing to go 80 yards for the win. But with 14 seconds left and the ball on San Francisco’s 41, Prescott took off on a run, sliding after a 17-yard gain. But with no timeouts, the clock continued to run, and the Cowboys were unable to get off another play.
The officials did a poor job of spotting the ball. One official even ran into Prescott as he was getting under center. Dallas should have probably been able to spike it with a second left on the clock, meaning one more play from the 49ers’ 24-yard line. However, when that didn’t happen, the officials ruled the game was over. Angered fans then threw bottles and other objects onto the field.
In an odd postgame moment, Prescott at first was disappointed when asked about fans throwing objects at Cowboys players. But when later told that the fans were actually targeting the officials leaving the field, Prescott responded: “Credit to them then. Credit to them.”
Prescott was then given the opportunity to clarify his response.
“If they weren’t (throwing it) at us and the fans felt the same way as us, and if that’s what they were doing it for, then yeah,” Prescott said. “I guess that’s why the refs took off and got out of there so fast. So, I mean, yeah, I think everybody was upset about the way that this thing played out, and as I said, I’m sure a fan would be the same if it was the same way that we do.”
The officials have been a hot topic with the Cowboys all season. Dallas was the NFL’s second-most penalized team during the regular season. Head coach Mike McCarthy and several players throughout the season have complained about the officiating after losses. The Cowboys were flagged 14 times for 89 yards Sunday.
After the game, the officiating was again a big topic. But is it the officials, or are the Cowboys an undisciplined team?
They certainly looked like one Sunday. They look unprepared, too. And those things ultimately fall on McCarthy.
Jones was asked about a potential head coaching change after the game.
“I don’t even want to discuss anything like that at this particular time,” he responded. “No discussion about anything. I’m not going to discuss coaching, the preparation, any of those things. That’s not on the table.”
McCarthy was asked if he has any concerns about his future in Dallas.
“I don’t have any concerns,” McCarthy said. “I’m proud to be standing here today. I’m proud of my football team.”
McCarthy will likely be back for his third season with the Cowboys, but some changes to his staff are certain. Offensive coordinator Kellen Moore and defensive coordinator Dan Quinn are popular head coaching candidates around the league. Other coaches might end up being replaced. The roster certainly won’t look the same, either, with several key players hitting free agents.
And that’s what disappoints Jones the most.
“When you get this combination of players together, you need to have success,” he said, “because we all know how it goes in the NFL, the whole thing is set up to take away from the best and add to the ones that need improvement. And personnel-wise, I think we have one of the best (teams).”
