Cowboys’ defense no-shows in shocking upset to Green Bay Packers

The Dallas Cowboys were outclassed in all three phases of a shocking 48-32 defeat to Green Bay in the Wild Card round of the playoffs on Sunday.

Dak Prescott threw two interceptions, there was a missed extra point and questionable return attempts on special teams, but nothing was more shocking than the performance of the star-studded defense.

Throughout the regular season, the Cowboys were viewed as having one of the five best defenses in the NFL, but the unit looked more like a bottom five unit against the Packers.

The performance left Dallas owner Jerry Jones without answers post game.

“I don’t have any comments or answers for how and why we didn’t do what we wanted tonight,” Jones said. “I thought we were in position to advance this thing in the playoffs and maybe get as far as our dreams might take us.”

Green Bay methodically marched down the field on its first possession with a 12-play drive that featured eight runs. The Cowboys aided the drive with an offsides and defensive holding and the mental miscues would continue for the rest of the game.

Six of the Packers’ first seven offensive possessions resulted in a touchdown as the Dallas defense had answer for one of the youngest offensive cores in the league. It was a stunning scene as Cowboys veterans like Micah Parsons, DeMarcus Lawrence and DaRon Bland made little to no impact on the game.

While Prescott was melting down in another playoff moment, Green Bay quarterback Jordan Love was making his first playoff start and looked like a five-year veteran against what was supposed to be one of the best defenses in the NFL.

In the first half, three of Green Bay’s four offensive possessions resulted in a touchdown. Love was perfect going 12-for-12 with 152 yards and a touchdown. Love finished with a near perfect passer rating as he completed 16 of 21 attempts for 272 yards and a touchdown, clearly outplaying Prescott.

“He’s a good quarterback, he’s in this position for a reason,” Stephon Gilmore said. “They got into 12 personnel and started running the ball then running play action passes. It was hard to get in a rhythm.”

Packers head coach Matt LaFleur deserves a ton of credit as he out-coached and out-schemed Dallas defensive coordinator Dan Quinn.

Love made a number of high level throws, whether it was off his backfoot or he was rolling outside of the pocket to extend plays. The best throw was his touchdown Dontayvion Wicks late in the second quarter that made it 20-0.

With the Dallas defense barreling down on him, Love still launched a beautiful pass on a post route to Wicks, who beat Gilmore for the score. It wasn’t just Love that had his way with the defense, veteran running back Aaron Jones had three touchdowns.

Jones didn’t rip off many big runs until the second half, but he still delivered body blows as he fought for extra yardage and used his vision to make the most out of any creases the offensive line was able to generate.

Jones’ hard runs were especially demoralizing in the second half with the Cowboys having a small glimmer of hope to get back in the game. After a Dallas field goal cut it to 27-10, Jones quickly picked up a first down with 12 yards on two carries.

After a Love strike to Romeo Doubs generated 46 yards, Jones finished the drive off with two runs where he showcased his power on the first and his agility on the second for a touchdown that made it 34-16. The Dallas run defense has long been viewed as the weakness of the unit and the Green Bay offensive line had no problem pounding the Cowboys front seven over and over again.

“It was a tough one, it’s hard pill we have to swallow,” linebacker Damone Clark said. “It was a tough, the only thing we can do is take this one to the chin and reload.”

On Green Bay’s next possession, Jones hammered the defense for 37 yards on two runs. Desperate to slow him down, the Cowboys defense over-committed to the run on the next play which allowed a wide open Luke Musgrave

Jones rushed for 115 yards in just three quarters of action as Green Bay pulled him at the start of the fourth to preserve him for the next round.

Not to be forgotten, Doubs had his first career 100-yard game with over 150 yards with a big chunk coming against Gilmore. No matter who you point to, there were no bright spots in Dallas’ worst defensive performance of the year.

To lose is one thing, to lose and get rolled at home to such a young offense is another. It was a complete meltdown across the board and the biggest culprits were on the defensive side of the ball.

That’s something many would’ve anticipated reading at the start of the season, but it’s one thing to dominate offenses like the Commanders or Giants or the Jets. The true measure of a great defense comes in the postseason and for yet another season the Cowboys came up short when it mattered most.