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The Big Plays: Seahawks lose 41-35 to Cowboys, fall to 6-6

Nov 30, 2023, 8:48 PM | Updated: 9:55 pm

Brent Stecker's Profile Picture

BY BRENT STECKER


Editor, Seattle Sports

The Seattle Seahawks found their offense on Thursday Night Football. It still wasn’t enough against the Dallas Cowboys.

Cowboys 41, Seahawks 35: Instant Reaction | Good, Bad, Ugly | Recap | Stats

Despite a big night for quarterback Geno Smith and wide receiver DK Metcalf, the Seahawks lost the lead in the fourth quarter and couldn’t find a comeback as they fell 41-35 to the Cowboys in a shootout at AT&T Stadium.

The loss sends Seattle to 6-6 on the season as a tough stretch against NFC contenders in the season continues for them. The Seahawks have lost two straight and have meetings with the NFC West-leading San Francisco 49ers and NFC-best Philadelphia Eagles coming up in the next two weeks.

The Cowboys improve to 9-3 with the win, which is second in both the conference and NFC East behind the Eagles.

Smith completed 23 of 41 passes for 334 yards and three touchdowns, all to Metcalf, plus an interception. Metcalf caught six of Smith’s passes for 134 yards in addition to his three scores. But after Dallas took back the lead in the fourth quarter, Smith twice threw incompletions on fourth down with a chance to lead Seattle to a go-ahead score.

Here’s a breakdown of the big plays from Thursday’s Seahawks-Cowboys game.

FIRST QUARTER

• The Cowboys seemed poised to find the end zone right away, but this sack by Seahawks linebacker Jordyn Brooks made sure that Dallas settled for a field goal on the opening drive of the game.

• Thursday Night Football was about to become the DK Metcalf Show, and the star Seahawks wide receiver got off to an exciting start by showing off his sprinter-worthy speed for a 73-yard touchdown pass from Smith, making it 7-3 Seattle.

• The Cowboys showed off their own QB/receiver combo, with Dak Prescott finding CeeDee Lamb for a 15-yard TD that put Dallas back ahead, 10-7.

• Metcalf was far from done, adding this 34-yard catch to his tally in the first quarter alone. That gave him 107 receiving yards, the third-most yards ever in a first quarter by a Seahawks player. Unfortunately, Seattle couldn’t capitalize as Jason Myers missed a 42-yard field goal attempt to end the drive.

SECOND QUARTER

• The missed kick looked like it might end up really hurting the Hawks, as Prescott found Brandon Cooks for a 7-yard score to push the Cowboys’ lead to 17-7.

• The Seahawks’ offense had plenty more to say, however. A pass interference call on Dallas moved Seattle from the Cowboys’ 49 to the 9-yard line, and rookie Zach Charbonnet plunged in from a yard out to cut the Hawks’ deficit to just three points. It was the first TD in the NFL for Charbonnet, a second-round pick who has served as the lead back the last two games with Kenneth Walker III dealing with an oblique injury.

• Seattle benefited from a Dallas TD being called back for holding, keeping it a one-score game as the Cowboys settled for a field goal to make it 20-14. That worked out nicely for the Seahawks, who got the ball back with 1:30 left in the first half and stormed their way into the end zone. After an apparent TD pass to Jaxon Smith-Njigba was overturned on replay, and then another TD pass to Noah Fant was called off due to a Cowboys timeout, the third time was the charm as Smith found Metcalf for a 1-yard score with four seconds before halftime. After Myers’ PAT, Seattle went into the break up 21-20.

THIRD QUARTER

• The shootout continued after halftime. Seattle went 75 yards in 10 plays after the kickoff to open the third quarter, with Smith running 5 yards for a TD to make it 28-20 Seahawks.

• The Cowboys answered with a 75-play touchdown drive of their own, ending on a 6-yard Tony Pollard run into the end zone that cut Seattle’s lead to 28-27.

• The Seahawks had gotten the best of star Cowboys cornerback DaRon Bland for most of the game, but he made his presence felt late in the third quarter, intercepting a Smith pass intended for Tyler Lockett to give Dallas the ball with great field position at Seattle’s 38.

The Seahawks’ defense had its offense’s back, though, forcing a turnover on downs to preserve the narrow lead as Lamb dropped a pass on fourth down.

• A trio of big plays got the Seahawks back in the end zone. First, Fant hauled in a 25-yard pass from Smith with the kind of tremendous diving catch you don’t often see from a tight end.

Next, it was Charbonnet’s turn, who turned a screen pass into a 39-yard gain that put Seattle on the Dallas 6.

Finally, the Seahawks scored when – who else? – Metcalf made his third touchdown catch of the night, this time a 3-yarder that made it 35-27 in Seattle’s favor.

FOURTH QUARTER

• Dallas made things a little easier on itself with a 38-yard Brandon Aubrey field goal, cutting Seattle’s lead to 35-30, meaning a Cowboys touchdown would come with the lead. They kept that chance intact by forcing a turnover on downs at their own 46. And then they made good on it, with Prescott finding Jake Fergsuson for a 12-yard score. After a Prescott pass to Cooks for a two-point conversion, Dallas moved back into the lead, 38-35, with less than five minutes remaining.

The Cowboys would tack on an additional field goal while two late Seahawks drives ended without points, allowing Dallas to escape with the comeback victory.

More on the Seattle Seahawks

• Seahawks’ Week 15 game vs Eagles flexed to Monday Night Football
• Bumpus: Where Seahawks RB Charbonnet must adjust his game
• How is Seahawks’ Geno Smith playing? K.J. Wright shares what he sees
• Salk: Is narrative of Seahawks and Russell Wilson being recrafted?
• Bumpus: A reality about Seattle Seahawks to come to terms with

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The Big Plays: Seahawks lose 41-35 to Cowboys, fall to 6-6