Cowboys historic notes from Bengals loss: Rico Dowdle is in uncommon territory

The Dallas Cowboys misplaced on Monday which is clearly very irritating. Factoring within the precise nature during which the sport ended, it isn’t a stretch to say it was one of many extra irritating losses of your complete season.

Finally the present goes on and the Cowboys shall be again in motion on Sunday afternoon towards the Carolina Panthers. Earlier than we totally transfer on to that recreation although, now we have to correctly bury what occurred on Monday night time and within the burial course of we are able to contextualize all of it by an necessary lens.

One thing we do each week is consider the sport that Dallas simply performed and the outcomes from it by the lenses of each franchise and workforce historical past. The instruments at Stathead and Pro Football Reference make this attainable and permit us to do all of it with rather more ease.

This week is huge on Rico Dowdle.

Rico Dowdle had one other uncommon efficiency

When you thought to your self that you simply had not seen a efficiency like what Rico Dowdle supplied a lot this season, you then would have been completely proper. Over the course of Monday night time Dowdle averaged 7.3 yards per carry which is extremely spectacular, however it’s much more noteworthy provided that he had 18 whole carries on the night time.

As of Week 14’s conclusion such a efficiency has solely occurred 5 occasions throughout the season as an entire. Dowdle clearly has considered one of them, Derrick Henry has two, Saquon Barkley has one other and New York Giants rookie Tyrone Tracy Jr. did it. Dowdle and Tracy are the one two to do it in a dropping effort. Shucks.

This three-game stretch from Dowdle is somewhat spectacular

Monday night time was simply the newest piece of labor from Dowdle as he has been on hearth for 3 video games in a row now. Over his final three outings, Dowdle has had 329 whole dashing yards. That is solely the third occasion for the reason that 2021 season the place a participant has had 329 or extra dashing yards in a three-game span for the Cowboys. Dowdle, Tony Pollard and Ezekiel Elliott have every finished it as soon as within the span in query.

Clearly the passing recreation has been stout for Dallas over the previous few years, however this in the end proves how lackluster the run recreation has been for fairly a while now.

This stretch has additionally seen a workload that we haven’t seen shortly

It might be argued that the first motive for Dowdle’s performances these days has been how a lot work he has been receiving. Take into account that Dowdle has had no less than 18 carries in every of the final three video games.

This marks the primary time {that a} participant has had no less than 18 carries in three consecutive video games since Ezekiel Elliott had them close to the top (ish) of the 2020 season. As soon as once more this highlights how there’s been a scarcity of consistency within the run recreation for Dallas as they’ve divvied issues up a bit for a while now on the place.

Word that Dowdle is averaging virtually two entire yards greater than Elliott did at that specific time limit. What we’re seeing from Dowdle proper now could be very spectacular.

CeeDee Lamb is all by himself in a single explicit means

Forgive me for not having a screenshot right here, however that occurs if you find yourself speaking about the one participant to perform one thing as they’re on an inventory all by themselves.

CeeDee Lamb handed 935 receiving yards on the season on Monday night time which meant that he has now reached 935 receiving yards in every of his first 5 seasons with the Cowboys. He’s the one participant in franchise historical past to do that.

The Cowboys protection has a formidable streak occurring

Flipping to the opposite aspect of the ball, do you know that the Cowboys protection has generated a turnover in six straight video games? It actually doesn’t really feel prefer it has been that lengthy.

Curiously, that is tied for the longest streak of video games during which the workforce has generated a turnover for the reason that 2020 season (extra on that in a second). Which means that Dallas has now tied the longest streak of video games with a turnover that they ever had beneath Dan Quinn. It must be famous that Quinn’s group did it twice.

It must also be famous that the group who they’d tie with a turnover on Sunday is the 2020 model of the protection which was horrible in a lot of historic methods. Not each file is an effective one.

A reminder that the protection has been very unhealthy this season

Clearly this yr’s protection has been unhealthy in their very own means and on Monday night time the Cincinnati Bengals took full benefit of that. By the top of the night time the Bengals had amassed 433 whole yards.

This marked the fifth occasion this season during which Dallas has allowed 430 whole yards towards them. The 2024 workforce is now tied with the aforementioned 2020 squad in addition to the 2015 group for the second-most occasions that this has occurred to the workforce in a single season. With 4 video games remaining the 2013 “file” is near secure.