Near fumble at the goal line

ARLINGTON, Texas – The Cowboys had one of the best plays of the season with DeMarvion Overshown’s acrobatic tip-pick-6 for the game’s first touchdown.

That was one of many highlights for the Cowboys, who scored three total touchdowns. But here are some plays that may be forgotten but could have changed the outcome.

Dowdle deletes for a second – After trailing 7-3 in the first quarter, the Cowboys were under a lot of pressure to match the Giants’ touchdown. After gaining a first down, they were forced back due to a personal foul on left tackle Chuma Edoga, which put them on second-and-21. But on the next play, Rico Dowdle had his longest rush of the season with a 22-yarder for first down. This was followed by another 13-yard run. The Cowboys were able to score a field goal on the drive, but failing to convert on second-and-long would have given the Giants a chance to build on some early momentum.

Giants recover fumble on kickoff – So this play seemed to benefit the Giants, but as it turns out, it ended up being a positive for the Cowboys in the long run. The Cowboys had to settle for an earlier field goal and were down 7-6, but they almost got the break they needed on the ensuing kickoff, forcing a fumble after a long return. Instead, the Giants were able to recover the ball at their own 40-yard line. Special teams standout Juanyeh Thomas also suffered an injury and never returned. But on the Giants’ first possession, DeMarvion Overshown deflected a would-be screen pass into the air, caught the ball himself and ran 23 yards to the end zone for the first touchdown of his career – a play that wouldn’t have happened if the Cowboys had recovered that fumble actually recovered.

Rush fumble is overturned and results in a TD – The Cowboys almost gave away a gift early in the second half after forcing a turnover. Dallas was about to score inside the 5-yard line when Cooper Rush was hit and fumbled, which was recovered by the Giants in the end zone. But the replay controllers concluded that Rush was barely on the ground before he fumbled. That landed the ball at the Giants’ 2 on third down, setting up Rush’s TD pass to Brandin Cooks on the receiver’s first play back from injury.

Two PI calls on the same drive – With the Cowboys leading 20-10, the drive was extended twice in the same drive due to pass interference penalties. The first occurred on third-and-six at the Cowboys’ 34-yard line. They were able to get the ball into the red zone, and after preventing another disaster and recovering his own fumble, Rush set up the third-and-11 from the Giants’ 16. Rush fired a slant pass to Jonathan Mingo, which was hit early by cornerback Adoree Jackson. That put the ball on the 8 and Dowdle scored two plays later for a 27-10 lead.

The Giants’ big play was negated by the flag – Midway through the fourth quarter, the Giants were down 14 points with the ball and still had a chance to win the game. On first down, Drew Lock hit Malik Nabers to midfield for a 29-yard gain, but it was called back due to a holding penalty on tight end Chris Manhertz. This moved the Giants closer to their own end zone, and they eventually stumbled on a third-down sack by Osa Odighizuwa. That gave the Cowboys the ball at their own 39 with 6:59 to play.

Giants have critical offside positions – In the final two minutes, the Giants trailed by 7 points after a late touchdown. They had a chance to stop the Cowboys and get the ball back, but an offside call on first down gave the Cowboys a first-and-5. The Giants intentionally attempted to take a 12-man-on-the-field penalty to regain the ball, but the Cowboys vigilantly declined. Thanks to a diving catch by Brandin Cooks, they were able to gain just enough yards in three plays to secure the 27-20 victory.