ARLINGTON, Texas — Everything was set up for the Dallas Cowboys to make a deep postseason run and end the franchise’s drought of playoff appearances without reaching the conference championship game.
The Cowboys entered the postseason with a 12-5 record for the third consecutive season. The were the NFC’s No. 2 seed and boasted the NFL’s highest scoring offense (29.9 points per game), Dak Prescott leading the NFL in touchdown passes (36), CeeDee Lamb leading the league in receptions (135) and the league’s only perfect record at home (8-0). On Sunday evening against the 7th-seeded Green Bay Packers, none of that mattered as Green Bay cruised to a 48-32 victory to advance to the NFC divisional round.
“What I’m zeroed in on is the fact that I thought we were in a position, everybody in this room thought we were in a position to advance this thing in the playoffs and maybe get as far as our dreams might take us,” Cowboys owner and general manager Jerry Jones said postgame. “This is one of my most surprises since I’ve been involved in sport, period…I know how disappointed everybody is.”
Dallas finished the regular season with a dominant +172 point differential at AT&T Stadium in the regular season, making it seem unfathomable that they were going to stumble against the NFC’s last team in. Instead, they became the owners of the largest regular season home point differential by a team to lose their playoff opener at home in NFL history. They trailed for more time (52 minutes, 8 secs) than in all eight of their regular season home games combined, an NFL-low 44 minutes and 36 seconds. The juxtaposition between the Cowboys performance all year and what they did on the field against the Packers in the postseason left Jones reeling, declaring this stumble the most painful playoff defeat in his 35 years owning and running the team.
“This seems like the most painful because we all had such great expectation and had hope for this team,” Jones said. “Had thought we were aligned and in great shape, and it didn’t happen for us.… I know where the responsibility starts and ends. I’ve got that real clear. But that’s not the point. The point is that I’m disappointed for everyone.”
The 48 points Green Bay scored are the most the Cowboys have ever allowed in postseason game, so naturally questions are going to arise about how that happened.
“I didn’t see that coming at all,” Jones said….
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