Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones is leaving little doubt that he believes errors in game management by his coaching staff in the final seconds of a 34-31 loss to the Baltimore Ravens cost his team the victory.
Speaking on his radio show Tuesday, Jones was asked what explanations there were for leaving enough seconds on the clock after a tying field goal for a defensive breakdown to put the Ravens in position for the winning kick.
“There is no explanation you’re satisfied with. None,” Jones said. “Let’s be sure that we all understand that. They [coaches] you don’t have one that they enjoy. We made a mistake that time. There is no question about it. So there is no explanation. But there is an analysis of how not to make the same mistake again.”
Trailing 31-28, the Cowboys had a first down at the Baltimore 2-yard line with 23 seconds left when Dak Prescott’s throw fell incomplete in the end zone.
After a false start penalty against tight end Luke Schoonmaker, Prescott scrambled to the Baltimore 5, and coach Brian Schottenheimer called his final timeout with 14 seconds left.
The Cowboys are 8-11-1 under head coach Brian Schottenheimer. (Photo by Wagner Meier/Getty Images)
The coach, who was also the playcaller, instructed Prescott to throw quickly to wide receiver George Pickens or throw the ball away, based on the amount of time remaining, with no ability to stop the clock. Prescott didn’t have to wait long to pick the throwaway, and the play lasted just four seconds.
There were seven seconds left after Brandon Aubrey’s field goal, and the Dallas defense left a gap at almost the exact spot of the goal line for a Baltimore field goal. Lamar Jackson completed a 27-yard pass to Zay Flowers, called timeout with one second remaining, and Tyler Loop made a 56-yard field goal.
Schottenheimer is in his second season as a head coach after 25 years as an NFL assistant. Christian Parker is a 34-year-old making his debut as a defensive coordinator. Both will come under considerable scrutiny from fans and pundits in the future, and perhaps from their own front office.
“We’re going to be better from this experience that we had in Baltimore and what happened to us at the end of the game,” Jones said. “A win gives you another way of thinking about it as far as having progress and enthusiasm for having a win in a game like this, because we came back, and we came back in an amazing way.
The Cowboys (1-2) got a break in the NFC East when two-time defending champion Philadelphia lost to the Chicago Bears and backup quarterback Case Keenum on Monday night.
Dallas visits the Houston Texans (0-3) Sunday. The New York Giants, who will be without quarterback Jaxson Dart for the remainder of the regular season with a knee injury, are tied with the Eagles atop the division at 2-1.
“We are very much in the hunt, and I say that mainly based on the way I feel about our team, as much or more than what’s happening with the other teams,” said Jones. “Philadelphia has things they want to do like the Giants do, like we do. It makes you see how health is a factor. Availability is a factor. And we’re just getting started.”
Reporting by The Associated Press.