For the Dallas Cowboys, Sunday's matchup against the Jacksonville Jaguars at TIAA Bank Field held a very simple goal.
Win, and you're in.
And for the first 30 minutes of play, Dallas was well on its way to accomplishing that goal ... before unraveling its way to a 40-34 OT loss.
How did it happen in the end? With what coach Mike McCarthy labeled an "unlucky bounce.''
Dak Prescott's off-balance pass to Noah Brown got tipped in the air and was picked off by Rayshawn Jenkins, who returned it for a touchdown. ... erasing what had been a commanding first half.
At intermission, Dallas was holding a fat 21-7 lead over the Jaguars ... with quarterback Prescott having completed a crisp 15 of 16 passes for 137 yards and two touchdowns.
Meanwhile, on the ground, the Cowboys star tandem of Ezekiel Elliott and Tony Pollard have controlled the pace of the game, with the two combining for 78 yards on 19 carries, with each back averaging more than four yards per carry.
Elliott also added the opening touchdown of the game in the first quarter.
But Dallas' ability to control the game against a supposedly inferior foe didn't hold. The Cowboys are 10-4, and some questions are sure to bubble up now as they failed to clinch a playoff berth while playing a have-not opponent.
McCarthy's overall answer to those questions?
“It was a hell of a football game, and we came out on the wrong side,'' he said. "I’m on to the next one.”
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