Dak Prescott Guides Cowboys By Skidding Commanders to Kick Off Christmas Triple-Header.

Dak Prescott threw for 307 yards and a pair of scoring strikes, as Dallas squandered a large portion of an 18-point lead before edging the Washington Commanders 30-23 Thursday.

The Cowboys, now 7-8-1, scored touchdowns on their first three possessions to build a 21-3 lead. Washington, falling to 4-12, cut the gap to a touchdown on three different occasions, they couldn’t complete the comeback and absorbed their tenth defeat in 11 games.

Both teams were already out from postseason consideration, which significantly reduced the significance of this matchup between longtime NFC East rivals.

Prescott's Historic Outing

Prescott completed 19 of 37 passes and helped Dallas convert all six of its fourth-down tries. His pair of touchdown throws gave him 30 for the season, tying Tony Romo’s record of four seasons with at least 30 touchdown passes.

The signal-caller endured six sacks, with three coming from defensive tackle Jer’Zhan Newton.

Washington's Quarterback Dilemma

Forced to play minus their top QBs Jayden Daniels (elbow) and Marcus Mariota (quad, hand), Washington called upon 39-year-old journeyman Josh Johnson. Making his 10th career start and his first in over two years, Johnson went 15 for 23 for 198 yards with no touchdowns or interceptions.

Washington's Offensive Highlights

Jacory Croskey-Merritt found paydirt with runs of 10 and 72 yards for Washington. The 72-yard scamper got the Commanders to 24-17 in the second half, but Dallas restored its double-digit lead with a 52-yard field goal by Brandon Aubrey.

Aubrey added a 51-yarder to extend the lead to 30-20 with 3:59 remaining.

After Prescott threw to tight end Jake Ferguson on the first possession, Johnson completed three passes for 68 yards to get Washington to 7-3. The key play was a 41-yard completion to Deebo Samuel, Johnson’s biggest play since 2018.

Cowboys' Sustained Drives

On their second possession, the Cowboys converted three fourth downs on a lengthy, 17-play drive that ended with a touchdown run by Javonte Williams. Prescott then completed the hat-trick in three drives with an 86-yard touchdown strike to KaVontae Turpin.