Cowboys vs. Patriots score, takeaways: Dallas defense imposes its will, ruins Ezekiel Elliott's return

The Cowboys defense was outstanding once again, forcing three takeaways to spoil Elliott's homecoming

All throughout the week, the Dallas Cowboys clearly communicated how "pissed off" they were following their 28-16 upset loss at the Arizona Cardinals in Week 3. Defensive coordinator Dan Quinn bemoaned the lack of their typical "relentless energy." That wasn't been the case against the New England Patriots as the Cowboys handed Bill Belichick a 38-3 defeat, the most lopsided loss of his career as an NFL head coach. 

Dallas' energy returned on defense as they forced three takeaways, two of which went for touchdowns. As far as takeaways go for the Dallas defense, when it rains it pours. They joined the "Iron Curtain" Pittsburgh Steelers (1972-1974) as the only defense since the 1970 AFL-NFL merger to lead the NFL in takeaways in consecutive seasons (2021-2022), and they certainly looked like it on Sunday. Defensive end Dante Fowler Jr. strip-sacked Patriots quarterback Mac Jones, and the football rolled into the arms of linebacker Leighton Vander Esch, who returned the fumble back 11 yards for a touchdown. On the ensuing extra point attempt, holder Bryan Anger hit Cowboys lineman Chauncey Golston for a wide open two-point conversion on the fake, running the Dallas lead up to 18-3. 

Cowboys cornerback DaRon Bland, Trevon Diggs' injury replacement on the outside, read Jones' eyes perfectly and snatched the football away from Patriots receiver Kendrick Bourne for an interception with under a minute to go in the second half. Bland then easily waltzed into the end zone for his second interception return touchdown of the season. This pick went 54 yards for the score, increasing the Dallas lead to 25, 28-3. His first of the season was a 22-yard pick-six of Daniel Jones in a 40-0 Week 1 win. With Vander Esch's fumble return touchdown and Bland's interception return touchdown, the Cowboys have two defensive scores. The Cowboys are the only team this season with multiple games involving multiple non-offensive touchdowns. There were only five such games across the NFL all of 2022. 

The Patriots' opening possession of the second half began much like a prior one from the first half. Their fourth down and two attempt from the Cowboys 40 resulted in Dallas cornerback DaRon Bland's second interception of the game. Bland's eight career interceptions are the most in the NFL since the start of the 2022 season.  

After three turnovers, Patriots head coach Bill Belichick benched starter Mac Jones, who finished with 150 passing yards, two interceptions and a lost fumble on 12 of 21 passing. Second-year, fourth-round pick quarterback Bailey Zappe, who played in four games a season ago -- starting two -- subbed in for the struggling Jones. Since the New England offense struggled across the board, that meant Cowboys number three all-tile leading rusher Ezekiel Elliott's return was also spoiled. He finished with 16 rushing yards on six carries and 6 receiving yards on two catches. 

Red zone touchdowns nearly evade Cowboys

Cowboys head coach Mike McCarthy opted to have Dallas receive the opening kickoff, and they quickly marched down inside the red zone, an area that was their focus in practice this week after starting 6-for-15 in red zone touchdown rate through their first three games. Quarterback Dak Prescott and running back Tony Pollard ran into each other on the handoff exchange on third and goal from the 1, which resulted in a loss of 4 yards. Second-round rookie tight end Luke Schoonmaker dropped what would have been a red zone touchdown after Prescott hit him in the hands in the middle of the end zone through tight traffic from the 18 earlier in the drive. In the second quarter and third quarters, the Cowboys also came up short inside the 20.  They had to settle for three red zone field goals, making them 7-for-19  in red zone touchdown rate this season. Rookie kicker Brandon Aubrey's three made field goals make him 13-for-13 to begin his NFL career. 

The Patriots experienced a similar start as Jones couldn't connect with his tight end Mike Gesicki on a third-and-goal pass from the 6, so they too settled for a 29-yard field goal following a delay of game penalty. The very next drive, the Cowboys found the end zone. On the first play after Patriots first-round, rookie cornerback Christian Gonzalez exited the game with a shoulder injury after tackling Pollard, the Cowboys attacked with a fade route to CeeDee Lamb down the left sideline, which resulted in an easy, 20-yard touchdown. 

"Yeah, I definitely like the fade route," McCarthy said on Monday earlier in the week. "I think it's one of your primary routes down there. I think CeeDee [Lamb] and Michael [Gallup] are excellent body types for that with their skill sets, attention to detail and footwork. The footwork is a tad different than it was before. There is definitely some adjustment there as far as the way we have done it in the past."  

Prescott finished with 261 passing yards and a touchdown on 28 of 34 passing while Lamb hauled in four passes for 36 yards, 20 of which came on his touchdown. Dallas did finally experience a breakthrough inside the 20 as undrafted rookie fullback Hunter Luepke's 3-yard plunge ended the Cowboys' dry spell of seven consecutive red zone drives without a touchdown. 

Here are the major takeaways from the Cowboys' beatdown of the Patriots. 

Why the Cowboys won

Dallas' defense looked like the unit that was on pace to play at an all-time great level through the first two week of the season. After the Patriots' opening drive, New England was out of answers against Micah Parsons and Co. Sunday marked the first time since Week 1 of the 2013 season against the New York Giants, a 36-31 win, that Dallas has returned a fumble for a touchdown and an interception for a touchdown in the same game. Prescott's touchdown pass to Lamb was smooth, but the defense covered up the offense's struggles in the red zone once again. When the game was in the balance, the defense forced takeaways and the offense consistently racked up yards and points when necessary. 

Why the Patriots lost

For years Bill Belichick's Patriots stood for complementary football: the defense stifling opposing offenses and Tom Brady marching the offense down the field for points at will. That brand of football was nowhere to be seen on Sunday as Mac Jones committed three turnovers, and Belichick's defense could only slow down the Dallas offense once they got into the red zone. The Cowboys drained all three of their red zone field goal attempts, added a couple touchdowns and even turned two of the Patriots' giveaways into touchdowns. 

Nothing went right for New England on Sunday, and the scoreboard accurately reflected that reality.

Turning point

The Cowboys' strip-sack of Jones that turned a 10-3 game into an 18-3 game early in the second quarter. Defensive end Dante Fowler Jr. strip-sacked Jones, and the football rolled into the arms of linebacker Leighton Vander Esch, who returned the fumble back 11 yards for a touchdown. On the ensuing extra point attempt, holder Bryan Anger hit Cowboys lineman Chauncey Golston for a wide open two-point conversion on the fake, running the Dallas lead up to 15. At that point, it felt like the game had fully slipped away from the Patriots. 

Play of the game

Cowboys cornerback DaRon Bland's pick-six. This play exhibited a masterful play from the cornerback position. Bland lurked behind Jones' intended target, receiver Kendrick Bourne, kept his eyes on Jones and undercut the throw to stride into the end zone untouched. No play does a better job of illustrating how easily Dallas toyed with New England than this one. 

What's next

From here, the Cowboys will head to the Bay Area for a "Sunday Night Football" showdown against the 4-0 San Francisco 49ers, the team that has ended Dallas' season in each of the last two playoffs. As for the Patriots, they'll head back to New England to face the 2-2 New Orleans Saints. 

[Oct 1, 2023 at 7:13 pm ET · Garrett Podell]

Backup QB Cooper Rush now in the game for Dak Prescott. Prescott finishes with 261 passing yards and a touchdown on 28-of-34 passing. 

[Oct 1, 2023 at 7:12 pm ET · Garrett Podell]

Patriots rookie kicker Chad Ryland misses his 52-yard field goal attempt, so New England still trails by 35, 38-3, with 4:03 left to play. 

[Oct 1, 2023 at 7:06 pm ET · Garrett Podell]

There it is. Undrafted rookie fullback Hunter Luepke slices through the middle of the line of scrimmage for a three-yard touchdown, their first red zone touchdown of the day. The Cowboys extend their lead to five touchdowns, 38-3, with 6:38 left to play. 

[Oct 1, 2023 at 7:02 pm ET · Garrett Podell]

KaVontae Turpin, who Bill Belichick called the best returner in football earlier in the week, took an end around run 47 yards in an impressive show of speed. However, the Patriots punched the ball out, which saved a touchdown. Cowboys tight end Sean McKeon fell on the football to retain possession. 

[Oct 1, 2023 at 6:55 pm ET · Garrett Podell]

Cowboys right guard Zack Martin exits the game with a left leg issue. He entered the game with an ankle injury. Undrafted rookie T.J. Bass will fill in for him. 

[Oct 1, 2023 at 6:52 pm ET · Garrett Podell]

Bailey Zappe's first drive in place of Mac Jones results in one first down, but that's all. He completed one of his three passes for 11 yards, and the Patriots punted the ball back to the Cowboys down 28, 31-3. It's all Dallas entering the fourth quarter.