LANDOVER, Md— After Dak Prescott connected with CeeDee Lamb on a touchdown pass late in the first half Sunday to help the Dallas Cowboys clinch the NFC East title and the No. 2 seed in the conference, the QB swung his right fist and then ran to the end zone to meet his star wideout for a handshake and a hug.
All the while, thousands of Dallas fans filling the Washington Commanders’ stadium chanted, “Let’s go, Cowboys!”
The mood, the performance and the atmosphere were decidedly improved for Prescott, his club and their supporters compared to a year ago. Unlike in Week 18 last time, when they finished the regular season with a loss at Washington, Prescott, Lamb and the Cowboys did what they set out to do Sunday against the rival Commanders by charging into the postseason with a 38-10 victory.
“Look at last year — the way we came into this place and didn’t finish the season the way we wanted to — to where we are now,” said Prescott, who threw two of his four TDs passes to Lamb and finished 31 for 36 for 279 yards. “The growth. The coaching staff. The players. The accountability. The communication. The transparency. And both sides of the ball holding their own.”
That’s a big deal for a club that went 8-0 in Dallas this season and has won 16 games in a row there.
“The drama of it — I’m sure you guys will love that,” McCarthy told reporters about facing Green Bay.
Last-place Washington (4-13 overall, 0-6 in the NFC East) and expected-to-be-gone Ron Rivera are at the other end of the spectrum after tying a franchise mark for most losses in a season.
“We’ll have a conversation and go from there,” Rivera said.
The Commanders’ losing streak reached eight games. That includes going 0-6 since Rivera fired defensive coordinator Jack Del Rio and made himself the play-caller on that side of the ball.
The good news for the Commanders? Sunday’s result assured them of owning the No. 2 overall pick in April’s draft, when they might seek a replacement for quarterback Sam Howell, who was intercepted twice Sunday and led the NFL with 21 picks this season. He also was sacked four times to raise his league-worst total to 65.
Last season, Prescott led the NFL with 15 interceptions, and had 23 touchdown tosses. This season? He topped the league with 36 TD throws to only nine picks.
