Eyes can now turn toward the regular season, as the Dallas Cowboys concluded the preseason with a 31-16 win over the Las Vegas Raiders at AT&T Stadium on Saturday.
The Cowboys controlled the time of possession and marched up and down the field for most of the night, while their defense shut down the Vegas offense in the first half.
Dallas started quickly as quarterback Will Grier completed four of his first five pass attempts and led his team down the field for a 75-yard scoring drive, culminating in a two-yard touchdown run from the quarterback.
The Cowboys possessed the ball for nearly 10 minutes longer than Vegas in the first half, while their defense held the Raiders 0-4 on third downs.
Vegas got on the board with a 44-yard field goal from Daniel Carlson at the beginning of the second quarter, but Dallas responded with another touchdown as Grier found rookie second-round pick Luke Schoonmaker from the 9-yard line, and scored again after allowing a 24-yard rushing touchdown to Damien Williams.
The Raiders kept up with the Cowboys in the second half, as both teams accumulated 172 yards of offense. However, Las Vegas could not convert in the end zone and had to settle for field goals, while Dallas got another rushing touchdown from Grier, and Brandon Aubrey added a 59-yard field goal.
Grier finished with 305 yards and two touchdowns on 29-of-35 passing, plus two rushing touchdowns.
Raiders quarterback Aidan O’Connell threw for 176 yards.
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WHAT TO KNOW
— Dallas traded a fourth-round draft pick to the San Francisco 49ers in exchange for former third overall pick Trey Lance. Lance was San Francisco’s starting quarterback for the first two games of last season.
— After acquiring Lance, Dallas informed Grier that he would be released before Tuesday’s roster deadline but allowed him to make the start on Saturday anyway. Grier was the only quarterback to play in the game for Dallas.
— Starting quarterback Dak Prescott served as the offensive coordinator and play-caller for the Cowboys during the contest.
— Offensive lineman Josh Ball left the game with a hip injury in the first quarter and did not return.
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BY THE NUMBERS
— Dallas held Las Vegas to 2-9 on third downs and 1-3 on fourth down conversion attempts. The Raiders were 0-4 on third-down attempts in the first half.
— There were no turnovers in the game.
— Grier finished with a 122 passer rating.
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WHO SAID
— Head coach Mike McCarthy on Grier’s performance: “I thought he handled it very well, and I just asked him to go out there and play your ass off tonight. It was a great opportunity and just the way the team rallied around him… I’m just so proud of him.”
— McCarthy on Prescott’s playcalling: “I thought Dak was outstanding. It was something we talked about probably Monday and something I really wanted him to do, and he jumped all over the opportunity, which I thought was important because of the additional preparation that goes into it.”
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NEXT UP
— The Cowboys (1-2) will make their final cuts to finalize their 53-player roster by 3 p.m. CT on Tuesday and face the New York Giants at 7:20 p.m. CT on September 10 to begin the regular season.
