The Dallas Cowboys beat up on the Los Angeles Rams on Sunday, rolling over the team 44-21 in Week 15 of the 2019 season.
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Final Score
Dallas Cowboys 44, Los Angeles Rams 21
Dallas Cowboys
Both Ezekiel Elliott and Tony Pollard ran at will against the Rams' front, as they both were able to consistently find cutback lanes and make the first defender miss.
Jason Witten and Blake Jarwin were both very effective today, as they feasted off play-action. Witten showed in the first half that he still has his once-fabled hands, with a one-handed catch and run for a touchdown on a ball thrown behind him.
Simply stated, Al Woods nearly shut down the Los Angeles rushing “attack” single-handedly. Woods sliced through the interior of the offensive line to record defensive stops at will. By the time he left the field, the Rams had all but abandoned the run.
With the ground game obliterated, the Dallas defense was able to shift entirely toward pressuring the quarterback and focus on coverage. Under those circumstances, positive defensive performances emerged from nearly every Cowboy on the field.
Los Angeles Rams
Nothing positive can be drawn from the Los Angeles offense today — Jared Goff was wildly inaccurate and Todd Gurley II appeared lost on targeted passes. Finally, the offensive line was systematically dismantled by a fierce Dallas defensive line.
If we could equate the number of targeted passes to performance, Tyler Higbee would be the top tight end in the league. Jared Goff peppered the former Hilltopper with checkdown after checkdown. While Higbee will be the box score darling who propels fantasy owners in the playoffs, the empty statistics provided next to nothing for the Rams in real life.
The Rams' linebackers continued to struggle, and this week it was both in coverage and against the run. The Cowboys' tight ends had a field day in the passing game, and several Rams linebackers missed tackles on run plays.
The Dallas offensive line is a tough test, and the Rams just weren't up for it. The defensive line struggled to shed blocks in time for stops on run plays, and everyone — including Aaron Donald — failed to offer consistent pressure when Dak Prescott dropped back to pass.
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