DALLAS (105.3 The Fan) - The Dallas Cowboys season officially ended on Sunday afternoon, after they fell to the New York Giants 23-19 at Metlife Stadium in New York, finishing the season with a 6-10 record.
Dallas had plenty of opportunities down the stretch to pull ahead and give themselves a shot at victory but were unable to make those opportunities count, allowing the Giants to leave the field with their hopes of a playoff birth intact.
Chief among those opportunities was a first and goal inside the Giants 10 yard-line with less than two minutes to go. Instead of cashing in, However, Andy Dalton was sacked for a nine-yard loss, which was followed by an interception just two plays later, effectively ending the game.
Not to mention a blown call from head coach Mike McCarthy, in which he failed to challenge a very questionable pass completion from Daniel Jones to Dante Pettis, resulting in a field goal for New York, and forcing Dallas to try and score a touchdown to win the game.
Even after all of that, however, the Giants still gave Dallas one last desperation attempt in the final game-sealing drive, when running back Wayne Gallman fumbled after crossing the first down marker. Unfortunately, Gallman somehow managed to come away with possession of the football at the bottom of the pile, sealing the Giant's win for good.
Dalton, who struggled all afternoon to find his consistency, finished the game completing 29-of-47 passes for 243 yards and the interception while leading the team in rushing with 48 yards on seven carries.
Ezekiel Elliott also had a rough day, despite having some highlight moments, and finished the game with just 42 yards on 14 carries, with a one-yard touchdown run.
Offensively, Dallas finished the game with just 307 yards of total offense, and were just six of 17 on third down, allowing Dalton to be sacked on four of those third-down attempts.
Now, after a frustrating season full of critical injuries, mistakes, and unfortunate luck, the Cowboys will once again be forced to watch a division rival take the NFC East title and head to the postseason, as Dallas tries to find a way to right the ship, and get back to their winning ways.
