Brutal Clock Management Error Wastes Dak Prescott’s Regular-Season Debut

When Dallas Cowboys wide receiver Terrance Williams caught a short pass, there were 10 seconds left in a one-point game. His feet were planted on the New York Giants’ 48-yard line.

Williams is still young at 27 years old. But he’s far beyond being some wide-eyed kid as far as his NFL experience is concerned. He was playing in the first game of his fifth season. So he knew what his next job was, and what direction he should have headed.

His mission was fundamental: Sprint toward the sideline. Get as much yardage as possible while still stopping the clock, and preserve whatever shot remains at a long game-winning field-goal attempt or Hail Mary.

It was 3rd-and-10, and if he turned and ran decisively, Williams had room to make a beeline for both the first-down marker and the giant white line signifying safety. That’s how it looked, at least, with the freeze-framed evidence revealing enough real estate between Williams and Giants cornerback Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie:

In the waning moments, potential game-winning drives are centered on keeping hope alive. You need to keep giving yourself chances, however slim the odds of success may feel. A first down with the clock stopped would have gifted the Cowboys another shot to run a quick play to the sideline, and then attempt a long field goal.

Or they could have heaved a deep ball toward the end zone, and we’ve seen that prayer answered before. Instead, Williams erased those long odds by turning upfield and getting tackled inbounds. He left the Cowboys with no odds at all and only the bitter taste of a season-opening 20-19 defeat.

It was a loss that becomes even harder to swallow after the performance of rookie Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott.

He wasn’t spectacular, and that’s reflected in the standard statistical QB measuring sticks. Completing 55.6 percent of 45 pass attempts and finishing with 227 yards (5.0 yards per attempt) doesn’t exactly pop off the page.

That surface-level judgment is understandable. But it also says plenty …

continue reading in source www.bleacherreport.com