Tony Pollard a 2019 fourth-round pick made the most of his fourth career start for the Dallas Cowboys in Week 8 against the Chicago Bears when Ezekiel Elliott was sidelined with a knee injury. Pollard rushed for a career-high 131 yards and a career-high three rushing touchdowns on a career-high 14 carries. The Cowboys won 49-29 thanks to his career day, improving their record to 6-2 heading into their bye week in Week 9.
Since Julius Jones against the Seattle Seahawks in 2004, Pollard is only the sixth player in Cowboys history with more than 100 running yards and three rushing downs in a game. Joining Josh Jacobs, running back for the Las Vegas Raiders and Taysom Hill tight end for the New Orleans Saints, as the only other players to accomplish this feat this season.
Dak Prescott the Cowboys’ quarterback completed 21 of 27 throws for 250 yards two passing touchdowns and an interception in his second start back from a fractured thumb. On the opening drive of the game, Prescott rushed for 7 yards and a touchdown.
The 49 points scored by the Cowboys on Sunday are the highest points scored against the Bears since the 55 points allowed in a 2014 game against the Green Bay Packers and it is only the 12th time in Bears club history that they have allowed 49 or more points.
The Bears went for it on the ground on 43 of their 61 offensive plays despite falling behind 28-7 early. On Sunday, quarterback Justin Fields threw for 151 yards and two touchdowns while also rushing for 60 yards and another score, good for a career-high 120.0 passer rating on 17 of 23 throwings. Even though Fields had a lot of early success with his scrambling, the Cowboys were able to keep him in the pocket in the second half, leading to four sacks for the Cowboys.
With a 6-2 record and nine games remaining after their bye week, the Cowboys are already within striking distance of the undefeated Eagles in the NFC East. Chicago’s 2022 record drops to 3-5 after starting the year 2-1 but losing their past four games.
This is why the Cowboys Win
The Cowboys started the game on fire, scoring touchdowns on their opening four drives for the first time since Week 16 of the 2014 season (a 42-7 victory against the Indianapolis Colts) when they did the same thing.
Prescott opened the scoring with a touchdown run of 7 yards and then he threw a dart to wide receiver CeeDee Lamb for 21 yards. After a rushing score by Pollard (from 18 yards out), Prescott threw a play-action touchdown ball to tight end Jake Ferguson (from 1 yard out). By the middle of the second quarter, the Cowboys had built a commanding 28-7 lead. Since the year 2000, NFL clubs are 49-1 in games where their offense scores a touchdown on each of the first four drives.
After a Prescott interception and a Bears touchdown early in the third quarter cut the margin to 28-23, Pollard rushed for two more running scores and Micah Parsons scored his first career touchdown on a 36-yard fumble recovery to restore the Cowboys’ comfortable lead.
The Bears’ Lost
A disastrous outcome is guaranteed if you let the other team score four straight touchdowns and 49 points in total. The 49 points allowed were the most by the Bears in a game since Week 10 of the 2014 season, a 55-14 loss to the Green Bay Packers in which quarterback Aaron Rodgers threw six passing touchdowns.
When playing the Bears, who run the ball on the league’s highest percentage of their offense plays (59.9%), falling down by 21 points early on is a recipe for disaster.
Midway through the third quarter, the Bears were within striking distance against the Cowboys, trailing by only 35-23. However, their comeback hopes were dashed when running back David Montgomery fumbled and Parsons recovered it for a touchdown for the Cowboys.
Bears vs. Cowboys Game Play
When the Chicago Bears went on a 16-0 run between the conclusion of the second quarter and the start of the third, Micah Parsons finally stepped in. On a crackdown from Fields, Bears runner David Montgomery gained 13 yards before fumbling while being brought down by Cowboys defender Leighton Vander Esch.
Montgomery fumbled the ball, causing it to bobble before rolling an additional five yards downfield. After securing his first professional score Parsons sprinted 36 yards after donning a diving attempt to protect the ball from Fields’ leaping pursuit.
CHAOS IN DALLAS!
📺: #CHIvsDAL on FOX
📱: Stream on NFL+ https://t.co/QMxVpZl61r pic.twitter.com/EeMvcZBY3U— NFL (@NFL) October 30, 2022
The play proved crucial in the Cowboys’ victory because the NFL’s best running offense couldn’t come back from a three-score halftime disadvantage in 2022.
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