The Cowboys spent their long weekend watching the rest of the NFC East fail to pull away.
Dallas fell to 2-3 with Thursday's 24-16 loss to Tampa Bay, the first time since 1975 that Dallas had lost at home to an opponent that was 0-4 or worse, ESPN's Todd Archer noted. By Sunday night, Philadelphia had also dropped to 2-3, and the Giants and Commanders had played to a 27-27 overtime tie.
New York leads at 3-1-1, a game and a half ahead of Dallas and the Eagles. Washington is 1-3-1.
How the division stayed bunched
The Eagles lost 19-17 to Jacksonville in London when Cam Little hit a 57-yard field goal as time expired, a third straight defeat. They are also without All-Pro right tackle Lane Johnson, who announced his retirement Oct. 6.
The Giants are on Jameis Winston after Jaxson Dart was ruled out for the rest of the regular season. Winston threw for 326 yards and three touchdowns Sunday, but New York missed a 46-yard kick in overtime and lost a fumble at the Washington 24.
The Commanders, with Jayden Daniels back from a dislocated left elbow and running for 100 yards, reached the Giants' 24 in the final seconds and let the clock expire without trying a field goal. "That is my responsibility," Washington coach Dan Quinn said, according to Giants.com.
What Dallas has to fix
None of that hides the Cowboys' own problems. Archer reported that every opponent has reached 378 yards and 20 points against the defense, the run game produced 50 yards against Tampa Bay, and turnovers decided both the Week 1 loss to the Giants and Thursday's game.
Brian Schottenheimer is 9-12-1 as head coach, and his teams have won consecutive games only once, a three-game run in Weeks 11 through 13 last season that lifted them to 6-5-1. They are 3-6 since.
His game management has drawn scrutiny three weeks running, from the end-game choices in the Rio loss to Baltimore, including a touchback instead of a short kickoff, to a 65-yard field goal try before halftime in Houston and a two-point attempt Thursday while trailing 24-16 with 5:26 left.
Schottenheimer said in-game decisions balance the week's planning against how a game is unfolding, and he has said he believes "the solution is in the room."
Owner and general manager Jerry Jones, speaking on 105.3 The Fan the day after the loss, pointed the focus at this week's practice and the Green Bay game rather than new acquisitions. "You've got to think more about 'now' than you do 'future,'" he said. The Cowboys also have less draft capital to deal.
