Final two minutes of Dallas-Washington grudge match may be unmatched
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Version 0 of 1. Whether the Washington Redskins and Dallas Cowboys meet with great teams or awful ones, whether one team is a heavy favorite or both seem evenly matched, incredible and unexpected adventures always seem to happen, which make this the rivalry which, decade after decade, gets named the best in the history of pro football and one of the best in any sport anywhere. What happened on Monday night as midnight approached in a 19-16 last-second Dallas win will only add to that lore, multiply those arguments over heroes and goats and — ultimately — be remembered for providing, by far, the most insanely exciting and unlikely final 90 seconds of any game in this long rivalry. On a Dec. 7th that will live in just a bit of Washington infamy — nothing too World War-melodramatic, please, but an ending ugly and bitter enough to last in the memory of burgundy-and-gold fans for a generation or three — Dallas scored with 1 minute 19 seconds to play on a six-yard Darren McFadden run to take a 16-9 lead. No, that score wasn’t enough — not nearly. Dallas had to score again on a 54-yard field goal by Dan Bailey with just nine seconds to play to beat Washington before a which-freight-train-just-hit-me crowd of 80,044 at FedEx Field. [Game recap: Washington fumbles away a possible victory] You want crazy? Washington’s DeSean Jackson made one of the most foolish punt-return decisions ever seen in the NFL with barely 90 seconds to play in a 9-9 game. Ignoring all known risk-reward odds in such situations, Jackson reversed his field, doubled back to his own two-yard line and ultimately fumbled the ball away to Dallas at the Washington 15-yard line. When he was blasted by four Dallas tacklers as simultaneous punishment for his silliness, it seemed like an abject lesson in flaunting all normal risk-reward metrics in favor of I-can-do-it showmanship. After all, Jackson once had a last-play game-winning punt return for the Philadelphia Eagles. All of his football life, Jackson has shown that his speed and instincts have allowed him to break conventional rules on the field and usually help his team in the process. Why not again? Half the Dallas team showed him why not. But first Jackson showed why he is truly action Jackson, one of the most thrilling deep-threats in football history, when he got behind the Dallas secondary to grab a 28-yard game-tying touchdown bomb from Kirk Cousins. As he pranced across the back of the end zone, the scoreboard might as well have flashed the words: “Greatest redemption by a player in Dallas-Washington annals.” That is, if Washington had won. Instead, journeyman quarterback Matt Cassel, who was awful for large chunks of this game, drove the Cowboys 22 yards to set up the final winning kick by Bailey which was true, with several yards to spare. Whether that proves to be the ultimate kick-in-the-gut for Washington this season remains to be seen. Or perhaps that kick-to-the-stomach will not be the one by Bailey but a 44-yard field goal miss by Washington’s own Dustin Hopkins with 7:24 to play. At the time, as his boot was inches too far to the right —above the right goal post — it hardly seemed to matter with Washington ahead 9-6 and the Cowboys’ offense a joke all night. But the prank turned out to be on the other foot. On a night when Washington could have, and probably should have won to reach 6-6, and take a one-game lead in the NFC East, the Redskins instead flopped straight back into the division’s morass of indistinguishable mediocrity. [Brewer: An epic chance ends in epic disappointment] The New York Giants and Eagles are 5-7. The Cowboys are now 4-8. And as the Eagles’ win over the Patriots on Sunday demonstrated, any of these teams can lose to anybody, but they might beat almost anybody on a given day, too. The annals of Redskins-Cowboys games go back to 1960 when both teams — combined — won just one game. Yes, as a football-playing Skins-addled junior high schooler back then, I definitely either watched that first one on TV or listened to it on the radio. I’ve missed precious few since then. This game will rank well up in the top 10 for amazing deeds and idiotic decisions, for redemptions and for what might have been. No, not for excellent play. This was a game which, until the final two minutes, was played by two teams in floppy clown shoes. Washington Coach Jay Gruden came to Jackson’s semi-defense. “It didn’t end up, obviously, the way we wanted to. DeSean’s had a history of making big plays in key situations. I don’t regret the decision one bit,” said Gruden of his decision to put Jackson back to return the kick, even though that is seldom one of his tasks. “I’ll count on DeSean to make another big play.” As memorable as the closing moments of this game will always be, that’s just how dreadful and forgettable the first 58 minutes were; burn every copy of the tape. With much of the nation watching the Monday night game, this rivalry was reduced to two teams that couldn’t line up onsides, or count to 11, or hold on to the ball (three lost Dallas fumbles), make a mid-range field goal or keep their red clown noses on straight. Luckily for Washington, the NFC East will be won this season by the last team to fall flat on its face, perhaps with a 7-9 record. That mark might even give the NFC East winner a home-field game to begin the playoffs, too. So, look on Monday’s spectacle, witnessed with fingers intermittently covering eyes, as a preview of the last four still to come. The mistakes which NFC East teams are capable of committing are genuinely amazing. One was slightly buried. After Jackson’s punt-return fumble, Washington really should have been dead right there. McFadden swept left end for nine yards and — what!? — ran out of bounds with 1:19 to play. Obviously, he should have risked every bone in his body to stay in bounds and keep the clock running. [Best and worst moments from Monday night’s game] Then, probably, McFadden doubled down on his mistake. On second and one from the 6-yard line, a Dallas first down — and a chance to run the clock down to next-to-nothing before kicking a field goal for a 12-9 win — was probably the Cowboys’ best strategy. Almost no chance then for a Jackson touchdown heave from Cousins. McFadden plowed toward the goal line on a second-down run, and instead of falling at the one-yard line — first down in hand — he dove across the goal line instead for that 16-9 lead. If the Cowboys had lost this game, Washington could have gloated for many a day — or at least have debated Dallas Dumb. Instead, Washington will wonder how it allowed Cowboys kick returner Lucky Whitehead to bring the next kickoff back to the 44-yard line, giving the Cowboys hope. And Washington dread. Hopkins was rough on himself, both for his field goal miss and his final unlucky kick off, which allowed Whitehead to come out from just two yards deep in the end zone. “If we stop them at the 20 [with a touchback kickoff] then it’s a whole different game,” said Hopkins. “We would go to overtime. There are a lot of things I could do better than I did.” This season, and even this game, seem to have eased fears that Washington simply crumbles on big stages or when faced with big opportunities. Nonetheless, this was a horrid game to lose. The Cowboys handed over three fumbles. They trailed 9-6 late in the fourth quarter. And Jackson’s redemption score should have inspired Washington to win in overtime. But they didn’t. And that will be remembered, like so much from this so-often-unforgettable rivalry, including this scintillating forehead-smacking, if brutally deflating night. For more by Thomas Boswell, visit washingtonpost.com/boswell. For more Redskins coverage: Scenes from Monday night at FedEx Field D.C. Sports Bog: Kicker Hopkins blames himself for defeat Gene Wang and Scott Allen discuss the Week 13 loss Linebacker Mason Foster proves a bright spot Before shootout finish, game was a battle in the trenches |