The New England Patriots were blown out by the Dallas Cowboys 38-3 to fall to 1-3 on Friday at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas.

After two defensive touchdowns, the Dallas Cowboys led 28-3 going into halftime and never took their foot off the pedal. On the Patriots opening drive in the 2^nd half, Mac Jones threw his 2^nd interception of the game to Daron Bland.

Following the turnover, Dallas was able to score a field goal to extend the lead to 31-3. Both teams traded punts until the Cowboys scored another touchdown when Hunter Luepke rushed into the endzone from 3 yards out to put the final nail in the coffin.

Cowboys’ Defense Came to Play

The Cowboys defense bounced back against the Patriots after their uncharacteristic performance last week in Arizona. Daron Bland intercepted two passes from Mac Jones, one of which resulted in a 54-yard touchdown. The Dallas defense also scored when edge rusher Dante Fowler sacked Jones forcing a fumble that was recovered by Leighton Vander Esch and ran in for a score.

Dallas only allowed 200 passing yards between both the Patriots QBs, Mac Jones and Bailey Zappe. Along with the two interceptions, the Dallas defense combined for five pass deflections, two sacks, and two QB hits.

Their run defense also returned to form as the Patriots could only amount to 53 rushing yards and 2.3 yards per carry. Last week against the Cardinals, Dallas gave up 222 rushing yards and 7.4 yards per carry.

New England’s Lackluster Offense

The Patriots offense had its worst performance so far this season, failing to score a touchdown and only putting three points on the board. Mac Jones had one of his poorest performances since being drafted by New England in 2021. Jones threw for 150 yards and 2 interceptions. He was also responsible for 2 touchdowns that favored the Cowboys with an interception and fumble being returned for touchdowns.

Jones was benched for Bailey Zappe in the 3^rd quarter. On three offensive possessions, Zappe recorded 57 yards on 4/9 passing.

“As the quarterback you have to play better”, said Mac Jones. “Every team that’s winning right now their quarterbacks are playing really well. Need to do better”.

The Patriots continue to find themselves down early in game because of penalties and turnovers. New England found themselves down three scores midway through the 2^nd quarter because of the mistakes made on offense.

“Turning the ball over, get behind against a really good team that’s what happens”, said David Andrews. “It’s pretty self-explanatory. We gave them 21 points off of turnovers. You can’t win in this league; you can’t win at any level doing that”.

“I think its all of us that got to look in the mirror, got to correct everything”, said Andrews.

Though the Patriots’ QB play has been inefficient, it isn’t the sole reason for the offensive failures. The Patriots offensive line has struggled both in performance and health. New England played without starting left guard Cole Strange in the lineup and were unable to amass at least 100 rushing yards for the 3^rd game this season.

“Theres guys in [the locker room] that are really good players, we are just not playing up to our ability right now as a team”, said Andrews.

Talented Defense Faces More Injuries

The Patriots defense came into the game against the Cowboys with multiple injuries in the secondary. Starting cornerback Jonathan Jones was inactive for yet another week and cornerback Marcus Jones was placed on IR after suffering an injury in week 2.

New England’s injuries on the defensive side of the ball continue to increase as rookie cornerback Christian Gonzalez and outside linebacker Matthew Judon went down with injuries against Dallas. Gonzalez, who was recently named defensive rookie of the month, exited the game in the 1^st quarter with a shoulder injury. Meanwhile, Judon left late in the game with a bicep injury.

“It sucks when guys get injured”, said Deatrich Wise Jr. “I wish there was a button that just cut all injuries, like in Madden, but it’s the dark side of football. Guys get injured”.

 Deatrich Wise Jr. believes that though the Patriots defense is riddled with injuries, there are players down the depth chart that can fill in and make an impact on defense.

Up Next

Next week the Patriots return home to take on the New Orleans Saints in Gilette Stadium on Sunday. Meanwhile, the Dallas Cowboys travel to California to take on the San Francisco 49ers Sunday night.