The Dallas Cowboys and their fan base are still trying to comprehend what went wrong that led to Saturday’s stunning playoff upset to the Green Bay Packers.
The clear disconnect between the dynamic duo of Dallas QB Dak Prescott and star WR CeeDee Lamb in the first half became one of the main storylines.
The Packers set the tone right away, electing to start on offense vs. deferring when they won the coin toss. First-year starting quarterback Jordan Love and and company orchestrated a brilliant drive that took more than seven minutes off the clock and resulted in a 7-0 lead.
Everyone in America assumed Prescott, Lamb and the Dallas Cowboys explosive offense would take the field and strike back against a Green Bay defense that has struggled on defense in 2023.
Instead, Prescott targeted Lamb on the first drive and the Cowboys star receiver appeared to drop an easy slant. That led to one of the most unpredicted outcomes that helped the Packers cruise to a 27-7 lead at halftime.
Dak Prescott and CeeDee Lamb were clearly out of rhythm, and both the in-game broadcasters and fans and media on social media noticed immediately.
Despite seven targets in the first 30 minutes, Lamb was virtually a non-factor for the Cowboys offense. One of the passes intended for Lamb, late in the second quarter, was intercepted by Darnell Savage Jr. and returned 64 yards for a touchdown.
After the game, the Dallas Cowboys QB explained the disconnect as the Packers disguising coverages so he thought he had Lamb open, but when the ball was snapped, the coverage changed and he forced throws to his star WR due to a strong defensive game plan. By Packers DC Joe Barry,
“I mean, credit them for some of the early looks, disguising how they were going to play (Lamb),” Prescott told reporters. “Then late after the snap, moving, and obviously not giving me the same picture pre-snap as they did post-snap. Credit to them. Then I missed him on the sideline on a little roll-out, but once we got it going, once again it was too late.”
Dalllas Cowboys QB Dak Prescott And WR CeeDee Lamb Caught In Altercation After First Half Struggles
Lamb recorded just two catches on seven targets for just 18 yards in the first half.
The Cowboys star WR entered the game with nine games with more than 100 yards receiving and 12 touchdowns on the season, Under McCarthy’s `first year calling offense for the team after they parted ways with Kellen Moore following the 2022 offseason.
Everything was stacked up for another explosive offensive day between the dynamic duo, but with just two catches for seven targets in the first half of a must-win playoff game, there were clear tensions between Prescott and Lamb.
While there was wide speculation throughout the first 30 minutes there was a disconnect between the two Dallas Cowboys stars, on Monday, FS1 released footage of a confrontation between Dak Prescott and CeeDee Lamb in the first half.
Dak Prescott was clearly frustrated with CeeDee Lamb in the first half last night. Mike McCarthy had to intervene. Something was going on #dallascowboys #Cowboys #PrescottOUT #dakprescott #ceedeelamb #Dallas #CowboysVsPackers #CowboysNation #cowboyspackers pic.twitter.com/O4OI2HAJK4
— Sean Labar (@seanlabarpr) January 15, 2024
Clearly Prescott wasn’t happy with Lamb, and the star wideout appeared to ignore the Cowboys franchise QB. It’s impossible to know what the discussion was about but who was at fault, but the fact head coach Mike McCarthy had to intervene is telling.
While Lamb finished the game with solid numbers on the stat sheet, the first half offensive struggles and disconnect between the Cowboys offensive weapons played a major role in the loss.
It was just as surprising as Dan Quinn’s No. 5 defense never finding an answer for first-year starting QB Jordan Love and and the youngest offense in the NFL.
Dak Prescott was the frontrunner for NFL Offensive MVP for most of the year closing out the regular season ranked in the top five in several major categories for NFL QB. He came into Saturday’s playoff matchup against the Green Bay Packers with 4,516 yards (3rd), 36 touchdowns (1st), 9 interceptions and a QB rating of 72.5 (2nd).
Prescott and CeeDee Lamb had finally morphed into one of the leagues most dynamic QB/WR combo after years of naysayers questioning whether Lamb — who got the honor of wearing the coveted number 88 that is only reserved for the top Dallas Cowboys
Unlike most teams that retire the jersey numbers of legendary players, the Cowboys have allowed great receivers to continue the legacy of the No. 88 jersey, which has been passed down from former first-team All-Pros, Drew Pearson (1973-83), Michael Irvin (1988-99), Bryant (2010-17), and has been worn by Lamb since 2020, who earned his First-Team All-Pro selection for the first time this season.
CeeDee Lamb lived up to the iconic number in the regular season and had a career year, but on Saturday, the Dallas Cowboys star offensive duo struggled mightily when it mattered the most. .