Despite early frustrations, Dez Bryant sets Cowboys up well in late rally

LANDOVER — Bashaud Breeland was addressing the challenge Dez Bryant can provide when the slightest tremble broke up the cadence in his voice.

A year ago, as a rookie, the Washington Redskins cornerback was lauded for the way he played the Dallas Cowboys’ top wide receiver in a “Monday Night Football” game. Notably, he broke up two passes in the end zone with roughly four minutes remaining in the third quarter, then broke up the final pass of overtime, handing the Redskins a victory.

It was a coming out party of sorts for Breeland, who had been pressed into significant action a month earlier because of injury and had handled his newfound responsibility with atypical aplomb.

This time, though, was different — and Breeland knew it.

“Tonight, I feel like those two passes at the end really cost us,” Breeland said, minutes after the Cowboys won, 19-16. “Tip my hat off to him. He made those plays and I didn’t.”

Bryant was held to three catches for 62 yards on Monday, with all occurring in the fourth quarter. He had a 42-yard reception with 6:43 remaining that put the Cowboys at Washington’s three-yard line, leading to a tying field goal after a defensive stand.

Then, when the Cowboys took over possession with 37 seconds left, quarterback Matt Cassel turned to Bryant, who had a 12-yard catch on a hook route on the right sideline and then had an eight-yard reception over the middle on the next play.

Those two gains moved Dallas to the Redskins’ 36-yard line, where Cassel could move the ball no more. Dan Bailey’s 54-yard field goal, with nine seconds remaining, gave the Cowboys the points they needed.

“We were dealing with a lot of frustration at the beginning of the game, but you know, you have to keep yourself in check and understand that you still have an opportunity,” Bryant said. “At the end of the day, whenever you look at the bigger picture, stay poised and stay ready, you know? Good things happen, and that’s exactly what happened tonight.”

Bryant was visibly frustrated in the first half as the Cowboys struggled to move the ball. Cassel, stepping in for an injured Tony Romo, threw the ball behind Bryant on a slant on Dallas’ first offensive play from scrimmage, then did the same on first-and-10 on the Cowboys’ third drive.

The Redskins figured Cassel would struggle with tight coverage, and it wasn’t until his fifth attempt, shortly before the end of the first quarter, that he completed his first pass — a three-yard loss on a screen pass to running back Robert Turbin.

On third-and-9 with 8:13 remaining in the third quarter, Cassel turned back to Bryant, with a pass over the middle broken up by Breeland and then negated when the cornerback was flagged for pass interference. That call was made again three plays later, when cornerback Quinton Dunbar was matched with Bryant down the left sideline, and Bryant remained silent until midway through the fourth quarter.

Then, Bryant took off past cornerback Will Blackmon, beating him with a move just past the line of scrimmage, outrunning him down the left sideline and then completing the 42-yard gain as he fell. He nearly had another remarkable catch on the Cowboys’ next drive, pulling the ball in one-handed in front of Breeland before a review determined that he landed out of bounds on his elbow before his knee was down.

“I think I have to do a better job of giving him more opportunities,” said Cassel, who hadn’t won any of his previous four starts for the Cowboys. “Obviously, we haven’t played a ton together, but at the same time, I know Dez is a very talented player and he’s a very competitive person.”

Bryant had just three catches for 30 yards and a touchdown against the Redskins in the teams’ first meeting last year, when Breeland spent much of the game matched with the receiver. There was no thought, Breeland said, to having him shadow Bryant exclusively on Monday; “We all felt like we can play him,” Breeland said.

That is, except late in the game, which had Breeland feeling uneasy.

“I always take it personally,” Breeland said. “I don’t like to lose.”