LANDOVER — A kick. Silence. And then, “doink.”
“A beautiful sound,” one Washington fan called it as folks filed out of FedEx Field singing “Hail to the Redskins.”
Much like the crowd — where pockets of blue mixed in with the burgundy — the game itself was a toss-up. But the Redskins scored a defensive touchdown in the last five minutes and the Dallas Cowboys missed a potential game-tying field goal as Washington held on to win, 20-17.
It was the first time the Redskins beat Dallas at home since 2012, but the game had ramifications beyond mere bragging rights. Because the Philadelphia Eagles blew a lead earlier in the day and lost their game, the Redskins (4-2) held onto the division lead.
The Cowboys had a 47-yard field goal attempt lined up with three seconds to play, but long snapper Louis-Philippe Ladouceur was called for a snap infraction to push them back. Brett Maher’s 52-yard attempt hit the left upright as time expired.
Beating the hated division rival and securing back-to-back victories for the first time this season was important for the Redskins, but coach Jay Gruden did not consider it a confidence booster.
“I don’t think we ever lack in confidence, that group over there. They’re very confident,” Gruden said. “It’s important, but it’s also equally as important for us to continue to prepare like we have been.”
The Redskins’ offense lacked some of their top playmakers with Chris Thompson, Jamison Crowder and Paul Richardson all inactive with injuries. They relied instead on heavy doses of Adrian Peterson mixed with Kapri Bibbs, Maurice Harris and Michael Floyd in turns. It only resulted in 308 yards of offense, but Peterson finished with 99 yards on the ground.
The Redskins started their first possession with great field position at their 48-yard line and needed just six plays to get in the end zone. Smith moved the chains with a good pass to Josh Doctson over a linebacker’s reach, then hit Bibbs in the flat. Bibbs found a seam to take it 23 yards for the opening touchdown.
The Redskins’ defense forced Prescott to rely on his legs early and often. On a fourth-and-1 QB sneak on the Cowboys’ second drive, D.J. Swearinger forced a fumble and recovered it. On the next Dallas possession, Prescott scrambled on third down and collided with Greg Stroman, which sent the quarterback to the blue medical tent. But Prescott was cleared in concussion protocol and didn’t miss any time.
Dallas finally got on the board in the final minute of the half. Cowboys receiver Michael Gallup burned Stroman in some rookie-on-rookie crime and caught a 49-yard touchdown, and the teams entered their locker rooms tied at seven.
Washington’s offense fell into a slump after its opening-drive touchdown. But upon receiving the ball to start the second half, the Redskins drove to regain the lead. A 27-yard pass to Jordan Reed on a corner route set up a short field goal to make it 10-7, six minutes into the third period.
The Redskins forced three-and-outs on the Cowboys’ next two possessions, holding them to four net yards on six plays in the third quarter. But the offense did not capitalize enough on its chances to extend the lead. Dustin Hopkins kicked his second field goal early in the fourth quarter after the Redskins stalled in the red zone again.
Dallas responded with a quick field goal of its own, using just 2:49 of game clock, to cut the Washington lead to 13-10.
But on their next possession, the Cowboys blew a chance to move down the field on a Cole Beasley reception when it was negated by a holding call. Facing third and 14 on the Dallas 10, Prescott was trapped by Ryan Kerrigan’s second sack of the day and fumbled the ball at the goal line. Preston Smith picked it up and scored, marking the first double-digit lead for either team all evening.
With 4:55 to play, the Cowboys strung together 12 plays to get down the field, aided by a conversion on fourth and 13. Prescott scored a 1-yard touchdown on a keeper to cut the margin back to three points.
Dallas decided to kick the ball away rather than attempt an onside kick, and the defense forced a three-and-out in part thanks to Smith scrambling out of bounds on third and 9.
Cole Beasley made an athletic 18-yard catch on third down to extend the Cowboys’ last-gasp drive, then caught two more over the middle to bring them in field goal range before the final sequence occurred to sink Dallas.
Ezekiel Elliott, who has dominated Washington in games past, was held to 33 rushing yards on 15 touches for Dallas.
“We’ve definitely have taken it personally that they have had so much success running the ball against us the past couple years,” Kerrigan said. “Even when Zeke didn’t play last year, Alfred Morris had a lot of yards against us. We definitely took that personally and had to come out with a mind frame that we were gonna stop the run, we were gonna be physical.”
The Redskins will visit the 1-5 New York Giants, the division’s cellar-dwellers, next week.
• Adam Zielonka can be reached at azielonka@washingtontimes.com.
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