Cowboys get a C+ for Colts win as a defensive step forward meets a 49ers test
CBS Sports gave Dallas a C+ for its 27-23 win at Indianapolis. The defense improved, the mistakes piled up, and San Francisco comes next.
The Dallas Cowboys left Indianapolis with a win, but not much praise. In its Week 9 report card, CBS Sports gave Dallas a C+ for the 27-23 victory over the Colts. John Breech wrote that the Cowboys did just enough to pull it out and suggested the margin should have been wider.
The grade covered both sides of the game. On the plus side, the defense held an opponent under 300 yards for the first time this season. Breech credited much of that to Quinnen Williams, who made three tackles for loss. Dak Prescott threw for 150 yards in the fourth quarter alone, and Dallas finished with more than 500 yards of offense. On the minus side, Breech pointed to two turnovers and a missed Brandon Aubrey field goal that kept the Colts in the game. He also noted that after last week's loss to Arizona, this was a game Dallas could not afford to drop.
Other reports filled in the details. NBC DFW reported that Javonte Williams scored the go-ahead touchdown on a 1-yard run with 1:08 left and finished with 101 rushing yards. Prescott went 21 of 34 for 335 yards and two touchdowns, but he also lost a fumble that set up an Indianapolis score. Dallas did all of this with three injured starters inactive, including George Pickens. NBC Sports put the yardage gap at 508 to 271. It also reported a red-zone fumble by CeeDee Lamb, 14 penalties for 153 yards, and Caleb Downs' first career interception, which sealed the game.
The win moves Dallas to 4-5. The record still hides how unsteady the team has been, but the defensive showing gives the staff something to build on.
What it means against San Francisco
The Cowboys have not won or lost two games in a row since September. Their results have gone back and forth: a loss to the Giants, a win over Washington, a loss to Baltimore, a win at Houston, and so on through Sunday. Dallas has been more reliable on the road, where it is 3-2. At home it is 1-3, with the three losses decided by a combined 21 points. The offense rarely stalls, putting up 30 or more five times, but the defense has given up at least 20 points in every game.
The Cowboys host San Francisco on Sunday, Nov. 15, on Fox. That is a much tougher opponent than Indianapolis. The 49ers are 7-1 after beating the Raiders 38-17, a game in which, according to CBS Sports, their defense forced five turnovers and turned them into 17 points. A Dallas team that gave the ball away twice and committed 14 penalties against a 2-7 club cannot expect to get away with that again.
The board for the game has San Francisco favored across 12 venues. On the moneyline, Novig lists the 49ers at -212 and Dallas at +203. The best price on San Francisco is Pinnacle's -208, so the venues are close on who wins. The spread is less settled. Novig has the 49ers favored by 4.5 at -100, while DraftKings has them at 3.5 at -112. The total is 55.5 at most venues, but Hard Rock Bet has 56.5. The sportsbooks' built-in margins range from 2.9% to 5.0% across the three markets.