Commanders at Cowboys game recap: 1st quarter summary; Cowboys lead 3-0

First Quarter

Dallas kicked off to Washington, who started the first drive of the game at the 30-yard line following a touchback.

Washington started badly with Jayden Daniels taking a sack to start the game — Micah Parsons got credit for the takedown.

Second down went better, with Zach Ertz going for 11 yards to bring up 3rd & 3. On th ekey play, Daniels was blitzed and sacked by Micah Parsons for the second time in 3 plays, this time for a loss of 9 yards to force the punt.

Turpin went right, then left, but penalty flags flew. The Cowboys ended up at their own 8-yard line to start their first drive of the game, with Trey Lance at quarterback. His first start with Dallas.

Following two Dowdle runs, it was 3rd & 1 at the 17 yard line. On the money down, a pre-snap false start pushed the Cowboys back to 3rd & 6. On the second attempt, Lance hit Jalen Tolbert downfield for 31 yards. This is not how this game was supposed to start.

Dallas has 1st down at the 44-yard line. On the next play, Lance hits Turpin wide open in the middle of the field, who catches and runs for a total gain of 33 yards. This is totally one-sided so far.

Next play looked like another first down completion, but the play was negated by an ineligible receiver downfield penalty. With 15 yards to go for a first down, Dallas earned 12 yards to bring up 3rd & 3. On the third down play, Frankie Luvu dropped what should have been an interception at the 10-yard line.

The ball hit the ground and Dallas brought Brandon Aubrey on for the 34-yard field goal, which he drove right between the uprights. 3-0 Cowboys. The scoring drive covered 76 yards in 8 plays.

Washington badly needs to get the offense on track.

Following the kickoff, the Commanders started the 2nd offensive drive of the game at the 30-yard line with just over 8 minutes left in the quarter.

Following a run & a pass, it was 3rd & 1 at the 39-yard line. On 3rd down, Daniels took the ball right on a zone read for 7 yards and Washington’s initial 1st down of the game.

TE John Bates got called for holding on the 1st down play, bringing up 1st & 20 at the 36-yard line. Following a short pass and an incompletion just beyond Terry McLaurin’s reach, Washington faced 3rd & 15.

On the 3rd down play, Daniels suffered his third sack of the game by stepping out of bounds for a 4-yard loss instead of throwing the ball away,

Tress Way’s second punt was downed at the Dallas 10-yard line with about 5 minutes left in the 1st quarter.

An immediate false start again gives Dallas a 1st & 15 at its own 5-yard line.

After two plays, the Cowboys faced 3rd & 10 at the 10-yard line. On 3rd down, Lance completed a 7-yard pass to Turpin. The Commanders defense had forced a 3 & out.

After the punt, Washington set up for the 3rd offensive drive at their own 28-yard line following a very good open field tackle by the Dallas special teamer CJ Goodwin.

Three sacks and a penalty in two offensive drives have kept the Commanders in check. Kingsbury needs to come up with something a little different here. Daniels is 3-4 for 22 yards on his actual passes, so if he gets some protection, he should be okay.

But…not on first down. Daniels threw a ball quite high to McLaurin on the left sideline, but Terry couldn’t pull it in. Daniels ran the ball on a busted play on 2nd down, gaining 5 yards.

On 3rd & 5, Daniels again hit Terry in the hands but a bit too far from his body to be called a drop. Incomplete — 4th down. Another 3 & out for the Commanders. They look flat. Real flat.

Turpin made a fair catch on the punt at his own 19-yard line. With 02:33 remaining in the quarter, Dallas was ready for its 3rd drive of the game.

Following a short scramble by Lance and a pass to Tolbert, the Cowboys faced 3rd & 1 at the 28-yard line. They converted it easily, as fullback Hunter Luepke took the ball for 10 yards.

On the fresh series, a loss of 5 yards on an end around was followed by a gain of 5 to bring up 3rd & 10 as the first quarter came to an end.

Dallas gained 116 yards in the first quarter; Washington gained 20. Dallas has 84 passing yards to 5 for Washington, and 32 rushing yards vs 15 for Washington. Jayden Daniels is the team’s leading rusher, with 12 yards on two carries. Brian Robinson has one carry for 3 yards.