Dallas Cowboys

Dallas Cowboys stake claim as one of NFL's best teams with rout of Atlanta Falcons

Published Nov. 15, 2021 2:26 p.m. ET

By Matt Mosley
Special to FOX Sports

ARLINGTON, Texas — The Atlanta Falcons picked the wrong time to show up at AT&T Stadium.

Atlanta encountered a Dallas Cowboys team that had been humiliated seven days earlier by the Broncos. Denver coach Vic Fangio even beat his chest after the 30-16 win, indicating that he'd left a unique blueprint for others to follow.

The Cowboys responded Sunday with a 43-3 win over Atlanta. Dallas' 29-point barrage in the second quarter broke the team record and dashed any hopes the Falcons might have had. When you throw in the fact that Cowboys defensive coordinator Dan Quinn was fired as Atlanta's head coach five games into the previous season, the deck was stacked against the Falcons.

How bout them Cowboys?!? They are back! — Skip Bayless I UNDISPUTED

Skip Bayless celebrates after the Dallas Cowboys bounced back from an embarrassing Week 9 loss against Denver to blow out the Falcons. Bayless says the Cowboys are "back in the saddle."

"We needed to bring the hammer today, and we did that,’’ Cowboys coach Mike McCarthy said. "We had a ton of production, and we were pretty much dominant there in the first half."

McCarthy is not one to rub someone's nose in a loss, but the Cowboys needed to treat a team like the Broncos treated them. The Falcons were sent from central casting. Quarterback Matt Ryan (9-for-21, 117 yards, two INTs) had the worst outing of his career before mercifully being replaced by Josh Rosen, who promptly served up another interception.

Even after losing talented pass-rusher Randy Gregory (calf strain) to injured reserve, the Cowboys overwhelmed the Falcons. Rookie linebacker Micah Parsons set the tone in harassing Ryan. Quinn has done wonders in utilizing Parsons' uncanny athleticism. Parsons can wreck an offense no matter where he lines up, and he's playing at an All-Pro level this season.

"I have the same assignment every week: Just cause havoc, and just do what I do," Parsons said. "Same game plan, same assignment, just execution. I’m in a groove now. [Quinn] talked about it. He doesn’t want to mess up the groove where I’m at right now."

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Skip Bayless gives the Cowboys an A+ and explains why he ranks them a 10 on the impressive scale.

With a 7-2 record, the Cowboys are in the mix for a No. 1 playoff seed. Tampa Bay's stunning loss to Washington on Sunday could help the Cowboys in the long run. But I think the loss to the Broncos will help prevent the Cowboys from admiring themselves too much. McCarthy's "don't eat the cheese" message, an old Bill Parcells saying, apparently fell on deaf ears heading into the Denver game. The Cowboys were humbled in that loss, and to a man, they insisted it wasn't an accurate reflection of them.

On Sunday, they played the most complete game of the McCarthy era. A blocked punt that resulted in a touchdown reinforced McCarthy's belief that special-teams coach John Fassel is a mastermind. The man has been on a roll.

Perhaps inspired by his alma mater Kansas' upset of Texas on Saturday, Cowboys defensive end Dorance Armstrong sacked Ryan and then blocked a Falcons punt. Armstrong had an increased role with Gregory out.

The Cowboys have been undermined by injuries in the past, but this season has been different. They've been extremely productive despite not having Pro Bowl defensive end DeMarcus Lawrence, who should return soon. Rookie defensive linemen Chauncey Golston and Osa Odighizuwa have been rock-solid. Cornerback Trevon Diggs' record-setting interception pace has become contagious. Corners Jourdan Lewis and Anthony Brown each broke up several passes and recorded interceptions Sunday. Brown juggled a ball before securing the interception with one hand. And of course, Diggs had to grab one, his eighth of the season. Ryan finished with a passer rating of 21.4.

The Falcons were a disastrous 1-of-11 on third down. They couldn't even generate garbage-time offense.

"We just wanted to capture our style and identity," said Quinn, who received a game ball from McCarthy as players celebrated. "When you don’t have it, you really notice it. Leaving the Minnesota game, our style was back, how we like it. When we have one that you don’t, it shows up.

"That’s what we challenged one another on: Let’s make sure we capture our style and attitude and how we play. I thought the players did a fantastic job of that. It was definitely complementary football all the way through tonight."

Quinn, who wasn't interested in a "trip down memory lane" prior to the game, has transformed this Cowboys defense and might put himself in position to be a head coach again.

Also back in the spotlight is quarterback Dak Prescott, who was dreadful against the Broncos. He said after that loss that he hoped other teams would copy Denver's approach of selling out to stop the run and playing man coverage. And sure enough, he started Sunday's game 5-for-5 against that look and led the Cowboys to an opening-drive touchdown.

"Last week just wasn’t us," Prescott said. "Everybody in the locker room knows that, and it left a bad taste in our mouth. I think it was a taste that we needed, to understand how tough this game is."

Dak Prescott on Dallas' bounce-back win

Following the Cowboys' rout of Atlanta, Dak Prescott said, "I knew we'd respond after last week."

Prescott didn't address his teammates on the field before the previous two games, and he felt it was time to speak up Sunday. By all accounts, it was an emotional speech that might have included some of the R-rated language we heard from him on HBO's "Hard Knocks."

"Just another chance for me to talk to the offense that I talk to a lot, but also the whole team," Prescott said. "The defense and the special teams and maybe the guys that don’t hear from me often, just to tell them what I’m thinking, tell them what we need to do as a team.

"We needed to rebound, and we needed to respond. Whether I use a couple of words or not, that’s just the emotion and the passion that I have for this game."

The Cowboys are about to play three games in 12 days — against the Chiefs, Raiders and Saints. It will be a tough stretch, but Dallas has a legitimate shot to come out of it with a 10-2 record. It's almost like the Denver game never happened, though the Cowboys won't forget it did.

On Sunday, they reminded themselves what can happen when every phase is working. This team has a remarkable number of playmakers on both sides of the ball, and for the first time in years, they have tremendous depth. I thought the loss to the Broncos was an anomaly, and the Cowboys drove that point home Sunday.

Someone had to pay for what happened against Fangio's team, and the Falcons drew the short straw.

Matt Mosley has covered the Cowboys for The Dallas Morning News, ESPN, FOX Sports and Texas Monthly Magazine. He also co-hosted afternoon-drive radio in Dallas for 10 years and is now heard on ESPN Central Texas, home of his alma mater, Baylor. He makes regular appearances on "The Herd" on FS1 and Fox Sports Radio.