JACKSONVILLE – As the Jaguars were celebrating a walk-off interception return for a touchdown, that will be the play that is used over and over when describing this game.
If not that, then several of the game-changing plays that took place in the final minutes of regulation and overtime.
But games also have those plays that can get overlooked, but still changed the course of the game. Here are five that made a difference:
Cowboys get stopped before half – Leading 21-7 late in the second quarter, the Cowboys were able to make a stop on defense and get the ball back with a chance to score at least another field goal before the half. While the offense had made a few nice plays, it was still third-and-1 at the Jags' 43-yard line with a minute remaining. Tony Pollard was stopped for a 7-yard loss on an option play where Dak Prescott likely should've kept the ball and cut up field. That miss led to a punt and felt like a wasted chance to grab another three points.
Another wasted trip in the red zone – Leading 21-10, the Cowboys had second-and-2 from the Jaguars' 4-yard line. But a run over the right side resulted in a 2-yard loss for Ezekiel Elliott, putting the Cowboys in third-and-4, where Prescott rolled to his left and threw the pass away. The Cowboys had to settle for a field goal, but had they not lost two yards on second down, it likely would've been four-down territory with a chance to score or pick up a first down.
Didn't put the game away after the INT – This is the time of year when people take advantage of gifts. The Jaguars gave one to Dallas with an interception by Trevor Lawrence in the third quarter with the Cowboys leading 24-10. Again, a 2-yard loss on a run by Pollard put the Cowboys in a spot where they had to settle for a 53-yard field goal. That had the Cowboys up 27-10, but it wasn't long before the Jags struck for a long touchdown that started the comeback.
Third-down decision to go deep – After the Cowboys recovered a fumble by Lawrence with 1:28 left in the fourth quarter, all that was needed was 10 yards to win the game. If not, at least the Cowboys could force Jacksonville to burn all three timeouts. But neither happened because Dallas chose to throw a deep ball on third-and-10. Prescott's pass to Noah Brown was incomplete and out of bounds, giving the Jags the ball back with 1:01 remaining at their 29-yard line with a timeout. And they definitely used that timeout to their advantage, calling it before the game-tying field goal.
Couldn't get Engram down – Jayron Kearse seemingly made the game-winning play when he forced a fumble on Lawrence. But in the final seconds, he couldn't get tight end Evan Engram to the ground before he went out of bounds with 12 seconds left. The play was ruled down initially but replay officials reversed the call and gave the Jags their timeout back. Had he tackled Engram in bounds, they've got the ball at the Cowboys' 49-yard line with no timeouts and either have to throw it deep to the end zone or force a sideline route.
