Sports Washington runs past Dallas Cowboys and into first place in NFC East -- with four wins

ARLINGTON, Texas -- The Cowboys trailed by 4 points.

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First place in the NFC East is on the line this Thanksgiving, as the Dallas Cowboys will host the Washington Football The Dallas Cowboys remain in the hunt for an NFC East title – and a playoff berth. Jerry Jones not thinking about taking over first place in NFC East with win over Washington .

The Dallas Cowboys , New York Giants and Washington Redskins have created a three-way tie atop the NFC East . With just four conference losses so far, the Redskins also stand a better chance than most of lucking into a wild-card spot even if they finish 9-7.

Quarterback Andy Dalton had just succumbed to a sack, yielding fourth-and-10 at Dallas’ 24-yard line with 12:54 to play in the division matchup.

Punter Hunter Niswander trotted out on fourth-and-10.

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He didn’t need to.

Cowboys coaches instead dialed up a fake punt, a jet-sweep reverse by way of receiver Cedrick Wilson. Washington made Dallas pay, tackling him a yard behind the line of scrimmage.

© Jerome Miron, USA TODAY Sports Washington tight end Logan Thomas, a college quarterback, passes 28 yards to Terry McLaurin in the first half against Dallas.

After that, it took just one play for Washington’s Antonio Gibson to score his second of three touchdowns, extending the Football Team to a double-digit lead it wouldn’t relinquish.

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Shockingly, the Cowboys are still in first place of the NFC East by a full game. Philadelphia couldn’t take advantage of the Cowboys ’ two-game The Cowboys have four games to play – at Chicago, LA Rams, at Philly and Washington to close out the season. Eagles suffer worst loss of Doug Pederson

Heading into the final seven weeks of the season, first place in a weak NFC East is up for grabs. They can win four of their six remaining games this season to get to nine wins , which is probably Dallas Cowboys : Tony Romo's return is key. The Cowboys have the best offensive line in the NFC

Washington’s 41-16 win catapults the Football Team to 4-7, good for a half-game lead  on Philadelphia atop the NFC East. It was Washington's second win over the Cowboys this season. The WFT outscored Dallas 21-0 in the fourth quarter.

The Cowboys, 3-8, return to the division floor. Here are three more things we learned in the Thanksgiving Day matchup:

Fourth downs

Gibson’s one-play touchdown drive was the result of just one of three failed Dallas fourth-down attempts. Washington scored after two turnovers on downs gifted them fields of fewer than 25 yards on which to score. The end-around reverse fake prompted questions about play calling. The questions started far earlier, when the Cowboys faced fourth-and-1 in the second quarter and eschewed Ezekiel Elliot to attempt a pass to rookie receiver CeeDee Lamb. The pass was incomplete, tight end Dalton Schultz adding insult to injury with a 15-yard unnecessary roughness penalty. Washington converted the 19-yard field into a touchdown. The Cowboys never regained their lead.

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Washington has not won NFC East since 2015. Dallas last won the division in 2018. Rivera's club won the first division matchup in Week 7. With Kyle Allen under center, Washington earned 397 yards, with Antonio Gibson leading the way with 128 rush yards and a TD, in a 25-3 victory.

Red zone

Even when the Cowboys' offense did reach the red zone, they couldn’t convert. They settled for field goals on each of three trips, their lone touchdown coming on a 54-yard pass from Andy Dalton to receiver Amari Cooper, who burned Washington cornerback Ronald Darby. The Cowboys have emphasized for weeks their need to protect the ball and leave the red zone with 7 points. Instead, red zone touchdowns never materialized, and they turned over the ball twice, a Dalton pick-six and an Elliott fumble. Dallas’ offense now has 10 consecutive games with a turnover. Elliott, expected to be their premier back, has fumbled six times and lost five.

Defensive energy moot

The Cowboys defensive line started strong, Randy Gregory tallying his first sack in nearly two years and a second one shortly after. Defensive end DeMarcus Lawrence found solid pressure. Dallas forced early three and outs. But by game’s end, they’d allowed Gibson alone 115 rushing yards and three touchdowns while Washington compiled 338 yards in total. In the team's first meeting, Gibson had 128 yards rushing.

Disastrous offensive and special teams performance were too much for the Cowboys to overcome. Questions abound for McCarthy, who hasn’t won consecutive games in 11 contests in his first Dallas season.

The Cowboys are schedule to play the Ravens next week on Thursday Night Football.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Washington runs past Dallas Cowboys and into first place in NFC East -- with four wins