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Dallas Cowboys lead Pittsburgh Steelers at halftime
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Dallas Cowboys lead Pittsburgh Steelers at halftime

Dallas regains the lead

Brandon Aubrey’s second field goal, from 33 yards, puts Dallas ahead 6-3 with 8:51 to go before halftime.

Pittsburgh’s offense is out of sync

Neither team has capitalized on the other’s mistakes so far. After Dak Prescott’s fumble saved Pittsburgh at least three points, the next drive went nowhere thanks to two false start penalties. The Steelers have only traveled 54 yards in their 18 plays so far.

Dallas gives the ball back

Each team started with a field goal on the opening drive. Then they all watched as their quarterback turned the ball over on their second. Under pressure from Steelers star rush end TJ Watt, the pocket around Dak Prescott collapsed and forced a fumble that Pittsburgh recovered in the closing seconds of the first quarter.

Almost a disaster for Pittsburgh

It was a shaky second possession for Steelers QB Justin Fields. One play after undercutting an open receiver and nearly being intercepted, Fields fumbled when the Cowboys’ Linval Joseph broke through the line and hit Fields in the backfield.

Clumsiness has been an issue for Fields all season; he did it four times in his first four games.

Key Cowboys starter ‘out’

Marshawn Kneeland, the defensive player who was injured early in the first quarter, is considered questionable to return after appearing to injure his right leg. Kneeland was taken to the locker room on a cart.

Dallas punts

And that’s where the Cowboys’ lack of a rushing threat hurts them. They rushed to the scrimmage facing third-and-1 hoping to throw Pittsburgh’s defense off balance, but ended up passing and it ended with an intentional grounding penalty for Dallas. First point of the evening coming for Dallas.

Steelers answer

Both teams open with field goals on their first drive. Pittsburgh answers Dallas with a 41-yard field goal by Chris Boswell.

It’s Steelers 3, Cowboys 3, with 7:33 left in the first quarter.

Early injury for Dallas defense

Rookie Cowboys defensive end Marshawn Kneeland limped off the field during the Steelers’ opening series. If Kneeland misses time, it would spell trouble for a defense that has already struggled this season. Kneeland only started because the Cowboys’ other edge rushers, Micah Parson and DeMarcus Lawrence, are out tonight with injuries.

Cowboys get on board first

Brandon Aubrey’s 55-yard field goal ends the Cowboys’ first six-play, 21-yard drive with points. As expected, Dallas leans on Dak Prescott’s arm early.

And we left

As this game prepares for a delayed kickoff, Dallas will receive the opening kickoff. See if the Cowboys can get any semblance of a running game. They have averaged 75.3 rush yards per game this season – last in the league.

What happened to Dallas’ vaunted defense?

Through their first four games under defensive coordinator Mike Zimmer this season, the Cowboys rank 26th in total defense (355.3 yd/g) and are tied for 27th in scoring defense (26 .0 points/game). The defense was strong in each of Dallas’ two wins, but was torched in both losses.

Zimmer took over for Dan Quinn, who served as the Cowboys’ defensive coordinator for the past three years (2021-2023) before taking the head coaching job in Washington this offseason.

SNF starts at 9:45 PM ET

With showers and thunderstorms moving through Pittsburgh, tonight’s “Sunday Night Football” game is expected to start at 9:45 PM ET.

The game had a weather delay before the start of the first quarter. If it starts at 9:45 a.m., the match will have been delayed almost 90 minutes. Buckle up, it’s getting late, everyone.

Mike Tomlin isn’t ready to name a permanent QB just yet

Ahead of Week 4, Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin was asked about naming a permanent starting QB for the future. However, he said there was “no need” to do so at this time:

“It’s not necessary… When (Russell Wilson) reaches an appropriate health point and we have to make a decision, I will make it and announce it and be very transparent about it. But until then, I don’t care how many ways you ask me, I don’t intend to make a decision that isn’t necessary at this time.

This week, Tomlin was asked if they would continue with Fields when Wilson returns from his calf injury.

“There is potential for that,” Tomlin said. “But we are not there as I stand here today.”

Steelers ride with Justin Fields

This offseason, the Steelers signed QB Russell Wilson and traded for QB Justin Fields, giving the Bears a conditional sixth-round pick. Wilson, who dealt with a calf injury during the preseason, was named the starting quarterback ahead of Week 1.

However, Wilson has yet to play this season due to his injury, with Fields thrust into the starting role and winning his first three starts for Pittsburgh before losing to the Colts in Week 4.

In his three NFL seasons prior to this one (all with Chicago), Fields won more than three games only once (5-8 in 13 starts last season).

This season, Fields has completed 70.6% of his passes for 830 passing yards with three passing touchdowns and one interception. He also has 145 rushing yards and has scored all three of the Steelers’ rushing scores this season.

Cowboys TE Jake Ferguson steps up

Jake Ferguson is second on Dallas in catches (16) and third on the team in receiving yards (159), having played in three games (he missed Week 2 vs. New Orleans with a knee injury). Since returning from injury, Ferguson has racked up a team-high 13 catches for 144 yards (second on the team) over the past two games.

CeeDee Lamb fulfills big contract this offseason

The star WR leads Dallas in every major receiving category this season (20 receptions, 316 receiving yds, 2 receiving TDs), which he also did the past two seasons. In the Week 4 win at the Giants, he had season highs in catches (7) and receiving yards (98) and scored on a 55-yard touchdown catch in the second quarter.

Last season, Lamb posted career highs in receptions (135 – most in the NFL), receiving yards (1,749 – second in NFL behind Tyreek Hill) and receiving touchdowns (12 – third in the NFL behind Hill and Mike Evans), earning his first deserved. All-Pro selection and his third consecutive Pro Bowl nod.

▪ Lamb’s 135 receptions and 1,749 receiving yards were Cowboys franchise records (exceeding Hall of Famer Michael Irvin’s 1995 marks), and he became the 4th Cowboy with three consecutive seasons of 1,000+ receiving yards (Irvin, Terrell Owens and Dez Bryant).

Mike McCarthy’s Cowboys are under pressure to get over the hump

At 2-2, the Cowboys are off to their worst start since 2020, coach Mike McCarthy’s first season in charge and the only year of his tenure in which Dallas missed the playoffs (finished 6-10 in 2020).

After Dallas’ Week 2 loss to the Saints, owner Jerry Jones said McCarthy – who is in the final year of his contract – would be judged based on postseason success.

“I don’t think where (McCarthy) is with his contract has anything to do with (the Week 1 win at) Cleveland … or how we played (in the Week 2 loss to NO). We’re trying to get this team ready and in place to really make a run at the playoffs. … If we have an albatross around our neck, it’s that we’ve been a good to very good team with Mike over the last four to five years, and we haven’t done well over the last four to five years. the play-offs. So let’s trade some challenges during the season for a good performance in the play-offs, if you want to look at it that way.”

Matchup of historic NFL teams

The Cowboys and Steelers are two of the NFL’s most storied teams, and this week they meet for the first time on SNF.

• Dallas and Pittsburgh have combined for 11 Super Bowl titles (six for Pittsburgh, five for Dallas) and 16 Super Bowl appearances (eight for both teams).

• The two teams have met in three Super Bowls, making Cowboys-Steelers the most frequent Super Bowl matchup in NFL history. They played against each other in Super Bowl

• The Cowboys and Steelers are the top two teams in wins in the Super Bowl era. The two teams are also first and second in regular-season winning percentage in the Super Bowl era (Dallas leads at .598, while Pittsburgh is 2nd at .590).

Since the Super Bowl XXX meeting nearly 29 years ago, DAL and PIT have met just six times, with each team winning three.