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Tolbert’s alert recovery, CeeDee’s run and Garrett’s penalty
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Tolbert’s alert recovery, CeeDee’s run and Garrett’s penalty

CLEVELAND – There are a lot of things you can overlook on a day like this, a day that started with a mega contract extension for Dak Prescott.

The Cowboys then continued to bombard the Browns on both sides of the ball – including on special teams.

But all games have plays that get lost in the shuffle and could have changed the outcome. Here are a few that may not be remembered, but were important to the final score.

False start for the Browns – On Cleveland’s first drive of the game, the Browns were on the move and tried to keep it going with a fourth-and-2 attempt at the Cowboys’ 28-yard line. But a false start by Jack Conklin, who was trying to get a head start on blocking Micah Parsons, pushed them back 5 yards. After a timeout, Dustin Hopkins fired a 51-yard field goal for a 3-0 lead. But the penalty prevented the Browns from scoring a possible touchdown.

Jet sweep by Lamb – For a guy who set franchise records for catches last year and is the highest-paid receiver in Cowboys history, leave it to CeeDee Lamb to set the tone of the game … with a run, of course. But with the Cowboys getting off to a sluggish start on offense, falling behind on their first drive and taking a penalty on their second, it was a 10-yard run by Lamb that gave the Cowboys a first down. That seemed to calm things down, and the offense continued down the field. Lamb caught a deep ball and then Prescott connected with Brandin Cooks for a touchdown.

Tolbert jumps on a loose ball – On the second snap of the second quarter, Prescott was hit by Browns defensive end Myles Garrett on a play that appeared to be a pass. The ball rolled harmlessly to the right side, but Jalen Tolbert was alert to the ball in case it turned into a fumble. As it turned out, the play was ruled a sack and fumble, and if Tolbert hadn’t picked it up, the Browns could have picked it up and potentially scored. The Cowboys eventually went on to score, but the Browns didn’t even get a first down in the second quarter.

Browns’ offside penalty at the 7 – The Cowboys were nearing the end of a long drive in the second quarter and faced first-and-goal at the Cleveland 7-yard line. Prescott was sacked on first down, but Garrett was flagged for offside. That nullified the play and gave the Cowboys the ball at the 3. With the new first down, Ezekiel Elliott got the handoff and scored. It’s a different set of downs with the ball at the 7 than it is at the 3. That penalty led to a touchdown, giving the Cowboys a 14-3 lead.

Aubrey’s Rolling Kickoff – In the second quarter, the Cowboys scored on a touchdown run by Elliott for a 14-3 lead. And Brandon Aubrey’s ensuing kickoff proved to be the perfect scenario. He was able to split the two return men with a line drive that bounced over the 5-yard line and rolled into the end zone. Under the new rules, if the ball lands in the 20-yard landing zone and then rolls in for a touchback, the ball is placed on the 20. The Browns were unable to gain a first down, and the Cowboys then used great field position, starting on their own 44-yard line, to add another field goal.

Overshown slams the door – By the end of the third quarter, the Browns were down by 17 points, but they were trying to sneak back into the game. On fourth-and-7 near midfield, Deshaun Watson tried to come out for a potential scramble, but linebacker DeMarvion Overshown quickly made up ground and erased the angle Watson had, hitting the Cleveland quarterback for a sack and turnover on downs. The Cowboys were then able to get a 50-yard field goal from Aubrey for a 30-10 lead.