DALLAS, TX — The Dallas Cowboys earned their first win of the season, rallying to beat the New Orleans Saints 31-20. After trailing 20-9 at halftime, the Cowboys mounted a dominant second-half comeback, outgaining the Saints with 475 total yards to New Orleans’ 322.
The Saints took control early with a Derek Carr pass to Cedrick Wilson Jr. for a 2-yard touchdown, followed by a 37-yard strike to Taysom Hill, helping the Saints build a 20-9 lead. Alvin Kamara rushed for 20 yards and a touchdown, though the offense struggled to move the ball after halftime.
The Cowboys, led by Dak Prescott’s 243 passing yards and 2 touchdowns, made the necessary adjustments in the second half. Ezekiel Elliott rumbled for 109 rushing yards and a touchdown, controlling the tempo as Dallas outscored New Orleans 22-0 in the final two quarters. Rico Dowdle added 31 rushing yards and two short touchdowns.
“We knew we had to turn it up in the second half,” Prescott said. “We executed better, and our defense gave us the opportunities we needed.” Dallas’ defense shined, sacking Carr five times and limiting New Orleans to just 127 rushing yards.
The Saints struggled to find offensive rhythm after halftime, with Carr finishing the game with 200 passing yards, 2 touchdowns, and 2 costly interceptions. Chris Olave led the Saints’ receiving corps with 6 catches for 75 yards, while Rashid Shaheed added 39 receiving yards.
Key Performers
For the Cowboys, Dak Prescott’s efficient play led the way, while Ezekiel Elliott powered the ground attack with 109 rushing yards. CeeDee Lamb hauled in 6 receptions for 100 yards and a touchdown, and Brandin Cooks added 94 yards on 4 catches.
Defensively, Chauncey Golston and Micah Parsons each recorded sacks, while Malik Hooker added a key interception to stop a Saints drive.
On the Saints’ side, Derek Carr threw for 200 yards and 2 touchdowns but was under pressure for much of the game. Chris Olave and Taysom Hill provided some spark, but the offense couldn’t sustain drives after halftime.
Up Next
The Saints will return home to face the 2-0 Philadelphia Eagles, while the Cowboys, now 1-1, will stay in Dallas to host the 1-1 Baltimore Ravens.
TEAM STATS |
|
|
| Offensive Yards Gained |
195 | 394 |
| Total Yards Gained |
322 | 475 |
| Penalties |
0 | 1 |
| Penalty yards |
0 | 3 |
| Total first downs |
12 | 23 |
| 3rd down efficiency |
4 - 7 , 57.1% | 6 - 11 , 54.5% |
| 4th down effiency |
0 - 1 , 0.0% | 3 - 3 , 100.0% |
| 2 point conversion |
0 - 0 , 0.0% | 0 - 0 , 0.0% |
| Trips to red zone |
3 | 7 |
| Red zone touchdowns |
2 | 4 |
| Red zone field goals |
0 | 1 |
| Red zone efficiency |
66.7% | 71.4% |
| Defensive sacks |
0 | 5 |
| Defensive Interceptions |
1 | 2 |
| Defensive forced fumbles |
0 | 0 |
| Defensive F.F. recovered |
0 | 0 |
Stats
Passing
New Orleans Saints
Player |
qbr |
com/att |
pct |
yds |
lng |
td |
int |
sck |
| D.Carr | 88.7 | 18 / 25 | 72.0 | 200 | 37 | 2 | 2 | 5 |
Rushing
New Orleans Saints
Player |
att |
yds |
lng |
td |
avg |
big |
yac |
| A.Kamara | 4 | 20 | 11 | 1 | 5.0 | 0 | 7 | C.Wilson Jr | 1 | 6 | 6 | 0 | 6.0 | 0 | 1 | D.Carr | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | J.Johnson | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | R.Shaheed | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | C.Olave | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 |
Receiving
New Orleans Saints
Player |
rec |
yds |
avg |
td |
yac |
lng |
drop |
| C.Olave | 6 | 75 | 12.5 | 0 | 33 | 28 | 0 | R.Shaheed | 4 | 39 | 9.8 | 0 | 11 | 23 | 2 | T.Hill | 1 | 37 | 37.0 | 1 | 7 | 37 | 0 | J.Johnson | 2 | 27 | 13.5 | 0 | 4 | 22 | 0 | C.Wilson Jr | 3 | 12 | 4.0 | 1 | 1 | 11 | 0 | A.Prentice | 1 | 6 | 6.0 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 0 | A.Kamara | 1 | 4 | 4.0 | 0 | 1 | 4 | 0 |
Defense
New Orleans Saints
Player |
tckl |
sck |
pdef |
int |
int yds |
td |
ff |
ffr |
| D.Davis | 7 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | B.Bresee | 2 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | K.DeLoach | 2 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | C.Young | 2 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | W.Gay | 4 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | N.Sewell | 1 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | T.Mathieu | 3 | 0.0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | P.Adebo | 3 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | R.Neal | 2 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | M.Lattimore | 0 | 0.0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | K.McKinstry | 3 | 0.0 | 0 | 1 | 16 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Kicking
New Orleans Saints
Player |
fg |
fg pct |
lng |
xp |
xp pct |
50+ |
50+ pct |
| B.Grupe | 0 / 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 2 / 3 | 66.7 | 0 / 0 | 0.0 |
Punting
New Orleans Saints
Player |
punts |
yds |
avg |
tb |
in20 |
lng |
blk |
| A.McNamara | 2 | 79 | 34.5 | 0 | 0 | 41 | 0 |
