ARLINGTON, Texas ā The Dallas Cowboys were officially eliminated from the playoff contention before they kicked off Sunday night.
They then went out and made owner Jerry Jones proud, with a 26-24 victory over the playoff-chasing Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
Recommended Videos
With all the lingering questions about the future of coach Mike McCarthy with him being on an expiring contract, and the Cowboys (7-8) far removed from the possibility of repeating as NFC East champions, they won for the fourth time in their last five games ā all without injured franchise quarterback Dak Prescott.
āProud of those guys. They wouldnāt give it up out there. So Iām real, real proud of them,ā Jones said. āAnd Mike McCarthy, he just wonāt let them not think theyāre playing for the Super Bowl out there. He wonāt let them do it. So proud of that.ā
After three consecutive playoff appearances, the Cowboys were out of contention for a postseason berth with three games to play ā the earliest they have knocked out since 2015. That is now two games, next week at the division-leading Philadelphia Eagles (12-3) before the regular-season finale at home against Washington (10-5).
The Commanders' 36-33 victory over Philadelphia earlier Sunday ended all hope for the Dallas.
What had seemed inevitable, especially after a five-game losing streak before their late-season surge, became a reality, hitting both the owner and his fifth-year coach hard when they saw each other before the game.
āWe both looked like we had lost somebody, and so it was something you had to kind of get over the reality that we weren't going to to go,ā Jones said.
āBefore the game, it was a real punch to the gut to say the least,ā McCarthy said. āYou just kind of take that moment to sit back and watch, watch some of the guys warm up, watch the interactions in the locker room. Wasnāt much different than a normal game. Youāre just wanting to keep your mind in it, too, and stay focused. I thought our guys did a hell of a job.ā
McCarthy is 49-33 in regular-season games with the Cowboys, and 1-3 in the playoffs.
While expressing how proud he was of the team and how they played for McCarthy, Jones still wasn't ready to address the coach's contract status ā or the lack of a deal after this season.
āAll I can say is what a good job, how good a job he's doing,ā Jones said. āDonāt have thoughts that I would share as to anything about what we do ... after weāre through playing this year.ā
That will be in two weeks.
___
AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/nfl