The New England Patriots battled the elements to beat both the rain and the Dallas Cowboys in Week 12 of the 2019 NFL season.
[Editor's Note: All of PFF's advanced stats and grades for every NFL player are made available in PFF's ELITE subscription. Subscribe today to gain access!]
PFF's ReFocused series features immediate takeaways from the two analysts who graded the game live. The two offer a detailed breakdown of the game's most notable performances before the grades and advanced stats are reviewed and finalized by Senior Analysts.
All of PFF's grades and advanced stats from this game and the other games played this week will be finalized and made available to ELITE subscribers within 24 hours of the final whistle. ELITE subscribers can view player grades, advanced statistics, positional snap counts and more in Premium Stats.
PFF's ELITE subscribers can also preview NFL and NCAA games in PFF Greenline, an online dashboard with projections for the spread, totals and moneyline.
Final Score
New England Patriots 13, Dallas Cowboys 9
New England Patriots
Tom Brady did just enough in the torrential rain to steer the Patriots to another victory. Brady didn’t turn the ball over and threw one touchdown, but his pass-catchers also dropped several passes.
Rookie first-round pick N’Keal Harry had an impressive touchdown in the first quarter as he spun in the end zone to make the catch with Byron Jones hanging all over him. Unfortunately, Harry had two drops later in the game.
Points were at a premium in this game, and the Patriots were able to get points after a couple of Dallas turnovers. One was a great interception by Stephon Gilmore, who ran step for step with the wide receiver and made a diving catch on a pass delivered by Dak Prescott. They were also able to convert a blocked punt into points early in the game.
The Patriots' secondary was great in this game, and they made things really difficult for the Cowboys' passing game. While Dak Prescott did miss some open throws and Jason Witten did have a few drops, the Patriots secondary, led by Jonathan Jones and Stephon Gilmore, was all over the Cowboys' wide receivers.
Dallas Cowboys
While the weather conditions were tough to deal with, Dak Prescott missed several throws in this game. The Cowboys had multiple opportunities to keep drives alive throughout, but Prescott's inaccuracy stalled numerous drives.
The Cowboys tried to lean on their run game to muster up enough offense in this game. While it wasn't enough to put enough points on the board, Ezekiel Elliott did his part. He didn't have much room to operate but was able to find enough creases in the Patriots' defense — he made several great cuts and finished runs through contact down the field.
There were a few notable plays on the defensive side of the ball for the Cowboys, especially in the pass-rush. Robert Quinn had a first-quarter strip-sack of Tom Brady after beating Isaiah Wynn outside, but Brady was able to recover the loose ball. Maliek Collins also sacked Tom Brady in the third-quarter after beating Shaq Mason with an inside move to end a Patriots' third-quarter drive.
