Day 75 of the 100-day countdown lands on one of the wildest finishes in modern Cowboys history, a game that somehow twisted from disaster into a Dallas win.
On Sunday, September 20, 2020, at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas, the Cowboys beat the Falcons 40-39. The scoreboard alone barely captures how far out of reach it looked for Dallas. The Cowboys were down 20-0 after one quarter, 29-10 at halftime, and still staring at a 39-24 deficit with less than five minutes left.
The opening stretch was a mess for Dallas. The Cowboys kept coughing it up in the first quarter, missed on a fake punt, and kept handing Atlanta short fields.
Matt Ryan made them pay with a touchdown to Calvin Ridley after a Dak Prescott fumble, then found Hayden Hurst for another score after an Ezekiel Elliott fumble. Younghoe Koo added two field goals, and before the first quarter was over, Atlanta had already built a 20-point lead.
Dallas steadied itself in the second quarter, at least enough to stop the bleeding. Elliott punched in a one-yard touchdown, Greg Zuerlein drilled a 33-yard field goal, and the Cowboys finally showed a pulse.
But Atlanta kept landing blows. Ryan connected with Ridley again for another touchdown, Koo tacked on a late field goal, and the Falcons went to the break ahead 29-10.
The second half belonged to Prescott. He opened the third quarter with a rushing touchdown, then later scored again on a quarterback sneak after a huge Amari Cooper catch moved Dallas close.
Atlanta answered, but the Cowboys kept dragging themselves back into it. Prescott hit Dalton Schultz on a 10-yard touchdown, then ran for his third rushing score of the day to make it 39-37.
That set up the play everyone remembers. Zuerlein lined up for an onside kick and rolled the ball sideways without a tee, letting it wobble and spin across the turf like a watermelon.
The Falcons never jumped on it before it crossed 10 yards, and C.J. Goodwin pounced on it at the Dallas 46 with 1:49 left.
The Watermelon Kick had its name.
Prescott then did just enough more, finding rookie CeeDee Lamb for 24 yards to get Dallas into field-goal range. Zuerlein ended it with a 46-yard kick, and the Cowboys had their first win of the season. It was also Mike McCarthy’s first home win as Dallas head coach.
Prescott’s night landed in NFL history, too. He became the first player ever to throw for at least 400 yards and rush for three touchdowns in the same game.
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Cowboys Castoff Suddenly Has A Real Shot To Matter Again
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The timing matters because the safety group has changed enough that Bell may not have the clearest path to snaps on that side of the ball. Dallas brought in Caleb Downs, Jalen Thompson and P.J. Locke, which makes special teams the likeliest place for Bell to win his spot and stick around, even if his defensive opportunities are harder to project right now. [Read more 🡒]