The Dallas Cowboys 24-20 victory over the Detroit Lions will have an asterisk next to it in the eyes of Lions fans, but the individual performances that led to the Cowboys victory should exist without detracting qualifiers. Second-year wide receiver Terrance Williams and rookie defensive end DeMarcus Lawrence are two young, talented players on either side of the ball, and both were major redemption stories in the victory. Without the pivotal plays these two made, the Cowboys would not have emerged with a victory, especially since Williams caught both touchdown passes.
As a rookie out of Baylor, Williams shattered my expectations after I called him a “one-trick pony” who could only beat defenses on “go” routes with his speed. 44 receptions for 736 yards and four touchdowns later, Williams made me eat a solid helping of crow.
In 2014, he caught just 37 passes for 621 yards in an inconsistent season, but he still managed to average 16.8 yards per reception and score eight touchdowns as a top-notch playmaker.Is he an inconsistent receiver whose biggest asset is making big plays? Pretty much. But man, Williams’s ability to stretch defenses as a home-run threat is sure valuable to an offense that would be sorely lacking in that department without him.
Williams redeemed himself twice against the Lions, because both of his touchdowns came after mishaps. His first TD was a stellar 76-yard catch-and-run, and he produced it out of thin air on the back of his elite speed and explosive ability, one-upping Golden Tate in his facet of the game. His TD gave the Cowboys hope heading into the half, because they would have been down 17-0 without his spirit-lifting score with 1:37 left in the second quarter. The redemption in this first touchdown? He was flagged for offensive pass interference on third-and-12 before his TD, and that’s an incredible way to make up for what could have been a back-breaking, drive-killing penalty.
He outdid himself with his game-winning touchdown in the fourth quarter with 2:32 left to give the Cowboys their 24-20 lead, because he committed two errors before hauling in the eight-yard pass. Tony Romo threw a perfect pass to Williams in the right corner of the end zone on first-and-eight, but Williams let the beautiful throw fly through his hands without the ball even making contact with the receiver. After a solid DeMarco Murray rush got the Cowboys to the three-yard line, Williams committed a frustrating false start to push the Cowboys back to a tough third-and-goal situation at the eight.
That missed opportunity in the end zone combined with the penalty could have made Williams a huge day-after goat, but, once again, he made up for it in the best way possible. Noticing that their quarterback was in trouble against the Lions pass rush (again), both Dez Bryant and Williams cut back to the middle of the field after running routes in the opposite direction.
As Williams came in from his left, he created just enough separation for his star QB to make the pass, and the result was the game-winning score. Williams’s awareness and concentration have been called into question before, such as when he let that pass go through his hands in the end zone just two plays earlier, but he did everything right on that touchdown.
The Cowboys were big fans of Lawrence coming into the draft, and they traded up for the Boise State Broncos product, who received a first-round grade from several draft analysts due to his physical tools and college dominance, instead of staying pat and taking Kony Ealy. Lawrence never got a real chance to show his stuff in his rookie year after breaking his foot in the offseason, which prevented him from taking part in training camp. Although his development was slowed and he recorded no sacks in seven appearances during the regular season, Lawrence showed flashes and made some nice plays in run defense.
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Like Williams, Lawrence could have easily been a goat yesterday, as he inexplicably lost a fumble after scooping up a mistake from Lions veteran Reggie Bush. Visibly frustrated, Lawerence, like Williams and Romo in this game, didn’t let the mistakes or mental pressure get to him, and he more than made up for his fumble. Not only did he recover a fumble to seal the game for the Cowboys, but he forced Matthew Stafford to fumble the ball on a truly spectacular strip sack.
Lawrence showed all of the traits that made the Cowboys move up for him in the draft, as he completely dominated another player with raw talent in left tackle Riley Reiff. Using speed, explosiveness, strength, and violent hands, Lawrence ripped past Reiff in a display of brute strength and determination before smashing Stafford to the turf, with the ball spraying out.Lawrence somehow noticed that the ball had sprung loose, and he snatched it before it could move deeper into the backfield and out of the grasp of him and his teammates.
It was a surreal play, as Lawrence’s determination, physicality, strength, and impressive awareness (he’s a rookie from a small conference who didn’t get to learn much in the offseason) stole the show in an immediate and you-can’t-make-this-up moment of atonement. Although the picked-up-flag is the major talking point, hopefully Terrance Williams and DeMarcus Lawrence garner plenty of attention for their sensational and clutch plays after shaking off some big mistakes.
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