3 Things We Learned From Cowboys-Chargers on Monday Night

The Dallas Cowboys edged out the Los Angeles Chargers 20-17 on Monday Night Football.

SportsGrid looks at the key takeaways from this big NFL Week 6 matchup.

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NFL Week 6 Content: 3 Things Kansas City Chiefs | 3 Things Denver Broncos | 3 Things Philadelphia Eagles | 3 Things Buffalo Bills 

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1. The Cowboys Finally Picked up a Big Road Victory

There hasn’t been a lot that the Dallas Cowboys have proven to the masses through six weeks. They’ve already suffered a difficult road loss to the Arizona Cardinals and fell flat on their faces in a big Sunday night redemption spot against the San Francisco 49ers. In Week 6 on Monday Night Football, the Cowboys finally did just enough to secure a victory against a quality opponent. In saying that, Monday night’s game was still far from perfect by the Cowboys.

Dallas has remained with the third-shortest odds to win the NFC, but we remain hesitant to put them in the same class as the Philadelphia Eagles, San Francisco 49ers, and potentially even the Detroit Lions. Still, the Cowboys are 4-2, and they’ll continue to be tested after their bye week with games against the Los Angeles Rams and Philadelphia Eagles. 

2. Dak Prescott Can Win, but what is his Ceiling?

One of the biggest moments on Monday Night Football came when Dak Prescott used his legs to rush for a touchdown. The Cowboys hadn’t been running the football at a high clip on Monday, but the read-option play helped Dallas score one of their two touchdowns against LA. When opposing defenses allow Prescott to run, he needs to take advantage of that fully, and he did on Monday.

Prescott finished the Week 6 clash with 272 passing yards, a touchdown, 40 yards on the ground, and a score. This is the type of performance that the Cowboys need from him more often than not, knowing very well that this high-end defense can keep them in many football games. What’s impressive about this victory is that Prescott did so against his former offensive coordinator, Kellen Moore, someone who knows the insides and outs of his game. We’re still doubting Prescott’s ability to lead the Cowboys to a Super Bowl, but he did prove on Monday night that he can at least win a big game on the road. 

3. Missed Chances Killed the Chargers on Monday Night

We’ll give a lot of credit to the Cowboys’ defense on Monday night, but the Chargers deserve a lot of blame on offense for the amount of opportunities they botched. After being sacked on second down, Chargers quarterback Justin Herbert threw a game-ending interception. Herbert couldn’t take advantage of the opportunity to create a different narrative about himself on this drive.

The story of the Chargers season through Week 6 has been missed opportunities, seeing as all three losses have come by a mere eight total points. We won’t lay the entirety of the blame on Herbert, but there’s also no doubt that the former Oregon Duck needs to be better if the Chargers hope to convert on being genuine contenders in the AFC.