Cowboys vs. Steelers: Score and Twitter Reaction from 2016 Regular Season

A wild back-and-forth battle went the Dallas Cowboys' way, as they knocked off the Pittsburgh Steelers, 35-30, in a game that featured eight lead changes and six failed two-point conversions from both teams. 

Ezekiel Elliott once again dominated with 114 rushing yards, 95 receiving yards and three total touchdowns. He had two go-ahead scores in the final two minutes, including this 32-yard score with nine seconds remaining, per the NFL:

In a season that's already seen Elliott destroy opposing defenses, the NFL on ESPN noted he set a new career benchmark Sunday:

As ESPN's Adam Schefter suggested, it's well within the realm of possibility for Elliott to put some additional hardware on his mantle along with the Offensive Rookie of the Year honor that is all but guaranteed at this point:

Elliott's third score of the game came after the Cowboys appeared completely deflated by the Steelers' previous drive. 

Trailing 29-24 after Elliott ran it in from 14 yards out, the Steelers went to work with two timeouts and needing to go 75 yards.

Le'Veon Bell made the first big play of the drive, catching a short pass and running for a 23-yard gain into Dallas territory. Jesse James immediately followed that up by getting behind the Cowboys coverage for a gain of 24. 

As the Steelers hurried up to the line of scrimmage, appearing as though they were going to spike the ball, Roethlisberger faked it and threw a perfect pass that fell right into the hands of Antonio Brown in the end zone for a 30-29 lead, per the NFL:  

Roethlisberger was terrific for the Steelers on a day when the running game only managed 48 yards. He finished 37-of-46 for 408 yards and three touchdowns. 

The Cowboys came out of the gate sluggish. Dak Prescott turned the ball over on the game's first drive when Anthony Chickillo stripped him from behind on a sack and Ryan Shazier recovered. The rookie rebounded to finish 22-of-32 for 319 yards and two touchdowns.

The Steelers drove 38 yards and found the end zone when Roethlisberger hit Bell from two yards out, though a failed two-point conversion would keep the score 6-0. 

Roethlisberger also reached a historic milestone during the game, per the Steelers' official Twitter account:

That was the start of four straight scoring drives between the two teams. After the Steelers went up 12-3 on Roethlisberger's second touchdown pass of the game, Elliott took matters into his own hands on this screen pass, via the NFL:

While that touchdown would have been impressive enough on its own, the NFL on ESPN noted the Cowboys haven't had a reception cover that many yards in some time:

Pro Football Talk's Michael David Smith offered one more reason why everyone should be in awe of what Elliott did on that catch:

If you take that play out of the equation, the Cowboys had nothing going in the first half with just 105 yards on their 26 other plays. 

Yet the Steelers were unable to pull away after leaving points on the table with two failed two-point conversions and a missed 55-yard field goal by Chris Boswell to end the first half. They would get three points on the first drive of the second half to extend their lead to 18-13. 

The Cowboys tried to respond on the ensuing drive, taking more than seven minutes off the clock over 14 plays, but had to settle for another field goal from Dan Bailey. They converted three third downs on the drive before Stephon Tuitt sacked Prescott on the fourth one. 

Dallas' defense came up huge on the next possession, forcing the Steelers into a three-and-out when Demarcus Lawrence sacked Roethlisberger on 3rd-and-3.

Lucky Whitehead gave the Cowboys terrific field position at Pittsburgh's 49 thanks to his 39-yard punt return. Prescott made it count three plays later, hitting Dez Bryant deep down the sideline for a 50-yard touchdown on 3rd-and-11, per the NFL:

This hasn't been a vintage season for Bryant due to injuries and trying to establish chemistry with Prescott, but the Cowboys star went off against Pittsburgh's defense with six catches for 116 yards and a touchdown. He did that one day after his father died, per Kristi Scales of 105.3 The Fan.

Coming into Sunday, Bryant had a total of 16 catches for 282 yards and two touchdowns in five games this season. 

DraftKings provided a GIF displaying the exuberance fantasy owners were feeling after Bryant's best game of the season:

While the Cowboys found their rhythm on offense in the second half, the Steelers were trying to find a spark trailing 23-18 in the fourth quarter. They ran a total of nine plays on two drives after starting the second half with a field goal.

Things would turn around for the Steelers with less than 11 minutes remaining. Roethlisberger led a six-play touchdown drive on which he accounted for 44 of the team's 46 yards. Le'Veon Bell finished it with a score from one yard out, via the NFL: 

With a 24-23 lead, the Steelers had no choice but to go for two this time. Roethlisberger scrambled to buy time and appeared to have James open as he floated the ball, but teammate Fitzgerald Toussaint cut the ball off on a diving attempt and the pass fell incomplete to keep it a one-point game. 

Dallas got the ball back with under eight minutes remaining with the objectives of trying to run the clock and get into scoring position. It succeeded at both, converting two third downs before Elliott walked into the end zone from 14 yards out to take a 29-24 lead with 1:55 remaining. Bryant failed to corral the two-point attempt.

If there was any doubt about how good this Cowboys team was coming into Week 10 based on a soft schedule, this should put an end to that. They went into one of the most difficult environments in the NFL, withstood one of the league's most dangerous offenses and never wavered. 

Prescott, Elliott and Bryant have the Cowboys firing on all cylinders, and no one in the NFC is even close to matching their 8-1 mark. 

The Steelers have now lost four straight games, allowing 113 points during that span. Their talent on offense is undeniable, but it means very little if you can't stop anyone. This was a game they should have won after taking the lead with less than one minute remaining. 

Instead, Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin is left searching for answers. They should find them next week against the Cleveland Browns, or else this team is in bigger trouble than anyone thought. 

Postgame Reaction

If there was any question about who would be the Cowboys' starting quarterback moving forward, owner and general manager Jerry Jones helped shed some light on the situation after Sunday's win.

"We're going to let this decision in this case make itself," Jones said, per ESPN.com's Todd Archer. "Dak's got a hot hand and we're going to go with it."

When Jones was asked if it was difficult to keep Tony Romo on the bench, he left no doubt about Prescott's status.

"It's not hard at all," Jones said, per Archer. "Tony would make the same decision. That's what you do."

Romo had a pointed comment after the game about Prescott's performance to Cowboys executive vice president Stephen Jones. 

"That ain't (blank) easy, and he's (Prescott's) the man," Romo said, per ESPN's Ed Werder.

As far as what happened on the field, Cowboys head coach Jason Garrett praised his team's ability to respond multiple times in hostile territory, per Clarence Hill of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram:

"

How our team responded in the latter part of the game is indicative of what they’re all about, the kind of people we have on our team, the mental toughness they have, the poise and composure. Our ability to execute when we had to was obviously critical to the outcome.

"

Elliott made his game-winning touchdown seem like the easiest score he's ever had in his life. 

"It parted like the Red Sea," Elliott said, per David Helman of Cowboys.com. "All I had to do was run."

In true Forrest Gump fashion, Elliott just kept running.