Cowboys vs. Giants: Score and Twitter Reaction for Sunday Night Football

The 2016 Dallas Cowboys can't lose—unless they are playing the New York Giants.

New York snapped Dallas' 11-game winning streak with a 10-7 victory Sunday at MetLife Stadium. The winning streak extended back to the season opener, when the Giants went into Dallas and beat the Cowboys to start the year.

The Giants moved to 9-4 with the win, while Dallas fell to 11-2 and missed an opportunity to clinch the NFC East crown as well as a first-round bye in the playoffs.

Defense ruled the day for both sides, as the Giants didn't allow a single Dallas point in the final three quarters. The Cowboys were an abysmal 1-of-15 on third down, and quarterback Dak Prescott went just 17-of-37 for 165 yards, one touchdown and two interceptions.

The Giants contained Dallas' other two playmakers as well. Running back Ezekiel Elliott managed 107 yards on the ground but didn't score, while wide receiver Dez Bryant had one catch for 10 yards and fumbled the ball away on the play.

The defense helped the Giants continue their winning ways in close games, as ESPN Stats & Info highlighted:

The Dallas defense was nearly as impressive, holding the Giants to 2-of-14 on third down and forcing three Eli Manning turnovers. The quarterback threw for 193 yards and a touchdown but also lost two fumbles and threw an interception.

Brandon George of the Dallas Morning News noted that Manning's first fumble was the first time the Dallas defense forced a turnover since its victory over the Philadelphia Eagles on Oct. 30.

Despite a couple of untimely drops, Odell Beckham Jr. bailed out New York's offense with a 61-yard touchdown catch to give the home team the lead for good in the third quarter. He finished with four receptions for 94 yards.

After the two teams traded punts on the game's opening three possessions, Dallas broke through with some offensive aggression. Head coach Jason Garrett went for it on 4th-and-1 from his own 42-yard line, and Elliott converted with an impressive jump cut. Six plays later, Prescott hooked up with Terrance Williams for a 31-yard score.

Paul Schwartz of the New York Post drew some conclusions from the fourth-down decision:

The NFL shared a look at the connection:

New York had an opportunity to answer when Manning hit Beckham in stride on a deep ball, but the receiver dropped it. Two plays later, Dallas recovered a fumble after Manning lost control as he dropped back to throw to a wide-open Roger Lewis.

Janoris Jenkins rescued New York from its self-inflicted wounds with an interception, which ended Prescott's streak of 171 straight throws without a pick, per NFL Research.

The Dallas defense picked up the slack again when Benson Mayowa leveled Manning with a blindside hit and forced a fumble.

"The Giants' offensive line is being absolutely destroyed," Dan Duggan of NJ Advance Media observed.

Ralph Vacchiano of SNY pointed out a specific issue:

Neither offense took advantage of the timely plays by the defenses, and Dallas took its 7-0 lead into halftime after Dan Bailey hit the crossbar on a 55-yard field-goal attempt.

The Giants escaped disaster on their first possession of the second half, when Barry Church dropped a surefire interception deep in their territory. Even with offensive ineptitude running rampant, New York's defense kept the team in the game with another stop, giving the offense favorable field position.

New York finally converted its first third down of the game on its next drive and moved deep into Dallas territory with a fourth-down conversion. However, it settled for a Robbie Gould field goal after Beckham dropped a perfectly placed pass from Manning.

David Smoak of ESPN Central Texas reacted to the receiver's struggles:

Beckham may have been dropping passes, but Leon Hall didn't when he picked off Prescott on a deep ball to keep momentum on New York's side.

That's when the Giants star receiver broke free on a slant route and turned on the jets all the way to the end zone for a 61-yard score.

It looked as though New York would seize a two-score lead when it marched to Dallas' 22-yard line on its next drive, but Anthony Brown intercepted Manning. The rookie's first career pick came at a time when the Cowboys desperately needed a stop.

The turnover didn't hurt the Giants, however, as Dallas' drive quickly stalled after the team attempted a run on 3rd-and-11.

The conservative play-calling in the fourth quarter had Pete Prisco of CBSSports.com calling for a change:

The Dallas defense forced two more punts, giving the offense a chance to win the game with less than three minutes remaining after New York elected to run on two straight 3rd-and-11s.

"Giants trust their defense obviously, and don't trust Eli," Charean Williams of the Star-Telegram tweeted.

Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie just missed an interception, but the Giants defense came through again when Jenkins stripped Bryant on the receiver's only catch of the game. New York recovered, and Skip Bayless of Fox Sports 1 was not impressed by Bryant's play:

The Giants continued to be conservative with three runs and a punt from Dallas' 38-yard line, but they pinned Dallas at its 3-yard line without any timeouts remaining.

New York's defense finished what it started by forcing four straight incompletions to win the game. The final one came when Prescott tested Jenkins by throwing to Bryant, and the cornerback won the one-on-one battle one last time.

What's Next?

The Giants will host the Detroit Lions before finishing the season with two divisional road games against the Philadelphia Eagles and Washington. The 9-4 Lions and 7-5-1 Washington are also playoff contenders, which means head-to-head wins would go a long way in the wild-card race, but New York is still alive in the NFC East as well.

The Cowboys will face the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Lions and Eagles to finish the 2016 campaign. Even with Sunday's loss, they still have inside position for a first-round bye and control their destiny in the race for the No. 1 seed in the NFC.

Postgame Reaction

Prescott commented on the loss, per Jon Machota of the Dallas Morning News: "The defense 'did everything they needed to do. This definitely falls on our offense and I'd say me particularly.'"

Despite Prescott's struggles, David Helman of the Cowboys' official website noted the team owner was not looking to make a change to Tony Romo: "For the record, Jerry Jones said the thought of making a QB switch didn't enter his mind tonight. Was emphatic about it."

On the other side, Beckham said, per the Giants, "Defense wins championships, and this is a championship defense."

Jenkins was a major part of that defense, and he said, per the Giants, "That's why they call me jackrabbit."

Manning looked ahead to what's to come, per the Giants, "We know we still have a long journey ahead. We're still fighting for a playoff spot. We have some tough games ahead."

If the defense continues to play like it did Sunday, the Giants will make the playoffs and be a threat to Dallas and the rest of the contenders.