Tom Brady failed in his first game as a Tampa Bay Buc: all NFL scores:
By Harvey Hoffman
If there was a consolation to the awful loss the Eagles suffered yesterday to the WFT, it was that the dreaded Dallas Cowboys also went down last night.
Malcolm Brown rushed for a career-high 79 yards and two touchdowns, Jared Goff passed for 275 yards and the Los Angeles beat the Cowboys 20-17.
“It was a special day,” said Goff, who went 20 for 31. “It’s not the way you’d imagine it, but I think we’ll look back on this a long time from now and realize the importance of it, but it was really cool to go out there and get a win and play really well.”
Robert Woods had six catches for 105 yards as the Rams improved to 4-0 in season openers under coach Sean McVay and spoiled the debut of Mike McCarthy, Dallas’ first new head coach in a decade.
“To be at this stadium for the first time and break it in with a win, that’s what you work for, that’s what you practice for,” said Rams defensive tackle Aaron Donald, who had the first sack in stadium history.
Ezekiel Elliott rushed for 96 yards and a touchdown and caught another scoring pass, but the Cowboys began a season of high expectations by losing three starters to injury in the first half and then failing to mount a late comeback in a scoreless fourth quarter for both teams.
“We needed to find a way to win it, and we didn’t get it done,” McCarthy said. “I thought we did a real good job getting ready. We are playing a team that has experience. You can see how efficient they are on offense in their fourth year. Our defense played a lot of snaps.”
Dak Prescott passed for 266 yards and a touchdown, but Dallas managed three points on its six drives in the second half.
Dallas managed only 15 net yards on its final 10 plays of the game. Michael Gallup made a long catch that would have put the Cowboys in field goal range with 21 seconds left, but was called for offensive pass interference for contact with Jalen Ramsey.
“It was a huge chance,” Prescott said. “We had a big two-minute drive at the end of the half. We were still able to move and get some progress, but we didn’t get it done. But it is Game 1.”
The opening of Rams owner Stan Kroenke’s $5 billion stadium project was a historic night for the Los Angeles area, albeit one that should have been much more festive. The coronavirus pandemic prevented Rams fans from christening the palatial stadium, which is scheduled to host next season’s Super Bowl, the 2023 college football championship game and the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics.
“You realize how much you appreciate the crowd,” McVay said. “I thought I guys did a great job bringing their own energy. I was really pleased with the energy we had from our sideline, but when that’s the only thing you’re hearing, it is eerie. What a cool thing to be able to get a win for Mr. Kroenke tonight, (but) I think I’ll remember the silence.”
