Micah Parsons' return overshadowed by wild 40-40 tie in Dallas

DALLAS - In a spectacular offensive explosion that overshadowed the highly anticipated return of former star Micah Parsons, the Dallas Cowboys and Green Bay Packers could not be separated, fighting through a frantic finish and overtime to end Sunday Night Football in a rare 40-40 tie at AT&T Stadium.

Momentum swinging first half

In Micah Parsons’ highly anticipated return to AT&T Stadium, the former Cowboys linebacker lined up against the Dallas offensive line for the first time in an opposing jersey, but the early story for the game was the momentum swings and big plays from both sides.

Green Bay struck first, with Love connecting twice with wide receiver Romeo Doubs for touchdowns. However, the Cowboys answered back with key special teams’ plays and a resurgent offense in the second quarter.

The back-and-forth first half featured a rushing score by Dak Prescott, and a game-altering special teams play from Markquese Bell. As Bell flipped the script midway through the half when he scooped up a blocked extra point and returned it for two points, keeping Green Bay’s early edge to 6 instead of 7.

Missing on defense

The Cowboys' defense held its own in Parsons' return to Jerry's World but took a hit when veteran safety Malik Hooker exited with a toe injury. His status for the remainder of the game is questionable.

Dig deeper:

Finding a rhythm

Dallas came out of halftime aiming to build on its momentum, and for stretches they did. The Cowboys' defense held tight before giving up a goal-line score as the Packers punched in a touchdown to go ahead 20–16.

Dak Prescott and the offense answered back, driving downfield and hitting Jake Ferguson for the go‑ahead score just before the end of the quarter. 

Dallas entered the fourth quarter up 23–20. 

In the fourth quarter, the Cowboys' defense could not stop the Packers' ground game, led by running back Josh Jacobs. Green Bay drove down the field on an 8-play, 70-yard drive to score a touchdown, despite only completing one pass.

Dallas' offense remained poised to take control of the game, adding to yet another lead change as Javonte Williams punched in a score to take a 30-27 lead with 5 minutes left in the game.

High-Powered Offenses

The pressure was back on for the Parsons-less Cowboys' defense.

Jordan Love orchestrated a 10-play, 80-yard drive in the closing minutes, capping it with a 15-yard touchdown pass to Romeo Doubs to give the Green Bay Packers a 27–23 lead over the Dallas Cowboys with 1:45 remaining.

The drive was aided by a key 15-yard unnecessary roughness penalty against Cowboys linebacker Marist Liufau and highlighted by a pair of Love completions.

The Cowboys burned both remaining timeouts during the possession, but Dak Prescott responded to the pressure with a clutch, 4-play, 54-yard drive, hitting George Pickens for a 28-yard touchdown with 43 seconds left to lift the Dallas Cowboys to a 30–27 lead over the Green Bay Packers.

Packers take it to OT

After Dallas had regained the lead with 43 seconds remaining, Jordan Love guided the Packers from their own 26-yard line into Dallas territory in just five plays. 

A critical 25-yard catch-and-run by running back Josh Jacobs and a 9-yard sideline grab by the Packers pushed Green Bay into long-range field goal position before McManus calmly converted the kick as the clock hit zero.

Keeping the Packers alive after Dallas appeared to seal the game moments earlier with George Pickens’ touchdown.

Overtime

Dallas opened overtime with a methodical 14-play, 73-yard drive. Dak Prescott connected with George Pickens for 22 yards and later hit Jalen Tolbert on a 34-yard sideline throw to set up 1st-and-goal at the 5.

But a Micah Parsons sack on Prescott and a missed throw on 4th-and-goal from the 4 stalled the drive, forcing the Cowboys to settle for a short field goal. 

Aubrey’s kick, his second of the night, capped a steady possession that chewed nearly six minutes off the clock, but the Cowboys’ defense would need just one stop to seal the win and spoil Parsons' return to Dallas in Green Bay colors.

Thriller results in tie

Trailing by three after the Cowboys' field goal to open overtime, Jordan Love and the Packers' offense mounted a 14-play, 61-yard march that chewed up over four minutes and nearly ended in disaster, but kept the game alive.

Love converted a critical 4th-and-6 with a 14-yard pass to his rookie tight end and leaned on his running back Emmanuel Wilson, who ripped off back-to-back chunk gains to move Green Bay inside the Dallas 30.

The Cowboys' defense stiffened inside the red zone, forcing a pair of completions for negative yards and one final incompletion on 3rd-and-14 with just seconds remaining. 

The Packers kicker calmly nailed the game-tying kick as the final whistle blew, sending both teams into an unsatisfying, hard-fought 40-40 tie.

Dallas CowboysNFLSports