Packers use third-down conversions, takeaways to frustrate struggling Cowboys

• Todd Archer

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  Todd Archer

  ESPN Staff Writer

  Todd Archer is an NFL reporter at ESPN and covers the Dallas Cowboys. Archer has covered the NFL since 1997 and Dallas since 2003. He joined ESPN in 2010.
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• Rob Demovsky

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  Rob Demovsky

  ESPN Staff Writer

  Rob Demovsky is an NFL reporter at ESPN and covers the Green Bay Packers. He has covered the Packers since 1997 and joined ESPN in 2013. Demovsky is a two-time Wisconsin Sportswriter of the Year as selected by the NSSA.

Oct 18, 2026, 11:48 PM ET

GREEN BAY, Wis. -- It might be time to starting talking about the Green Bay Packers as one of the hotter teams in the NFL.

Besides the three remaining undefeated teams, no one has a longer winning streak than the Packers. They won their third straight on Sunday night, and their 23-13 win over the Dallas Cowboys improved their record to 4-2 after their 1-2 start to the season. Meanwhile, the Cowboys dropped their second straight to fall to 2-4.

There was no drama to this one, unlike the 40-40 tie between these two teams last season in Dallas. The Packers jumped out to an early lead and the Cowboys never really threatened.

Just like last week against the Bears, quarterback Jordan Love kept firing deep. And just like the Cowboys have done all season, they struggled to stop it.

The Packers' biggest problem has been their running game. Despite Dallas having the worst rushing defense in the league, the Packers managed only 58 rushing yards. But that could get better soon with the return of running back Josh Jacobs, who will come off the commissioner exempt list on Monday and could play in Week 7 against the Lions.

Here are the most important things to know for both teams:

Green Bay Packers (4-2)

Most surprising performance: Through five games, the Packers were the worst third-down team in the league, converting only 27.6% of them. All they needed was the Cowboys' shoddy defense to help change that. Dallas came in with the worst third-down defense in the league at 52.6%. On the opening drive, the Packers converted a third-and-5, two third-and-13s and a third-and-6 -- the last one a 9-yard touchdown catch by Matthew Golden. They went on to convert nine of their first 10 third downs to start the game. Their only failed conversion in the first half came on third-and-goal from the Cowboys' 2, forcing the Packers to settle for a field goal. They then failed on their first third down of the second half.

Trend to watch: Golden could've had some kind of game if not for drops. While Golden finished with six catches for 104 yards and a touchdown, he dropped what would have been a 43-yard touchdown in the second quarter when the ball slipped through his hands on a deep shot down the sideline, then dropped another pass in the third quarter. Golden came into the game tied for the league lead with four drops through the first five games, according to ESPN Research, and could've been charged with at least one more drop on a deep shot that was scored as a pass breakup instead. On the same drive in the third quarter that ended with a field goal, Christian Watson dropped a would-be 26-yard touchdown.

Trend to watch II: No one has more takeaways in the first half of games this season than the Packers. They ran their total to six thanks to interceptions by Evan Williams and Brandon Cisse. For Williams, it was his second interception of the season, while Cisse -- the Packers' top draft pick this year -- snagged his first career pick after receiver CeeDee Lamb slipped on the Lambeau Field turf. -- Rob Demovsky

Next game: at Detroit Lions (Sunday, 4:25 p.m. ET)

Dallas Cowboys (2-4)

The easy thing to do following the loss to the Packers would be to blame the Cowboys defense. It wasn't great and really not even good, especially considering the Packers dropped three potential touchdown passes.

In their first game since a defensive players-only meeting, the Cowboys were still awful on third down, allowed too many big pass plays and gave up at least 20 points for a franchise-record 13th straight game, but they did record their first interception of the season (Dee Winters) and had their first three-sack game of the season.

But the offense, which wanted to be known as The Greatest Offense There is when the season began, sputtered, to be kind. The Cowboys were blanked in the first half of a game for the first time since 2021. Dak Prescott was intercepted twice in Packers territory. George Pickens was mostly invisible and the run game continued to struggle.

Now 2-4, the Cowboys might be able to be propped up by a poor NFC East -- and they face the similarly 2-4 Philadelphia Eagles on "Monday Night Football" -- but they have never made the playoffs in the Super Bowl era with such a record after six games.

Trend to watch: Maybe it's too early to call it a trend, but the Cowboys had three sacks. It is the first time this season the Cowboys have recorded at least three sacks in a game and just the second time in their past 11 games. Maybe the mere presence of Micah Parsons on the other sideline inspired the Cowboys? Quinnen Williams had the first sack of Love, his second of the season. Elijah Garcia had the second, and former Packer Kenny Clark, part of the Parsons trade, recorded the third.

Most surprising performance: It wasn't the third-down defense for the Cowboys in the first half. The Packers converted their first seven third-down tries against what has been the worst third-down defense in the league. It was that the Cowboys intercepted a pass. Winters picked off a Love throw to Golden in the second quarter, ending a streak of 256 pass attempts dating to Week 15 of last season, when Quinnen Williams picked off Minnesota's J.J. McCarthy. The Cowboys have not had a cornerback intercept a pass since Week 8 of 2025.

Stat to know: Prescott was intercepted twice in the second half of the Cowboys' Week 5 loss to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. He opened the first half Sunday with two more interceptions. It was the first time Prescott had been intercepted twice in a first half since Week 17 of the 2022 season against the New York Giants. Of Prescott's last four interceptions, three weren't necessarily his fault. The Buccaneers' turnovers came off a teammate's hands and face mask. His second pick Sunday came after Lamb slipped on his cut. -- Todd Archer