The Cowboys lost 34-31 to the Ravens on Sunday, and the moment that cost them was not a missed tackle or a dropped pass. It was a kickoff decision that made no sense.
With seven seconds left in regulation, Brandon Aubrey tied the game with a 23-yard field goal. The Cowboys then had to choose what to do with the ensuing kickoff. They could kick it through the end zone for a touchback, or they could send Aubrey’s kick into the landing zone to force a return. The touchback option means no time runs off the clock, but the return option means time comes off anyway, and with just seven seconds left, burning time is exactly what you want.
The Cowboys chose the touchback. They gave the Ravens the ball at the 35-yard line with seven seconds remaining.
The Touchback Rule That Backfired
The NFL changed the kickoff rule in 2024, moving the touchback spot to the 35-yard line. That change made the Ravens’ task far easier than it would have been in previous seasons. Before the rule change, a team getting the ball at the 25 needed to move at least 35 yards to get within field-goal range. Now, the Ravens needed only 20 to 25 yards.
That is a small margin for error. With seven seconds on the clock, the Ravens had one play to get close enough for Tyler Loop to try a long kick.
Lamar Jackson had six seconds to run a play, and he used them perfectly. He connected with Zay Flowers for a 27-yard catch that put the Ravens in position. Loop then drilled a 56-yard field goal to win the game.
What the Ravens Said Afterwards
Ravens coach Jesse Minter made it clear he was happy with how things played out. He framed the touchback as a gift from Dallas.
“The touchback rule is huge,” Minter said. “It’s to the 35-yard line. We felt like, one play that could take six seconds, kind of know the time that that route takes and the yards that we needed. Great execution by our guys.”
Minter’s quote described the timing as known, not a statement about what the Ravens themselves knew exactly.
Why Dallas Chose Wrong
The Cowboys’ reasoning for the touchback was understandable on paper. Aubrey had knocked two of his first six kickoffs out of bounds during the game, which would have put the Ravens at the 40-yard line instead of the 35. That is a five-yard difference, and in a close game, five yards can matter.
But the pattern of Aubrey’s kicks told a different story. Of those six kickoffs, the Ravens got the ball inside their own 23-yard line on all four that did not go out of bounds. One kickoff that went out of bounds ended up rolling to the one. If it had gone just one yard farther, the touchback would have come out to the 20-yard line.
| Kickoff | Result |
|---|---|
| BAL 23-yard line | Inside the 23 |
| BAL 21-yard line | Inside the 23 |
| BAL 40 (OUT OF BOUNDS) | Out of bounds |
| BAL 16 | Inside the 23 |
| BAL 20 (Landing zone touchback) | Landing zone |
| BAL 40 (OUT OF BOUNDS) | Out of bounds |
The table shows a kicker who was mostly doing a decent job. Aubrey had actually been placing his kicks fairly well, except for the two that went out of bounds.
The Final Seconds That Cost Dallas
The Cowboys’ problems did not stop at the kickoff. In the final 30 seconds of regulation, they called a timeout with 14 seconds left after a short second-down scramble by Prescott. Dallas threw an incomplete pass on third down, leaving 10 seconds on the clock. Aubrey’s kick then took three more seconds off the clock.
If the Cowboys had waited to call that timeout until the clock reached 10 or 11 seconds, the Ravens likely would not have had enough time to score. Instead, the timeout came early, and Baltimore got the ball with plenty of room to work.
The game also recalled a famous moment from the past. The Bills scored a touchdown with 13 seconds left in the 2022 NFL Playoffs against the Chiefs, and Sean McDermott called for a touchback on the ensuing kickoff. Patrick Mahomes used all 13 seconds to set up a tying field goal, and Kansas City won in overtime.
That game is remembered for the “13 seconds” that nearly cost the Bills. The Ravens on Sunday did not need nearly that long. Seven seconds was enough.
The Decision That Cost Dallas
The Cowboys made the wrong decision at a crucial moment. They needed to burn as much time as possible, and they did the opposite. They gave the Ravens a manageable distance and a full seven seconds to work with.
The Ravens took advantage of it. Jackson found Flowers, Loop hit the field goal, and the game was over.
The flight back to Dallas will be a long one for the Cowboys. They will have plenty of time to think about what they did wrong, and plenty of time to wonder why they did it.
Source material: “Cowboys' botched crucial kickoff decision opens door for Ravens' last-second win,” CBS Sports.
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