Dallas ran 87 offensive plays on Christmas night. Washington ran 41. The Cowboys won 30-23 at Northwest Stadium in Landover, Maryland, moving to 7-8-1 while the Commanders closed out a 4-12 season. Dak Prescott threw for 307 yards and two touchdowns — absorbing six sacks throughout — while Jacory Croskey-Merritt kept Washington within range with 105 rushing yards and two scores, capped by a 72-yard burst in the third quarter that trimmed the deficit to seven.
Washington played without Jayden Daniels (elbow) and Marcus Mariota (quad, hand), starting 39-year-old Josh Johnson for his first game since 2021. Johnson went 15-of-23 for 198 yards without a turnover. Defensive tackle Jer’Zhan Newton registered three of Washington’s six sacks on Prescott and hit the quarterback five times. Despite that pressure, Dallas converted all six of its fourth-down attempts and held possession for 38 minutes and 44 seconds — more than 17 minutes longer than the Commanders.
Table of Contents
Game at a Glance
| Date | December 25, 2025 |
| Kickoff | 11:00 PM ET |
| Venue | Northwest Stadium, Landover, MD |
| Attendance | 64,407 |
| Broadcast | Netflix |
| Final Score | Dallas Cowboys 30, Washington Commanders 23 |
| Cowboys Record | 7-8-1 |
| Commanders Record | 4-12 |
| Referee | Brad Rogers |
Score by Quarter
| Team | 1st | 2nd | 3rd | 4th | Final |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dallas Cowboys | 7 | 17 | 3 | 3 | 30 |
| Washington Commanders | 3 | 7 | 10 | 3 | 23 |
Scoring Plays
| Qtr | Time | Description | Score |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1st | 9:42 | Jake Ferguson 6-yd pass from Dak Prescott (Aubrey kick) — 13 plays, 78 yds, 5:18 | DAL 7–0 |
| 1st | 4:44 | Jake Moody 29-yd FG — 8 plays, 65 yds, 4:58 | DAL 7–3 |
| 2nd | 12:06 | Javonte Williams 4-yd run (Aubrey kick) — 17 plays, 65 yds, 7:38 | DAL 14–3 |
| 2nd | 7:00 | KaVontae Turpin 86-yd pass from Dak Prescott (Aubrey kick) — 5 plays, 97 yds, 2:09 | DAL 21–3 |
| 2nd | 4:35 | Jacory Croskey-Merritt 10-yd run (Moody kick) — 5 plays, 60 yds, 2:25 | DAL 21–10 |
| 2nd | 0:19 | Brandon Aubrey 42-yd FG — 12 plays, 51 yds, 4:16 | DAL 24–10 |
| 3rd | 9:34 | Jacory Croskey-Merritt 72-yd run (Moody kick) — 1 play, 72 yds, 0:10 | DAL 24–17 |
| 3rd | 4:42 | Brandon Aubrey 52-yd FG — 11 plays, 53 yds, 4:52 | DAL 27–17 |
| 3rd | 0:16 | Jake Moody 23-yd FG — 10 plays, 60 yds, 4:26 | DAL 27–20 |
| 4th | 3:59 | Brandon Aubrey 51-yd FG — 14 plays, 52 yds, 7:33 | DAL 30–20 |
| 4th | 2:09 | Jake Moody 51-yd FG — 7 plays, 39 yds, 1:50 | DAL 30–23 |
Team Stats
| Stat | Dallas Cowboys | Washington Commanders |
|---|---|---|
| Final Score | 30 | 23 |
| Total Yards | 480 | 328 |
| Total Plays | 87 | 41 |
| Yards per Play | 5.5 | 8.0 |
| 1st Downs | 28 | 17 |
| — Passing | 13 | 10 |
| — Rushing | 10 | 4 |
| — Penalty | 5 | 3 |
| Passing Yards (net) | 269 | 190 |
| Comp / Att | 19/37 | 15/23 |
| Yards per Pass Attempt | 6.3 | 7.6 |
| Interceptions | 0 | 0 |
| Sacks – Yards Lost | 6–38 | 2–8 |
| Rushing Yards | 211 | 138 |
| Rushing Attempts | 44 | 16 |
| Yards per Rush | 4.8 | 8.6 |
| 3rd Down Efficiency | 8/20 (40%) | 1/6 (17%) |
| 4th Down Efficiency | 6/6 (100%) | 0/0 |
| Red Zone (Made–Att) | 2/2 | 1/3 |
| Fumbles Lost | 0 | 0 |
| Turnovers | 0 | 0 |
| Penalties | 11 for 89 yds | 10 for 71 yds |
| Time of Possession | 38:44 | 21:16 |
Passing Stats
Dallas Cowboys
| Player | C/ATT | YDS | AVG | TD | INT | SACKS | QBR | RTG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dak Prescott | 19/37 | 307 | 8.3 | 2 | 0 | 6–38 | 59.4 | 97.5 |
Washington Commanders
| Player | C/ATT | YDS | AVG | TD | INT | SACKS | QBR | RTG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Josh Johnson | 15/23 | 198 | 8.6 | 0 | 0 | 1–8 | 21.3 | 92.3 |
| Treylon Burks | 0/0 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 | 1–0 | 0.7 | 0.0 |
Rushing Stats
Dallas Cowboys
| Player | CAR | YDS | AVG | TD | LG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Malik Davis | 20 | 103 | 5.2 | 0 | 21 |
| Javonte Williams | 13 | 54 | 4.2 | 1 | 9 |
| Hunter Luepke | 7 | 30 | 4.3 | 0 | 8 |
| Dak Prescott | 4 | 24 | 6.0 | 0 | 12 |
| Team | 44 | 211 | 4.8 | 1 | 21 |
Washington Commanders
| Player | CAR | YDS | AVG | TD | LG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jacory Croskey-Merritt | 11 | 105 | 9.5 | 2 | 72 |
| Deebo Samuel | 2 | 25 | 12.5 | 0 | 29 |
| Josh Johnson | 2 | 10 | 5.0 | 0 | 5 |
| Jeremy McNichols | 1 | –2 | –2.0 | 0 | –2 |
| Team | 16 | 138 | 8.6 | 2 | 72 |
Receiving Stats
Dallas Cowboys
| Player | REC | TGT | YDS | AVG | TD | LG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| KaVontae Turpin | 1 | 1 | 86 | 86.0 | 1 | 86 |
| George Pickens | 4 | 5 | 78 | 19.5 | 0 | 21 |
| CeeDee Lamb | 5 | 10 | 46 | 9.2 | 0 | 24 |
| Brevyn Spann-Ford | 1 | 2 | 31 | 31.0 | 0 | 31 |
| Jalen Tolbert | 4 | 8 | 31 | 7.8 | 0 | 14 |
| Luke Schoonmaker | 2 | 2 | 15 | 7.5 | 0 | 10 |
| Hunter Luepke | 1 | 1 | 14 | 14.0 | 0 | 14 |
| Jake Ferguson | 1 | 2 | 6 | 6.0 | 1 | 6 |
| Malik Davis | 0 | 2 | 0 | — | 0 | — |
| Javonte Williams | 0 | 2 | 0 | — | 0 | — |
| Jonathan Mingo | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | 0 | — |
| Team | 19 | 36 | 307 | 16.2 | 2 | 86 |
Washington Commanders
| Player | REC | TGT | YDS | AVG | TD | LG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Deebo Samuel | 2 | 4 | 68 | 34.0 | 0 | 41 |
| Terry McLaurin | 5 | 7 | 63 | 12.6 | 0 | 16 |
| Ben Sinnott | 3 | 4 | 29 | 9.7 | 0 | 12 |
| Chris Moore | 1 | 1 | 15 | 15.0 | 0 | 15 |
| Jeremy McNichols | 3 | 3 | 12 | 4.0 | 0 | 7 |
| Treylon Burks | 1 | 2 | 11 | 11.0 | 0 | 11 |
| Team | 15 | 21 | 198 | 13.2 | 0 | 41 |
Defensive Stats
Dallas Cowboys
| Player | TOT | SOLO | SACKS | TFL | PD | QB HTS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Shemar James | 6 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Shavon Revel Jr. | 6 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| Reddy Steward | 5 | 2 | 0.5 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| Jadeveon Clowney | 4 | 3 | 1.5 | 3 | 0 | 3 |
| Donovan Wilson | 4 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Quinnen Williams | 3 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Malik Hooker | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| James Houston | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Markquese Bell | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Kenneth Murray Jr. | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| C.J. Goodwin | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Solomon Thomas | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Osa Odighizuwa | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Trevon Diggs | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Sam Williams | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| Kenny Clark | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Brevyn Spann-Ford | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Corey Ballentine | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Marist Liufau | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Alijah Clark | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Donovan Ezeiruaku | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Team | 52 | 23 | 2 | 6 | 3 | 6 |
Washington Commanders
| Player | TOT | SOLO | SACKS | TFL | PD | QB HTS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bobby Wagner | 10 | 5 | 0.5 | 0 | 1 | 2 |
| Will Harris | 10 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Jer’Zhan Newton | 9 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 5 |
| Javon Kinlaw | 7 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Frankie Luvu | 7 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| Jeremy Reaves | 6 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| Mike Sainristil | 6 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| Noah Igbinoghene | 6 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| Ricky Barber | 5 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| Jalyn Holmes | 5 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Jordan Magee | 5 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| Jacob Martin | 4 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Shy Tuttle | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Von Miller | 2 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Quan Martin | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Preston Smith | 2 | 0 | 0.5 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Chris Moore | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Tyler Owens | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Jonathan Jones | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| Sheldon Day | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Percy Butler | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Drake Jackson | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Team | 95 | 45 | 6 | 4 | 8 | 11 |
Kicking
Field Goals and Extra Points
| Player | Team | FG (Made–Att) | Made (Distance) | Missed | Long | XP | PTS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Brandon Aubrey | DAL | 3/4 | 42, 52, 51 yds | 58 yds (wide right) | 52 | 3/3 | 12 |
| Jake Moody | WSH | 3/3 | 29, 23, 51 yds | — | 51 | 2/2 | 11 |
Punting
| Player | Team | NO | YDS | AVG | TB | In 20 | LG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bryan Anger | DAL | 1 | 53 | 53.0 | 0 | 0 | 53 |
| Tress Way | WSH | 3 | 130 | 43.3 | 0 | 3 | 53 |
Special Teams
Kick Returns
| Player | Team | NO | YDS | AVG | LG | TD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| KaVontae Turpin | DAL | 5 | 115 | 23.0 | 26 | 0 |
| Chase Edmonds | WSH | 4 | 90 | 22.5 | 27 | 0 |
| Chris Moore | WSH | 1 | 33 | 33.0 | 33 | 0 |
| WSH Team | 5 | 123 | 24.6 | 33 | 0 |
Punt Returns
| Player | Team | NO | YDS | AVG | LG | TD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| River Cracraft | WSH | 1 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 |
Interceptions
Neither team recorded an interception. Dallas did not lose a fumble. Washington did not lose a fumble.
Prescott’s two touchdown passes on December 25 gave him 30 for the 2025 season, matching Tony Romo’s franchise record of four seasons with at least 30 touchdown throws in Cowboys history. Newton finished as the most disruptive defender on the field — three sacks, two tackles for loss, and five quarterback hits across nine total stops. Washington cut the lead to a touchdown three times and never closed it. The Cowboys’ final possession consumed the last two minutes of the fourth quarter, ending, as Brian Schottenheimer noted afterward, with another converted fourth down.
