CeeDee Lamb was motivated to "step up" for his game-winning catch in the Dallas Cowboys' victory over the New York Giants having been annoyed by a second-quarter drop.
The Cowboys' star receiver made a couple of first-half errors, one of which he looked certain to claim in his stride for a touchdown from an excellent deep ball from Cooper Rush, only for it to slip through his grasp.
But Lamb more than atoned by making a sensational one-handed grab for a touchdown with 8:30 to play.
It was the icing on the cake of an 89-yard drive, in which Rush – standing in again for the injured Dak Prescott – found Lamb on four occasions.
"It [the dropped pass] was a situation I had to deal with on my own. Obviously I’m the one that dropped the ball for the guys," Lamb said after the game.
"So knowing that I had to make this up in the back end of the game, I just wanted to step up.
"I was willing to do anything to make up for a touchdown potentially that I left in the first quarter. It was tough. It was a tough one, but I'm happy we came out victorious."
Lamb finished the game with eight catches for 87 yards but conceded there were frustrations from his earlier mistakes.
"It was very frustrating. Honestly, just because I practice all week, all offseason just on focusing in on the ball, and I let that one slip away," he added.
"It was tough. Partially because, like I said, all the hard work I put in just for one play away, I let it slip."
Ezekiel Elliot's one-yard touchdown had earlier levelled the game, and Lamb – now the undisputed number one receiver in the team after Amari Cooper was traded to the Cleveland Browns – felt like his winning contribution was a breakthrough moment.
"Most definitely [it was a breakthrough moment]," Lamb said.
"I appreciate Kel [offensive coordinator Kellen Moore] for trusting in me, all the guys believing in my ability.
"You know, it was a tough third quarter. I kept thinking about it. All the guys kept preaching to me, 'Let it go. Let it go. We still got more game left.'
"And fourth quarter when I kept hearing my number being called I knew it was my opportunity again, so I had to step up.
"It's gonna have its ebbs and flows. It's all about being consistent. Staying positive. Everything's not going to go my way. And when it does, it's going to go big."
Stand-in quarterback Rush played in back-to-back NFL games for the first time in his career with Prescott still sidelined by a hand injury sustained in week one against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
For Rush, the focus is on the team and not any potential battle for a starting berth.
"I want to keep winning, as long as I'm in there let's keep winning," he said post-game.
"Trust each other both sides of the ball [and] we'll be alright."
Cowboys quarterback Prescott reportedly expected to miss multiple weeks with hamstring injury
The path to the play-offs is now even tougher for the Dallas Cowboys.
Quarterback Dak Prescott will reportedly miss several weeks with a hamstring injury sustained in Sunday's 27-21 loss to the Atlanta Falcons.
The severity of the injury was determined following an MRI, and reported Monday from multiple media outlets.
Prescott is planning to get a second opinion, and the Cowboys have not decided if they will place him on injured reserve, which would keep him on the sideline a minimum of four games.
Prescott, who signed a record-breaking, $240million contract hours before this season's opener, suffered the injury late in the third quarter.
He was replaced by Cooper Rush, and the seven-year backup will get the start this Sunday against the Philadelphia Eagles.
Rush completed 13-of-25 passes for 115 yards and a touchdown against the Falcons, but couldn't rally Dallas all the way back.
The Cowboys ended up losing their third straight game to drop to 3-5, which matches the total number of losses the team had each of the last three seasons.
They now sit in third place in the NFC East, 3 1/2 games behind the division-leading Washington Commanders.
Rush has found some success as a fill-in starter for the Cowboys, though, the 30-year-old hasn't been forced into the starting role since 2022.
In six career starts for Dallas, he's gone 5-1 with 1,281 passing yards with seven touchdowns, four interceptions and an 83.6 rating.
There is some good news for the Cowboys, though, as star defensive end Micah Parsons is likely to return this Sunday after missing the last four games with a high-ankle sprain.
Cowboys quarterback Prescott expected to miss multiple weeks with hamstring injury
The path to the play-offs is now even tougher for the Dallas Cowboys.
Quarterback Dak Prescott will reportedly miss several weeks with a hamstring injury sustained in Sunday's 27-21 loss to the Atlanta Falcons.
The severity of the injury was determined Monday following an MRI.
Prescott is planning to get a second opinion, and the Cowboys have not decided if they will place him on injured reserve, which would keep him on the sideline a minimum of four games.
Prescott, who signed a record-breaking, $240million contract hours before this season's opener, suffered the injury late in the third quarter.
He was replaced by Cooper Rush, and the seven-year backup will get the start this Sunday against the Philadelphia Eagles.
Rush completed 13-of-25 passes for 115 yards and a touchdown against the Falcons, but couldn't rally Dallas all the way back.
The Cowboys ended up losing their third straight game to drop to 3-5, which matches the total number of losses the team had each of the last three seasons.
They now sit in third place in the NFC East, 3 1/2 games behind the division-leading Washington Commanders.
Rush has found some success as a fill-in starter for the Cowboys, though, the 30-year-old hasn't been forced into the starting role since 2022.
In six career starts for Dallas, he's gone 5-1 with 1,281 passing yards with seven touchdowns, four interceptions and an 83.6 rating.
There is some good news for the Cowboys, though, as star defensive end Micah Parsons is likely to return this Sunday after missing the last four games with a high-ankle sprain.
Stumbling Saints fire head coach Allen
The New Orleans Saints fired head coach Dennis Allen on Monday, one day after the team’s losing streak reached seven games with a 23-22 defeat to the lowly Carolina Panthers.
New Orleans got off to an unexpected strong start to the 2024 season by outscoring its first two opponents 91-29 in a pair of victories.
The Saints lost their next two games by just a combined five points, but then it really started to unravel for the team.
New Orleans’ next four defeats all came by 13 points or more, and on Sunday, the Panthers pulled out a 23-22 win over the Saints after Carolina entered the meeting with a 1-7 record.
Allen was promoted from New Orleans' defensive coordinator to head coach after the 2021 season, and the Saints posted an 18-25 record under him with no play-off appearances.
The Saints (2-7) are expected to name special teams coordinator Darren Rizzi as interim head coach ahead of their Week 10 visit from the NFC South-leading Atlanta Falcons (6-3).
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