Robinson and first-place Falcons look to keep running against Prescott and turnover-plagued Cowboys

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 Kirk Cousins #18 of the Atlanta Falcons hands the ball off to Bijan Robinson #7 during an NFL football game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Raymond James Stadium on October 27, 2024 in Tampa, Florida. (Photo by Kevin Sabitus/Getty Images)

ATLANTA - Bijan Robinson and the NFC South-leading Atlanta Falcons are moving up while Dak Prescott and the Dallas Cowboys have fallen below .500.

Robinson is a big reason the Falcons (5-3) have won four of their last five games as they enter Sunday’s game against Dallas (3-4).

Atlanta took sole possession of first place in the division with last week’s 31-26 win at Tampa Bay. The Cowboys are third in the NFC East after Prescott threw two interceptions in a 30-24 loss to the San Francisco 49ers. It was the Cowboys’ second straight loss.

Robinson has topped 100 scrimmage yards in three straight games and scored four touchdowns in that span. The Cowboys rank 31st against the run after giving up 223 yards on the ground in the loss to the 49ers.

Kirk Cousins threw four touchdown passes against Tampa Bay, including one to Robinson.

"I think we all on offense, if we execute right, we all can play very well," Robinson said. "And I think for me, I’m starting to just grow my confidence from week to week."

The Cowboys rank last in the league in rushing.

Turnover woes

Prescott has two interceptions in each of the past three games, a first in his nine NFL seasons. The Cowboys have forced just two turnovers in the past five games, sinking to a tie for 26th in the NFL with five takeaways.

Dallas is minus-8 in turnover margin after finishing at least plus-10 in each of the past three seasons. The Cowboys made the playoffs at 12-5 each time.

"Personally, I’m very frustrated," coach Mike McCarthy said. "It’s a focal point, but we can’t change yesterday. We know how to do it. We’ve done it. They have to quit being words and be practices and exercise drills that equate to Sundays. That’s our focus."

"I think that would be kind of overrated, if you will," Cousins said Wednesday. "I think his scheme is so sound, and I don’t think there’s much you can extract there. You know, he’s been around the league for so long and is so respected and has had a scheme that gives people problems for so long that I don’t think there’s too much that having worked together would make much difference."

Zimmer noted that Cousins "used to go against us every day. Takes good care of the football. Very smart."

Falcons pride

Veteran defensive tackle Grady Jarrett says he is enjoying Atlanta’s reaction to the team’s surge to first place under first-year coach Raheem Morris.

"I think people are just proud," Jarrett said. "... You see people wearing Atlanta Falcons stuff. ... It’s something we cherish, but we’ve got to continue to perform."

The Zimmer connection

Dallas defensive coordinator Mike Zimmer was Minnesota’s head coach from 2014-21, and Cousins played for the Vikings from 2018-23. Cousins isn’t counting on his knowledge of Zimmer and his scheme being a factor on Sunday.

Emotional Diggs

Dallas cornerback Trevon Diggs apologized for a confrontation with a reporter over a social media post after the loss to San Francisco. It was a rare public display of emotion for the normally soft-spoken Diggs, who thought the post unfairly questioned his effort on a long pass play that didn’t directly involve him.

Diggs, who approached the reporter in full uniform outside the locker room before it was opened to reporters, has always kept his media interactions to a minimum. That included in 2021, when he had the first double-digit interception season in the NFL in 40 years with 11 and was named an All-Pro.

When Diggs did talk, the sessions didn’t last long. That changed this week, when the apology was just a small part of a 10-minute Q&A that covered plenty of topics. Among them was the question of whether Diggs was trying to show fans he cared.

"I definitely care," Diggs said. "I definitely have a lot of emotions that I don’t show. So, I let that moment get the best of me. Like I said, you got to keep the main thing the main thing. At the end of the day, we lost. We all got to play better. We all got to find a way to win."

Prove it outside the South

The Falcons haven’t demonstrated they can look like a playoff team when playing outside the weak NFC South. Atlanta is 4-0 against division opponents after completing a sweep of the season series against the Buccaneers.

The Falcons looked far less imposing in a 34-14 home loss to Seattle on Oct. 20 and are 1-3 outside the division.