Dak Prescott, George Pickens star in Cowboys’ win over Raiders

LAS VEGAS – Dallas Cowboys vowed to honor late teammate Marshawn Niland with how hard they played Monday night. They did it with conviction victory with a score of 33-16 against Las Vegas Raiders.

Dak Prescott threw four touchdown passes to four different pass catchers – George Pickens, CeeDee Lamb, Jake Ferguson And Ryan Flournoy – and a defense that includes newcomers Quinnen Williams And Logan Wilson and welcomed back DeMarvion didn't allow a touchdown until the fourth quarter.

By then, the offense had scored five straight possessions to build a 31-9 lead.

Niland wasn't far from the Cowboys' minds. The team's helmets had a blue decal with the number 94 on it. They wore T-shirts with his picture on them during pregame warmups. During the game, Niland's jersey hung behind the Cowboys' bench.

One victory doesn't erase the pain lose a teammatebut for one night, the Cowboys were able to smile again.

Here's what you can learn from Monday Night Football for both teams:

Dallas Cowboys (4-5-1)

What to do with QB performance: Prescott continues to rise to the top of the Cowboys' record books. He already leads the team in completions and completion percentage, and now has the most games with at least three touchdown passes in franchise history. His 37-yard pass to Pickens in the second quarter was his third Monday, giving him 41 such plays in his career. Tony Romo had 40 and Danny White was third with 20. Since Prescott entered the league in 2016, only the Chiefs Patrick Mahomes (46) has the most three-TD games. Prescott is also closing in on Romo in career passing yards. He has 234 to Romo's 247.

Trend to watch: Williams had one sack in the team's first eight games of the season. New York Jetsstill in the first week. He ended his career streak of games without a sack (seven) in the first half of his first game with the Cowboys. In fact, in the first four series, he had 1.5 sacks, four quarterback hits and a tackle for loss. He added his fifth QB hit on the final drive of the inning. It was Williams' first game since Oct. 26 because he had a bye with the Jets at the trade deadline and the Cowboys had a bye after acquiring him. The Cowboys hope that greater comfort in their scheme will lead to more sacks, hits and QB pressures.

Statistics you need to know: Lamb and Pickens did not start the game by coach's decision. But they effectively finished off the Raiders. They combined for nine catches, 156 yards and two touchdowns in the first half. It was their second-most total yards in the first half of the season (182 against Washington in Week 7). Pickens had 101 yards and a score of 37 yards. It was his third 100-yard and touchdown game this season. In his first three seasons in Pittsburgh, he played in four such games. Lamb had touchdown runs of 18 yards and 55 yards in the first half and also drew a flag for pass interference. — Todd Archer

Next game: against. Philadelphia Eagles (4:25 pm ET, November 23)

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Las Vegas Raiders (2-8)

As the Raiders lost two starters on their offensive line to ankle injuries (left tackle) Colton Miller and right back Jackson Powers-Johnson), they were at a disadvantage in the trenches, and this was visible all night.

Reserve left tackle group Stone Forsytheleft back Dylan Parhambackup center Will Putnamright back Jordan Meredith and the right tackle dj glaze barely gave up the defender Geno Smith any time to work in your pocket. The 35-year-old signal-caller has been fired by Dallas four times.

In the first half, Smith was under pressure on 41 percent of his punt returns and was 3 of 9 for 23 yards. The Raiders' offensive struggles also made it difficult for them to get their running game going. Las Vegas finished the game with 27 yards on 12 attempts.

The quality of the offensive line should be a concern heading into the matchup with the Las Vegas team. Cleveland Browns at 12 weeks. Browns edge rusher Myles Garrett was one of the best defensive players in the league, with 15 sacks, including four in Cleveland's loss to Baltimore Ravens on Sunday.

Most amazing performance: Newbie running back Ashton Ginty was barely used in the running game. Jinty had two carries for 10 yards in the first half. He had an 11-yard carry at the 13:29 mark of the second quarter and did not receive a pass the rest of the quarter. Coming into the game, the Cowboys defense ranked 27th in yards per carry (4.8).

Statistics you need to know: The Raiders used play action on 40.6% of Smith's dropbacks in the first half. Smith was 7 of 12 for 124 yards and an interception on those throws. Las Vegas entered Week 11 using play action on just 26.6% of Smith's dropbacks.

Trend to watch: The Raiders have begun Kyu Blue Kelly at cornerback after throwing two interceptions against Denver last week. But he lost in the match with Dallas. Kelly gave up six catches for 87 yards and a touchdown on six targets in 27 snaps. Kelly has struggled, and with the team sitting at 2-8, it will be interesting to see if the Raiders move to a third-round rookie. Darien Porter for the rest of the season. — Ryan McFadden

Next game: vs. Cleveland Browns (4:05 p.m. ET, Nov. 23)