Micah Parsons was the biggest name on the AT&T Stadium turf on Sunday night, returning to Arlington, Texas, as a member of the Green Bay Packers. Ironically, though, defense was nowhere to be found for almost all of Week 4's prime-time clash between the Packers and Dallas Cowboys, as both sides combined for 925 yards in a back-and-forth of big throws from Jordan Love and Dak Prescott. The production was so even, in fact, that the scoreboard displayed just that, with the NFC foes ending the evening in a 40-40 tie -- the first such stalemate in NFL history.
Love and the Packers were within striking distance of a potential game-winning touchdown in the final minute, then nearly let the overtime clock expire on their final pass attempt, only to have Brandon McManus convert a 34-yard field goal to secure the tie. Prior to that, Prescott had driven the Cowboys 76 yards for a Brandon Aubrey field goal to go ahead 40-37. In the end, the two teams had nine consecutive scoring drives between them.
Dallas' wild performance came just two weeks after the club escaped a shootout with the rival New York Giants with a 40-37 victory at home. Green Bay, meanwhile, got three scores from Romeo Doubs, who functioned as Love's top target with fellow wide receiver Jayden Reed absent due to injury, and surprisingly little production from Parsons, who was often double-teamed and only emerged late with an early-overtime takedown of Prescott. The Cowboys had their own fill-in star at receiver in George Pickens, who led both sides with 134 yards on eight catches.
Here are some big-picture takeaways from Sunday's high-scoring affair:
Play of the game: The entire closing sequence
How are we to pick just one highlight from this circus of a showdown? Instead, relive every major splash play that occurred within the final two minutes of regulation and/or the 10 minutes of overtime, including George Pickens' score and Jalen Tolbert's wild sideline grab that set up Dallas' final points of the night:
Prescott and Pickens are a top tandem
No CeeDee Lamb? No problem for Dallas, which instead made it a priority to get Pickens involved early and often. The former Pittsburgh Steelers standout showed up in a big way, delivering an acrobatic jump-ball catch between two Packers defenders and also reaching the end zone in the closing minutes of regulation. Best of all, his notoriously passionate personality didn't cross a line amid the offensive fireworks; he was an all-business masterclass out wide against Green Bay's shoddy secondary (more on that below), repeatedly drawing big smiles from Lamb while the latter watched from the sidelines. As long as one of Dallas' top two pass catchers is upright, the Cowboys seem plenty capable of lighting up the scoreboard. Prescott helped with a very sharp night.
Green Bay's offensive depth is nearly unmatched
If the Cowboys deserve high marks for how they simultaneously handled Lamb's absence and mostly neutered Parsons' impact off the edge, then Green Bay deserves credit for utilizing its entire toolchest around Love. Josh Jacobs started slow but finished fairly strong with 86 yards and two scores on the ground, but Matt LaFleur also got Emanuel Wilson involved to the tune of 44 yards, some of which came on critical overtime touches. And how about the pass catchers? Doubs really stepped up, especially on tight-window catches, to lead the team with six grabs, while five others had at least three receptions, including sure-handed rookie Matthew Golden. Rivals like the Detroit Lions may get headlines for their all-world talent, but the Packers boast their own plethora of weapons.
Both sides are scarily bad on defense
A 40-40 tie makes for a fun watch and plenty of gaudy offensive stats, but it tells a completely different story on defense: Neither club appeared to have any real capability of slowing the pass throughout Sunday's shootout, even when the situation called for absolute must-have stops. Dallas tried shuffling Trevon Diggs on and off the field to open the festivities, but it didn't matter much. Newcomer Nate Hobbs was also victimized on the other end for Green Bay. The Cowboys have been this rough all year in trying and failing to play pass coverage, but this was a new low for the Packers, too. In fact, Green Bay's own deficiencies were so obvious they almost overshadowed a near-disastrous OT finish, in which Love and LaFleur almost allowed the clock to expire while trailing.
