Jerry Jones: I Didn't Expect To Be Behind The Eight Ball The Way We Are

The Cowboys began the day knowing they needed to win out and have the Eagles go 2-2 in the final four games to win the NFC East. That scenario would have left the Cowboys 10-6-1 and the Eagles 10-7.

But it was not to be.

Hours after the Eagles shut out the Raiders 31-0, the Cowboys stunk it up at home. They lost to the Vikings 34-26.

"We certainly didn't think we'd be here in this kind of shape with three games to go and be behind the eight ball the way we are," Cowboys owner Jerry Jones said afterward. "It's very disappointing. I'm really, obviously, very disappointed for our fans. I'm disappointed for these players. I didn't expect that. I thought we could come out here and on both sides of the ball make a better accounting of ourselves. Minnesota did the best job out there today on both sides of the ball."

The Cowboys aren't eliminated from the playoffs, but their odds are longer than long to make the postseason. Realistically, they are done, something quarterback Dak Prescott acknowledged postgame.

"It's shitty," Prescott said at one point, calling Sunday one of the toughest losses of his career.

The Cowboys know where they stand after a second consecutive loss: They will miss the playoffs for a second consecutive season.

"I don't know how to describe a miracle," Jones said. "I know it would take a very tight circumstance to get us in. We expected that. We thought we'd have to win out to have a little room, but not a lot. Now, of course, I know how to count."