Yahoo Sports Staff Updated Sun, November 8, 2026 at 7:08 PM UTC About Our Ads Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement In this story Coming off a tough Week 8 loss to the Arizona Cardinals , the Dallas Cowboys might get exactly what they need by facing an Indianapolis Colts team that appears to be in teardown mode .
After trading DeForest Buckner and listening to offers for running back Jonathan Taylor, the Colts are sticking with Daniel Jones at quarterback , for now. In eight starts. Jones has completed 60% of his passes for 1.542 yards, 5 touchdowns and 9 interceptions. Jones may find some success against a Dallas pass defense that currently ranks as the sixth-worst in the NFL in total yards allowed.
But Indianapolis might benefit from handing off to Taylor against the NFL's worst rush defense, unless the preference is to save him for a possible deal. Cowboys running back Javonte Williams may also be poised for a big game versus a Colts rush defense ranked fourth-worst in the league.
At the very least, these two defenses could give up a lot of points and make for an entertaining shootout. Despite the Cowboys' record, Dak Prescott is one of the NFL's top passers so far this season.
Follow along with Yahoo Sports for live updates, highlights and more as the Cowboys and Colts face off in Week 9.
The offenses have stalled in the Cowboys-Colts game.
Indianapolis' last two drives have been a 3-and-out and they sandwich Dallas' most recent drive which was also a 3-and-out.
Dallas leads 10-7 with 9:20 left in the first half.
After Ferguson's TD catch, Josh Downs had a seven-yard catch. Indianapolis then had an incompletion, a five-yard penalty and another incompletion before having to punt the ball back to Dallas.
Daniel Jones is 2-of-5 passing for eight yards with 11:23 remaining in the second quarter.
It looked like Jake Ferguson was battling the sun at AT&T Stadium, but that didn't stop him from coming down with the 10-yard score.
Dallas now leads 10-7 early in the second quarter.
Colts running back Seth McGowan has scored his first career TD.
Jonathan Taylor had lost his shoe the play before and he had to come off the field for the Colts' offense.
The Colts take a 7-3 lead with 6:13 left in the first quarter.
Dallas' second drive of the game ended before it could get going.
Dak Prescott was hit from behind and the ball popped out. Indianapolis recovered and took over in the red zone.
This is the final game for Indianapolis ahead of Tuesday's trade deadline.
The Colts are reportedly hoping to keep Jonathan Taylor, and he was featured on the team's first three plays.
The running back had a gain of three and another for four, but a checkdown on third down for one yard ended well short of the line to gain.
Dallas ran seven plays on its opening drive and picked up 34 yards.
The drive was highlighted by a 23 reception by Jonathan Mingo. The Cowboys' offense stalled after that though, but were able to get into field goal range.
Brandon Aubrey knocked through a 45-yard field goal to give the Cowboys the early 3-0 lead.
The Indianapolis Colts began a fire sale ahead of the NFL trade deadline, but it's looking less likely that they'll move on from star running back Jonathan Taylor unless they receive an offer that "blows them away," NFL insider Jordan Schultz reported Sunday.
Schultz also reported that the New York Giants offered a second-round pick (and then some) for Taylor, but it wasn't enough to convince Indianapolis to part ways.
The Dallas Cowboys have officially ruled out wide receiver George Pickens (shoulder, hamstring) and cornerback Joey Porter Jr. (ankle), among others, for Sunday afternoon's game against the Colts.
Pickens participated in limited practice each day this week and entered the weekend listed as questionable.
Dallas had already ruled out WR KaVontae Turpin for the game against Indianapolis. Without them, the Cowboys' wide receiver corps will be led by CeeDee Lamb, Ryan Flournoy, and Jonathan Mingo.
Porter was a full practice participant on Wednesday, then downgraded to limited on Thursday and Friday before being labeled questionable.
Here's a full list of inactives for Cowboys vs. Colts in Week 9:
You're aware of the phrase "The more things change, the more they stay the same?" Well, let me introduce you to the 2026 Dallas Cowboys, who once again are all offense, no defense.
Dallas arrives in Indianapolis averaging 27.4 points per game (seventh most in the NFL) and allowing 26.6 PPG (sixth most in the NFL). Mirroring recent seasons, the Cowboys field an offense that's entirely reliant on QB Dak Prescott and a stop unit that stops, well, nothing. Just look at the rankings: ninth in passing offense, 25th in rushing offense, 22nd in passing defense, dead last in rushing defense.
All of this explains why the over has cashed in six of Dallas' eight games this season (including final scores of 37-20, 34-31, 34-30, 38-21 and 33-30). And why the over is 37-16-1 in Cowboys games going back to Week 13 of the 2023 season.
Since last season kicked off, the Cowboys and their opponents have combined for more than 50 points in 17 of 25 games, including eight of 13 on the road.
By now, it's pretty clear where I'm heading with this wager. But of course it usually takes two to tango when betting a total. Good news: I'm quite confident the Colts will bring their dancing shoes Sunday, as they've eclipsed the total in five of eight games, including three of the last four.
Indy's defense has been particularly putrid this year, with the Jaguars (42 points last week), Ravens (41), Steelers (34), Chiefs (33) and Titans (26) all lighting up the scoreboard.
Check out the rest of the Yahoo Sports team's best NFL bets for Week 9 .
It's almost surprising that Prescott is the QB11 in fantasy points per game this year, considering he went a month without a multi-touchdown game at one point. Fortunately, he's found the end zone at least twice in each of the past two weeks.
Now, Prescott faces a Colts team that's circling the drain before a likely selloff at the trade deadline. In its first game after dealing Quenton Nelson and DeForest Buckner, Indy was dismantled 42-7 by the Jaguars. The Cowboys are 4.5-point favorites on the road with the third-highest implied point total this week.
Though Dak hasn't been the most reliable fantasy option this season, you can start him confidently as a top-five QB versus the Colts.
Read more from Week 9's Fantasy Football Start 'Em, Sit 'Em .
Multiple teams have inquired about the availability of quarterback Daniel Jones , and the Indianapolis Colts are engaging in those trade talks, ESPN's Adam Schefter and NFL Network's Ian Rapoport reported Saturday .
One team that was reportedly interested was the Baltimore Ravens, who wound up acquiring Jacoby Brissett in a deal with the Arizona Cardinals after both Lamar Jackson and his backup, Tyler "Snoop" Huntley, landed on injured reserve .
The Minnesota Vikings are speculated to be among the other teams considering Jones, according to an ESPN and NFL Network report, as Jones spent part of the 2024 season in Minnesota and has familiarity with a Kevin O'Connell offense that's struggled with Kyler Murray under center.
Jones is set to start for Indianapolis at home against the Dallas Cowboys on Sunday. This past offseason, the Colts inked the 2019 No. 6 overall pick to a two-year, $88 million extension that reportedly included a $44 million signing bonus.
Since, however, Jones — who was coming off a season-ending Achilles tear — hasn't replicated the promising success he achieved during the Colts' 8-2 start to the 2025 campaign, and Indianapolis has moved on from longtime general manager Chris Ballard midseason , embarking on a franchise reset.
Source: Sports
