The Dallas Cowboys whopped the Cleveland Browns in their last encounter

The Dallas Cowboys whopped up on the Cleveland Browns the last time they faced in 2016, with the Cowboys cruising to a 35-10 win.

The last time the Cleveland Browns took on the Dallas Cowboys was four years ago, on Nov. 6, 2016, in week nine of the season. The teams were in vastly different phases of their eras. The Browns were 0-8 at the time and were riding out the second-worst season in team history which would see them go 1-15 under Hue Jackson. The Cowboys, then 6-1, were easing their way into a 13-3 season under Jason Garrett.

This was the last year that Tony Romo would be not just an NFL starter but the last year he would be in the NFL. Romo suffered an injury early on that would see then-rookie Dak Prescott step into the Cowboy’s starter at quarterback. He’d lead the team to one of it’s better years in recent memory under Garrett. Joining him was fellow rookie, Ezekiel Elliott. Both players would be pivotal in taking down the Browns, which wasn’t a hard thing to do in 2016.

Prescott torched the Browns for three touchdowns and 247 yards through the air. Those three touchdowns alone were enough to beat the Browns soundly but then Elliott added two more touchdowns on 92 yards rushing.

The Browns had very little in regards to a response. Browns starting quarterback Cody Kessler had 201 yards passing the football and the team’s only touchdown. Duke Johnson was still on the team but not starting. He added 30 yards as the team’s top rusher for the game. Starting running back Isaiah Crowell didn’t do much on the ground (four yards on six carries) but he did lead the team in receiving with 63 yards. In Terrelle Pryor’s 1,000 yard season with the Browns, he had just 47 receiving yards on the day.

Defensively the teams were anchored by a pair of linebackers. The Cowboys had Sean Lee in the midst of a Defensive Player of the Year campaign, while the Browns had third-year man Christian Kirksey (and a rookie Joe Schobert). Kirksey had nine tackles on the day, adding to his career-high 148 total tackles on the year.

The Browns ran a 3-4 that year, and fellow inside linebacker Demario Davis racked up 99 total tackles for the year. The Browns still had Joe Haden that year, his last before the Browns foolishly cut him. Also making up the team was a rare local-signing in defensive end Jamie Meder. Meder was a product of Valley Forge High School in Parma Heights, as well as an Ashland University alumni.

Historically, this whole season is seen as a waste. No one got better, the team lost a lot of games and things were only going to get worst from here. Ultimately, the Cowboys handed the Browns their butts and won the game with a final score of 35-10.