Mandatory Credit: Kevin Jairaj-Imagn Images

Cowboys vs Cardinals Week 9 Monday Night Football – 5 Key Takeaways As Jacoby Brissett, Marvin Harrison Jr. and the Cardinals Defense Hold On for Win!

Cowboys lose at home and fall to 3-5-1 on the season!

Mandatory Credit: Kevin Jairaj-Imagn Images

The Cowboys vs Cardinals was the final game of Week 9 of the 2025-26 NFL regular season. Arizona made the short trip to Arlington, Texas, for its road game against Dallas on Monday Night Football (MNF).

The Cowboys entered this Week 9 game with a 3-4-1 record following their huge loss to the Denver Broncos the previous week. On the other hand, the Cardinals came into the MNF game with a 2-5 record after a 27-23 loss to the Green Bay Packers in Week 8.

In the end, the Cardinals were able to pull through for a win as they defeated the Cowboys 27-17 on the road.

FINAL: Jacoby Brissett and the @AZCardinals get the job done on MNF! pic.twitter.com/oG34hB5Q2M
— NFL (@NFL) November 4, 2025

Marvin Harrison Jr. Gets Off to a Flyer

Cardinals top wide receiver Marvin Harrison Jr. had one of his best games as a professional. The former first-round pick got off to an exceptional start with 3 catches for 53 yards in the first quarter alone. All 3 of his first receptions came on third down conversions as the Cardinals managed to keep their drives alive.

By the time the first half ended, Harrison had already tallied 6 receptions for 80 yards, including a touchdown grab. Eventually, the Cardinals’ offense slowed down in the second half, and Harrison was kept in check as he had only one reception for 16 yards.

Marvin Harrison Jr. had him beat 😳

AZvsDAL on ESPN/ABC
Stream on @NFLPlus and ESPN App pic.twitter.com/JZVxS69SG0
— NFL (@NFL) November 4, 2025

Jacoby Brissett Outplays Dak Prescott

Having a top wide receiver is helpful for any quarterback. But starting his third game in a row under center due to Kyler Murray’s foot injury, Brissett looked calm and composed throughout the game. Early on, he targeted Marvin Harrison Jr. multiple times and was able to connect with his top receiver more often than not.

As the game progressed, Brissett distributed the ball well, targeting Michael Wilson, Trey McBride, and Elijah Higgins multiple times. Moreover, Brissett played clean from the pocket, ending with 261 passing yards, 2 touchdowns, no interceptions, and a rushing touchdown.

On the other hand, Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott struggled mightily in the first three quarters. He was able to find some rhythm to his game in the fourth quarter, but by that time, the Cowboys were down by a couple of scores. Prescott eventually finished with 254 yards through the air, along with a touchdown and an interception.

Arizona Defense Comes Up Big with Multiple Stops in the Red Zone

The Cardinals’ defense set the tone early during the game. Even though the Cowboys aggressively marched down the field on their opening drive, Arizona’s defense was able to force a turnover on downs.

Following that, the Cardinals’ defense was quite successful in limiting the Cowboys’ on third and fourth down conversion attempts. In fact, the Cowboys were held to just 5 of 12 on third downs and 0 of 3 on fourth downs. A couple of fourth down failures came in the red zone as Dallas attempted to score touchdowns instead of opting for the safer option of field goals.

Josh Sweat stuffs the opening drive by Dallas and Arizona takes over

AZvsDAL on ESPN/ABC
Stream on @NFLPlus and ESPN App pic.twitter.com/WTTTLDeuqq
— NFL (@NFL) November 4, 2025

Third Down Efficiency key to Cardinals’ Early success

While the Cowboys struggled with their conversions, the Cardinals did a fine job, especially early on in the game. Even though Arizona eventually finished by converting 7 of 13 third down attempts, at one point, they had converted 70% of their 3rd down plays. That success was key to keeping the Cardinals’ offense on the field and putting up points.

Turnovers Prove Costly for Dallas

Despite not playing their best brand of football, the Cowboys still had a chance to win the game. A couple of coaching decisions led to failures on fourth down, leading to no points. Instead, had Dallas gone for field goals, the situation could have been different at the end of the game.

Apart from turning the ball over 3 times on fourth down, the Cowboys also lost 2 fumbles, handing the ball back to Arizona at crucial junctures of the game. And, with the game on the line late in the fourth quarter, Prescott was picked off, which iced the game as Arizona was then able to kneel out for a win.

Cardinals rip the ball out and recover!

AZvsDAL on ESPN/ABC
Stream on @NFLPlus and ESPN App pic.twitter.com/Wd3gtFZt8n
— NFL (@NFL) November 4, 2025

Cowboys vs Cardinals Game Stats

The Cardinals controlled the momentum of the Week 9 MNF clash against the Cowboys. Jacoby Brissett and Marvin Harrison Jr. led from the front for Arizona, while the defense made crucial stops. Running back Emari Demercado chipped in with 79 yards on the ground from 14 carries.

For the Cowboys, CeeDee Lamb, George Pickens, and Jake Ferguson each had big nights with 85, 79, and 50 receiving yards, respectively. Javonte Williams added another 83 yards on the ground, but that was not enough against the better Cardinals team on the day.

Dallas Cowboys	Category	Arizona Cardinals
333	Total yards	340
210	Passing yards	221
123	Rushing yards	119
5	Sacks allowed	5
6 (55)	Penalties (yards)	2 (10)
2	Fumbles lost	0
1	Interceptions	0

With the loss, the Cowboys now move to 3-5-1 but retain their second position in the NFC East, whereas the Cardinals move to 3-5 and remain well behind the other teams in the NFC West. The NFL now moves into Week 10 with the first game coming on Thursday Night Football (TNF) as the Denver Broncos host the Las Vegas Raiders in an all-AFC West divisional confrontation.

Mandatory Credit: Kevin Jairaj-Imagn Images

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Devavrat Kulkarni

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I am a content writer for the NFL team, and joined The Playoffs after working with Sportskeeda and NFL Analysis as an NFL writer. After starting my professional career as a French-to-English translator, working as a content writer is a new adventure for me. I started out in the sports media field for two main reasons: my love for sports in general, especially the NFL, NBA, and Tennis, as well as my passion for writing. The best part of this job is that I get to write a variety of pieces with the freedom to explore content from various angles. It also enables me to stay up to date with the sporting world, which otherwise can be difficult to do in the day-to-day grind. In a world full of chaos, sports unite and entertain like nothing else!