Washington Commanders

The Redskins accomplished a rare offensive feat in their losing effort at Dallas

Published Dec. 9, 2016 1:02 p.m. ET

Brett Smiley

It's certainly not a feat that the Washington Redskins set out to accomplish in Dallas on on Thursday but they made history nevertheless with a mammoth 505 yards of offense a and turnover-free offensive performance in a losing effort.

Bob Strum of Sportsradio 1310 "The Ticket" in Dallas noted the oddity and links the Pro Football Reference page that shows the previous 33 teams that amassed 500+ total yards but didn't commit a turnover or allow a single sack. Prior to Washington's loss to the Cowboys, such teams were 32-1 in NFL history:

Redskins QB Kirk Cousins contributed the bulk of the yardage with 449 passing yards. Running backs Robert Kelley and Chris Thompson added 54 yards rushing (and Cousins two) for a total 505 yards in the 31-26 loss.

It's a very small consolation for Washington, but Cousins and the offense sparkled late in Dallas and Cousins' jersey stayed clean as they moved the ball pretty easily at times. But failures in (or near) the red zone cost the Redskins, as four trips deep into Cowboys territory in the first half resulted in just six points -- two field goals and two missed field goals.

Bizarrely, the only other loss of this kind occurred on Thanksgiving Day in 1998 when Dallas fell victim to the Randall Cunningham and Randy Moss-led Minnesota Vikings. In a 46-36 shootout loss, Troy Aikman completed 34 of 57 passes for 455 yards and Dallas added 58 yards rushing (513 total yards).