Dallas Cowboys vs Los Angeles Rams Match Player Stats: Bennett’s Big Arm Leads Rams to Preseason Win

Digging up dallas cowboys vs los angeles rams match player stats usually means sorting through play-by-play noise to find what actually mattered. This preseason opener at SoFi Stadium answered that question fast: Stetson Bennett’s precision passing and a three-man rushing rotation carried Los Angeles to a 31-21 win, while Dallas got its first look at life after Dak Prescott’s backup battle under new head coach Brian Schottenheimer. Below is the full statistical breakdown, position by position.

Match Overview

The Cowboys came into Inglewood for Brian Schottenheimer’s debut as head coach, and it doubled as Joe Milton III’s first real audition to be Prescott’s primary backup. Both teams sat their stars — Prescott, CeeDee Lamb, and Micah Parsons (who watched from the sideline days after requesting a trade) stayed in street clothes for Dallas, while Matthew Stafford went through pregame work but didn’t suit up for the Rams.

With the projected Week 1 rosters largely on the bench, this dallas cowboys vs los angeles rams match player stats sheet tells a story about backups auditioning for roster spots rather than starters settling a rivalry. Bennett went 16-of-24 for 188 yards and two touchdowns to outduel Milton, who threw for 143 yards and a score of his own before exiting with an elbow injury in the fourth quarter.

Core Match Statistics Overview

Passing Efficiency

• Bennett posted a 100.7 passer rating on 7.3 yards per attempt, while Milton finished at 68.6 on just 4.5 yards per attempt.
• Both quarterbacks threw one interception, but Bennett’s misfire came on a low-value deep shot late; Milton’s came on a third-quarter deep ball that was picked off deep in Rams territory.

Ground Game Balance

• Los Angeles spread 38 carries across four different backs, none topping 12 attempts, which kept the Cowboys front guessing all night.
• Dallas leaned on Malik Davis (7 carries, 63 yards) and rookie Phil Mafah (10 carries, 36 yards) for its 5.5 yards-per-rush average.

Red Zone Execution

• The Rams scored touchdowns on four of five red zone trips, while the Cowboys settled for two field goals on four chances.
• That gap alone accounted for roughly 10 points of the final margin.

Discipline and Field Position

• Dallas was flagged 11 times to LA’s 8, several coming at inopportune moments that extended Rams drives.
• The Rams still gave back more total yardage in penalties (104 to 83), so the story wasn’t one-sided sloppiness — it was where the flags landed.

Period-by-Period Analysis

First Quarter

• Los Angeles scored on both of its opening two drives, an 11-play march finished by a Blake Corum plunge and a 13-play answer capped the same way.
• Dallas’ offense sputtered early, going three-and-out on both of its first-quarter possessions.
• A 39-yard completion from Bennett to Xavier Smith on 4th-and-6 kept the opening scoring drive alive after Dallas challenged the catch and lost.

Second Quarter

• Brandon Aubrey connected on field goals of 35 and 25 yards to get Dallas on the board.
• The Cowboys offense found more rhythm through the air, mixing in receptions from Traeshon Holden and Jalen Brooks to sustain longer drives.
• Los Angeles’ offense stalled twice, going empty on back-to-back possessions after its fast start.

Third Quarter

• Milton’s lone interception of the night, on a deep shot toward Ryan Flournoy, killed a promising Dallas drive at the LA 1-yard line area.
• Cam Lampkin’s pick on the ensuing Rams series briefly gave the ball back to Dallas, but the Cowboys couldn’t cash in.
• Joshua Karty’s 37-yard field goal padded the Rams’ lead to 17-6 heading into the fourth.

Fourth Quarter

• Milton hit tight end Rivaldo Fairweather for a 7-yard score, then found Josh Kelly for a two-point conversion to cut it to 24-14.
• Bennett answered immediately, finding Cody Schrader and then Brennan Presley for touchdowns on the Rams’ next two possessions to push the lead back to 17.
• Backup Will Grier scrambled 8 yards for a late Cowboys touchdown, but the two-minute drill arrived too late to matter.

Dallas Cowboys Player Statistics

Joe Milton III (QB): 17-of-29, 143 yards, 1 TD, 1 INT, 68.6 rating; added 5 carries for 22 yards. Milton flashed the arm strength that made him a draft intrigue and found chunks of yardage on deep shots to Holden, but his 58.6% completion rate showed the accuracy questions that still follow him.

Malik Davis (RB): 7 carries, 63 yards, plus a 3-yard catch. Davis was the most efficient runner on either roster, averaging exactly 9.0 yards per carry against LA’s reserve front.

Phil Mafah (RB): 10 carries, 36 yards, plus 2 catches for 15 yards. The rookie handled early-down work and short-yardage looks, giving Dallas a north-south complement to Davis.

Rivaldo Fairweather (TE): 3 catches, 18 yards, 1 TD. Fairweather’s touchdown grab was the difference between Dallas trailing by 17 and by 10 in the fourth-quarter push.

Los Angeles Rams Player Statistics

Stetson Bennett (QB): 16-of-24, 188 yards, 2 TD, 1 INT, 100.7 rating. Bennett’s second-half touchdown throws to Schrader and Presley put the game away, and his 7.3 yards-per-attempt nearly doubled Milton’s.

Blake Corum (RB): 9 carries, 32 yards, 2 rushing TD. Corum’s two short touchdown runs bookended the Rams’ first-quarter scoring outburst.

Cody Schrader (RB): 5 carries, 59 yards, plus a 9-yard receiving touchdown. Schrader’s 11.8 yards-per-carry average paced all rushers in the game.

Jarquez Hunter (RB): 11 carries, 41 yards. The rookie got the most volume of any Rams back, chipping in on the third-quarter field-goal drive.

Statistical Leaders Summary

Why the Rams Won

Bennett’s Big-Play Efficiency

Bennett’s 7.3 yards per attempt more than covered for a lighter workload — he threw 8 fewer passes than Milton but generated 45 more yards. The 39-yard connection to Smith on a critical fourth down set the tone before either team’s starters would have even taken the field in a regular-season game.

A Committee Backfield That Never Wore Down

Spreading 38 carries across three backs kept fresh legs on the field for all four quarters, a big reason Los Angeles out-possessed Dallas by nearly seven minutes.

Cashing In Red Zone Trips

An 80% red zone touchdown rate against a 50% mark for Dallas was the single biggest statistical gap in the game, worth roughly two possessions’ worth of points.

Why the Cowboys Lost

A Costly Red Zone Interception

Milton’s interception came on a drive that had reached scoring position, turning a potential field goal or touchdown into zero points at a moment Dallas needed to answer the Rams’ second-quarter lull.

Penalties at the Wrong Moments

Dallas’ 11 flags included a false start on 3rd-and-goal from the 2-yard line in the fourth quarter, forcing a re-set that stalled what had been a promising short-yardage push.

Historical Context & Advanced Insights

The Broader Rivalry

This preseason meeting was the first time these two franchises squared off since Dallas won 43-20 in the regular season back in October 2023. The Cowboys hold a 20-18 edge in the all-time series, with a 2-game winning streak in official regular-season meetings dating back to 2022. The clubs are scheduled to meet again in a regular-season game on December 20, 2026, at SoFi Stadium, which will carry far more weight than this exhibition tune-up.

Efficiency Metrics That Mattered

Yards per play tell the real story here: Los Angeles averaged 5.8 yards per snap to Dallas’ 5.0, a modest gap that compounded over 60-plus plays into an 67-yard total-offense advantage. Bennett’s passer rating advantage (100.7 to 68.6) tracked almost exactly with the completion-percentage gap between the two quarterbacks — 66.7% to 58.6% — reinforcing that accuracy, not arm talent, separated the two performances on this particular night.

Game Implications & Key Lessons

What This Means for the Rams: Bennett strengthened his case to stick as the No. 3 quarterback behind Stafford and Jimmy Garoppolo. The backfield rotation of Hunter, Corum, and Schrader gave the coaching staff real depth to evaluate before final roster cuts.

What This Means for the Cowboys: Milton’s uneven accuracy, paired with the fourth-quarter elbow injury, adds uncertainty to Dallas’ backup quarterback plan behind Prescott. The red zone struggles are a coaching point Schottenheimer’s staff will need to address well before the regular season.

Key Lessons:

• Preseason yardage totals matter less than situational execution — red zone and third down numbers predicted the final margin better than total yards did.
• Distributing carries across multiple backs preserved explosiveness late, a blueprint teams often lean on once the games start counting.
• Turnovers in scoring territory carry outsized weight even in exhibition football, where every possession is limited.
• Backup quarterback battles are often decided by yards-per-attempt and completion rate more than total passing yardage.
• Penalty timing, not just penalty count, dictates how much damage a flag actually does to a drive.
• Injuries to depth pieces (Milton’s elbow, multiple Rams defensive backs) are the real risk teams weigh when deciding how long to play backups.

Frequently Asked Questions

Who won the Cowboys vs Rams game?

The Los Angeles Rams won 31-21 over the Dallas Cowboys in their August 9, 2025 preseason opener at SoFi Stadium.

Who had the best passing stats in the game?

Rams quarterback Stetson Bennett led all passers with 188 yards, two touchdowns, and a 100.7 rating on 16-of-24 passing.

What were Joe Milton’s stats in his Cowboys debut?

Milton went 17-of-29 for 143 yards with one touchdown and one interception, adding 22 rushing yards on 5 carries, for a 68.6 passer rating.

Did Dak Prescott or Matthew Stafford play in this game?

No. Both starting quarterbacks sat out, along with CeeDee Lamb and Micah Parsons for Dallas; Stafford went through pregame warmups but was held out as he worked back from a back injury.

Who scored the most touchdowns in the game?

Rams running back Blake Corum led all players with two rushing touchdowns, both from inside the 5-yard line.

When do the Cowboys and Rams play next?

The two teams are scheduled to meet again in the 2026 regular season on December 20, 2026, at SoFi Stadium.

Conclusion

Strip away the fact that most projected starters watched from the sideline, and this game still delivered a clean statistical takeaway: efficiency beat volume. Bennett threw fewer passes than Milton but did more with them, the Rams’ committee backfield stayed fresh over 38 carries, and a lopsided red zone conversion rate turned a competitive yardage battle into a comfortable 10-point win. 

For two franchises still sorting out their depth charts, the numbers gave both coaching staffs plenty of real evaluation material heading into final roster cuts.