ARLINGTON, Texas -- By the time the Cincinnati Bengals get tight end Tyler Eifert back, it might be too late.
This team's problems run far beyond the absence of its leading scorer from the past season. It might be a total team effort.
The first three quarters of the Bengals' 28-14 loss to the Dallas Cowboys could safely be called their worst performance in several years. Their only saving graces Sunday were two fourth-quarter touchdowns that made the game appear closer than it was. Dallas (4-1) was completely in control Sunday.
Don't expect it to get better from here. Up next: the New England Patriots and quarterback Tom Brady at Gillette Stadium.
Brady, by the way, threw three touchdowns against the Browns after returning from a four-game suspension Sunday. The Bengals get the lucky draw of facing Brady in his first home game following his absence.
The Bengals (2-3) essentially suffered a collapse in every phase against the Cowboys. Their goal coming into the game was to try to force rookie quarterback Dak Prescott and rookie running back Ezekiel Elliott to, well, look like rookies.
Instead, the two combined for four touchdowns, highlighted by a 60-yard run from Elliott on which he slipped around the guard and out of the backfield completely untouched by the defense. Prescott completed 18 of 24 passes for 227 yards, a touchdown and a rushing touchdown.
There was no answer to the Cowboys' rushing game, with the Bengals facing what might be the best offensive line in the league. The Cowboys had more than 180 rushing yards, highlighted by Elliott's 134-yard, two-touchdown game.
The lone bright spot of the game was forcing Prescott into his first mistake of the season. Carlos Dunlap was able to force a fumble by Prescott near the Bengals' end zone at the end of the third quarter.
The Bengals struggled to run the ball again and essentially gave up trying after going down 21-0 in the first half. It didn't help that Jeremy Hill left the game in the third quarter with a chest injury, the same ailment that landed him on the injury report this week. Hill had only four carries for 12 yards. The Bengals also continued a troubling pattern that has essentially determined the outcome of every game this season: Shut down Green, and shut down the Bengals' offense.
The Cowboys, specifically cornerback Morris Claiborne, were able to contain A.J. Green for most of the day. Besides Brandon LaFell's late touchdowns, the Bengals couldn't get much of anything going on offense without Green. It was the same pattern that aided in losses to the Pittsburgh Steelers and Denver Broncos.
It's a pattern that's likely to continue, with or without Eifert on the field. With a matchup against Brady and the Patriots looming, the Bengals' season could be in trouble.