Home/Articles/NFL
NFL·ANALYSIS·October 23, 2026 06:09 PM ET

Evan Williams' disguised red-zone pick keys Jonathan Gannon's trap against Dak Prescott

Prescott threw three picks in the 23-13 Sunday night loss.

Wire Report IntelligenceUpdated 1h2 min read
Post on X

What happened: Facing 3rd-and-8 at the Green Bay 17-yard line early in the second quarter while trailing 7-0 after a takeaway, the Dallas Cowboys aligned in a 3x1 formation. Showing seven potential rushers and a single-high shell before the snap, Packers defensive coordinator Jonathan Gannon rotated into red-zone quarters at the snap and dropped safety Evan Williams from the left edge of the line into weakside "trix" coverage. While the two outside receivers ran shallow in-breaking routes, Williams read the No. 3 inside slot receiver up the seam and undercut Prescott's throw over the middle.

Why it matters: Gannon crowded the front with disguised The victory lifted the Green Bay Packers to 4-2 as the NFC's No. 6 seed while sending the Cowboys to 2-4 and the No. 12 seed after consecutive defeats.

By the numbers: Green Bay surrendered 35 points in its Week 3 loss to the Atlanta Falcons (2-4, No. 9 seed) before holding opponents to 34 combined points across its subsequent three-game winning streak.

What to watch: Opposing offenses preparing for Green Bay must account for Williams rotating from pressure alignments on the line of scrimmage into deep zone coverage at the snap, while Prescott and Dallas work to clean up their post-snap recognition in the red zone.

Sources

CONVERSATION
Loading comments…
NFLAnalysisGreen Bay PackersDallas CowboysAtlanta FalconsDak PrescottEvan Williams
Follow NFL Intelligence
Real-time signals and analysis
@WireReportNFL
WR Pro
The day's sports, briefed to your inbox at 7am ET. Every claim sourced.
$9/monthFree weekly newsletter →
RELATED STORIES
← Back to Wire Report