After a nine-yard Cole Beasley catch, the Dallas Cowboys (3-4) had the ball at the Washington Redskins' (4-2) 37-yard line with 46 seconds remaining in the game. Two offensive plays and a snap infraction later, Brett Maher stared down a 52-yard field goal from Washington's 34-yard line with 3 seconds left.

Yes, despite having 46 seconds remaining in the game the Cowboys somehow ran just two plays while effectively gaining just 3 yards. From the moment the Cowboys landed within field-goal range, it was obvious that Jason Garrett and Scott Linehan were perfectly content with settling for a field goal, which Maher missed in the face of swirling winds, leaving the Cowboys on the wrong end of a 20-17 decision.

While some will focus on the low-hanging fruit of Maher's miss or even the questionable snap infraction call, the Cowboys' lack of aggressiveness once they were within field-goal range may deserve more of the collective blame.

The Cowboys seem to find a new way to lose each time they venture outside of AT&T Stadium. The team has squandered multiple winnable games on the road. This week was more of the same.

It was a frustrating day and a heartbreaking loss for a team that could have grabbed the NFC East race by the horns entering its bye week. Instead, Dallas heads into the bye week 1.5 games out of first place in the NFC East. The team has more questions than answers.

Without further ado, let's dive into a few things gleaned from Dallas' disappointing loss.

1) Offensive issues again wreck solid defensive day.

In the Cowboys' last eight road games, they have averaged just 14.6 points per game while converting 34.6 percent of third down. That's not going to get it done in the NFL. In those same eight games, the Cowboys defense has allowed just 16.5 points per game.

The offense failed to get it done again today, accounting for just 17 points while converting 36 percent of their third downs. The offense was abysmal other than during the drive to end the second quarter and the two possessions to end the game. Outside of those three possessions, the Cowboys averaged only 3.3 yards per play.

The Cowboys were ultimately killed by untimely penalties, a poor running game, a couple costly turnovers and spotty protection from the offensive line (more on that later). It's obvious the offense struggles with communication on the road, leading to sloppy and ineffective play from the offense for long stretches.

While Prescott played surprisingly well for most of the game, his two turnovers were costly. Prescott's first fumble didn't lead to points for the Redskins, but it allowed Washington to flip the field advantage: The Cowboys received the ball inside their own 20-yard line on their following three drives before the half.

The second fumble was the most costly play of all, resulting in a Preston Smith scoop and score for Washington. Prescott got too deep with his drop and held onto the ball for too long, which is a recipe for disaster when backed inside the 10-yard line. To make matters worse, Prescott missed Michael Gallup streaking open down the field.

And that's all before factoring in the four offensive penalties Dallas drew against the Redskins. Three of them negated first-down gains; the other transformed a would-be third-and-4 into a second-and-25. When a team is already struggling to move the ball, untimely penalties can turn things from bad to worse. That's exactly what happened today.

The offense's poor day nullified a winning performance by the defense. While the defense had its struggles against the run, it was fantastic against the pass, allowing just 7.12 yards per attempt by Alex Smith.

DeMarcus Lawrence posted a gutsy performance, recording seven tackles - six at or behind the line of scrimmage - and a quarterback hit. Byron Jones had another phenomenal day, rarely tested (and for good reason) by Smith and the Washington pass attack.

The Cowboys are a totally different team at home than on the road. In their last eight home games, the team has averaged 22.375 points per game while converting on 41.7 percent of third downs. The road is a completely different story.

The Cowboys need to fix their road offense and fast, or the team is destined for another frustrating 8-8 finish to the season.

2) Cowboys can't overcome losing line-of-scrimmage battle

The most disappointing development from Sunday's loss was Dallas' inability to control the line of scrimmage. The Cowboys' front lines were taken to school by their Washington counterparts, as the Redskins rushed for 130 yards and gave up just one sack. The Cowboys, on the other hand, accumulated just 73 yards on the ground and allowed four sacks.

It's becoming a disappointing trend for the Cowboys up front, especially on offense given the extent of resources the Cowboys have allocated to the offensive line. Sure, the loss of Travis Frederick hurts. But the Cowboys still possess two active All-Pros. Two other talented linemen - La'el Collins and Connor Williams - were each a top-50 player the years they declared for the NFL Draft.

Adrian Peterson is 33-years-old and still beasting.



He's up to 94 rushing yards at the 12:35 mark of the 4th quarter.#OUDNA | #Sooners pic.twitter.com/BDDArXeSct — Sooner Gridiron (@soonergridiron) October 21, 2018

Outside DeMarcus Lawrence and the occasional play from Antwaun Woods, the defensive line similarly struggled. It was bailed out by an impressive performance from the Dallas defensive backs. The defensive ends struggled to contain the run, and the defensive tackles generated minimal disruption from the interior. The result: Adrian Peterson ran wild for long stretches Sunday.

The Cowboys are a team that thrives when their offense and defense can control the line of scrimmage. Each unit failed to against Washington. Many parties deserve blame for this loss, but make sure to serve a large chunk of the blame pie to the offensive and defensive lines. The offense needs to stay ahead of the chains to be most effective. That's almost impossible when Ezekiel Elliott averages 2.7 yards per carry on first downs.

Whether Maher's field goal at the end of regulation went through the upright or not, the Cowboys played losing football along the line of scrimmage on both sides of the ball.

3) Michael Gallup runs fantastic double moves

The biggest bright spot in the Cowboys' loss was Michael Gallup showcasing his big-play ability, recording three catches for 81 yards and a touchdown.

The touchdown was particularly impressive, as the rookie ran a wonderful double move to get wide open for a 49-yard touchdown catch:

What a move... 💯@michael13gallup will take that all the way to the house.



📺: CBS #DallasCowboys pic.twitter.com/SjtpBTvsYh — NFL (@NFL) October 21, 2018

The key to Gallup creating separation on this stutter-and-go (double move) route was his eyes. Gallup did a fantastic job selling the stop route by turning his eyes all the way toward the quarterback. This caused the Washington cornerback to bite on the fake, leaving Gallup wide open as he streaked downfield.

That was not the only time Gallup got open using a double move. He created plenty of separation with an out-and-up, or 'chair,' route on Prescott's second fumble:

Once again, Gallup did an excellent job selling the initial route with his eyes and hips, feinting as if he were going to run an out route before stemming upfield on a go route. Unfortunately, Prescott took his eyes off Gallup just as the rookie receiver was breaking open. The resulting pressure eliminated any opportunity for Prescott to come back to Gallup, who badly beat his man.

The last few weeks have shown steady improvement from the Colorado State product, and the Cowboys would be wise to leverage that improvement into a bigger role within the offense in the future weeks.

John Owning writes about NFL player evaluation for SportsDayDFW.com. Follow him on Twitter at @JohnOwning.