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          Patriots' Ja'Whaun Bentley swipes ball from Dak Prescott to deny Cowboys TD

          • Mike Reiss, ESPN Staff WriterOct 17, 2021, 10:00 PM
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              Mike Reiss is an NFL reporter at ESPN and covers the New England Patriots. Reiss has covered the Patriots since 1997 and joined ESPN in 2009. In 2019, he was named Massachusetts Sportswriter of the Year by the National Sports Media Association. You can follow Reiss on Twitter at @MikeReiss.
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          FOXBOROUGH, Mass. -- In an entertaining first half that featured multiple momentum swings, the New England Patriots capped it off with a huge goal-line stand against the Dallas Cowboys to take a 14-10 lead into the break.

          The key play came on fourth down from the 1 with 1:32 remaining, when linebacker Ja'Whaun Bentley punched the ball out of the grasp of quarterback Dak Prescott, who was attempting to stretch the ball over the goal line on a lunge.

          It was the fourth straight play in which the Cowboys attempted to run from the 1-yard line, and they were stopped short each time -- the first two on runs by Ezekiel Elliott, and the final two on Prescott keepers.

          Prescott was close on the third-down plunge, and it was a play that perhaps warranted a closer instant-replay review from the NFL under the two-minute mark. On the fourth-down play, it was initially ruled a touchdown, before it was reversed on a replay review.

          Earlier this season, in a game against the Eagles, Prescott was stopped on third-and-goal from the 1.

          On Sunday, the Cowboys also went for it on fourth-and-1 from their own 34-yard line on the opening drive of the game. The Patriots came up with the stop on that one, too, tackling Elliott for no gain.