Cowboys face a tough decision on Matt Eberflus after another sub-par showing on defense

FRISCO, Texas (AP) — Dak Prescott led the Dallas Cowboys to touchdowns on their first two drives against the Los Angeles Chargers.

Justin Herbert easily answered both times against a Dallas defense that tops the list of reasons the Cowboys will miss the playoffs for second year in a row and could finish with a losing record in back-to-back seasons for the first time since the last of three straight in 2002.

Matt Eberflus moved to the coaching booth from the sideline before the 34-17 loss to the Chargers, a few days after owner and general manager Jerry Jones had some cryptic words for the first-year defensive coordinator on his radio show.

Jones' tone hadn't changed much when he saw reporters after the game.

Eberflus was a valued defensive assistant in Dallas a decade ago, and could have been the defensive coordinator then under different circumstances. Instead, he went on to Indianapolis in that role before landing the head coaching job in Chicago, where he was fired midseason a year ago.

Now, the Cowboys face a difficult choice with a known and trusted coach. Jones said Eberflus wouldn't be fired before the Cowboys (6-8-1) finish the season on the road against Washington (Thursday) and the New York Giants (Jan. 3 or 4).

The outspoken and ever-present owner fell far short of endorsing Eberflus. A change would mean a fourth defensive coordinator in four seasons in 2026.

“I might not couch it as difficult,” Jones said when asked how difficult a decision he faced with Eberflus, who was on the Dallas staff for seven seasons ending in 2017. “Now, that’s not uncommon to evaluate at this time of the year your entire coaching staff. And obviously the target’s on him because of our statistical as well as actual play on the defensive side of the ball. But that goes with it.”

Herbert was playing his third full game with a broken non-throwing (left) hand heavily protected. The Chargers didn't get to 300 yards total offense in either of the first two. They had a season-high 452 against the Cowboys, and Herbert completed a season-best 79% of his passes.

“I thought it was OK. I thought it was fine,” first-year coach Brian Schottenheimer said of Eberflus' move to the booth. “I know we need to get more pressure on the guy and didn’t do a great job getting pressure on him. And I thought both quarterbacks played great today. And unfortunately, their guy got the win.”

WR George Pickens bounced back from two sub-par games with seven catches for 130 yards with a 38-yard score when Prescott hit him in stride in the end zone. He is a strong candidate for the franchise tag after what could be a 1,500-yard season in his Dallas debut following the offseason trade that brought him from Pittsburgh.

The Cowboys have been shut out on sacks in consecutive games for the first time since 2017. Not getting to Herbert was particularly egregious considering he has been dropped a career-high 49 times and the Chargers have used a makeshift offensive line because of injuries.

Tyler Smith's value is on display again with the decision to move him to left tackle to replace struggling backup Nate Thomas with Tyler Guyton sidelined by a sprained ankle. Smith was the left tackle as a rookie replacing the injured Tyron Smith before the club decided to put him at left guard. Now, he will start the rest of the season as the protector of Prescott's blind side, and there's a chance the move could be permanent. If Tyler Smith stays put, it's possible Guyton would replace Terence Steele at right tackle next year.

Schottenheimer's play-calling has been hit-and-miss, and he had a big miss against the Chargers. Facing fourth-and-1 at the LA 16-yard line down by a touchdown late in the third quarter, diminutive gadget receiver KaVontae Turpin was lined up 7 yards deep as the running back with fullback Hunter Luepke near the line of scrimmage to Prescott's left. The dive play to Luepke was stuffed, and the Chargers drove 76 yards to a field goal for a 27-17 lead.

DT Quinnen Williams was out against the Chargers, missing a game for the first time since the trade with the New York Jets. He seemed to be coming along OK in returning from a concussion when a neck issue arose. It will be interesting to see if the Cowboys play a defensive cornerstone in the coming seasons in two meaningless games. ... LB DeMarvion Overshown, who missed the first nine games recovering from his second major knee injury in two years, exited with a concussion and didn't return.

27.8% — Dallas' defensive QB pressure percentage is among the best in the NFL, and yet the Cowboys are in the bottom third in the league with 29 sacks. They're having trouble getting quarterbacks on the ground.

Even though they're already eliminated from the playoffs, the Cowboys can finish 5-1 in the NFC East with victories over the Commanders and Giants. They would also be the second team to finish 8-8-1 since the NFL went to 17 games in 2021. Washington did it three years ago.

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Dallas Cowboys head coach Brian Schottenheimer talks to a referee during the second half of an NFL football game against the Los Angeles Chargers, Sunday, Dec. 21, 2025, in Arlington, Texas. (AP Photo/Richard W. Rodriguez)

Los Angeles Chargers quarterback Justin Herbert (10) is tackled by Dallas Cowboys cornerback Shavon Revel during the second half of an NFL football game Sunday, Dec. 21, 2025, in Arlington, Texas. (AP Photo/Tony Gutierrez)

Dallas Cowboys wide receiver George Pickens (3) makes a touchdown catch past Los Angeles Chargers cornerback Cam Hart (20) during the first half of an NFL football game Sunday, Dec. 21, 2025, in Arlington, Texas (AP Photo/Richard W. Rodriguez)

Los Angeles Chargers quarterback Justin Herbert (10) runs during the second half of an NFL football game against the Dallas Cowboys, Sunday, Dec. 21, 2025, in Arlington, Texas. (AP Photo/Tony Gutierrez)

KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — Initial drafts of U.S. proposals for a peace deal between Ukraine and Russia meet many of Kyiv's demands, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Monday, although he suggested that neither side in the almost four-year war is likely to get everything it wants in talks on reaching a settlement.

“Overall, it looks quite solid at this stage,” the Ukrainian leader said of recent talks with U.S. officials who are trying to steer the neighboring countries toward compromises.

“There are some things we are probably not ready for, and I’m sure there are things the Russians are not ready for either,” Zelenskyy told reporters in Kyiv.

U.S. President Donald Trump has for months been pushing for a peace agreement. However, the negotiations have run into sharply conflicting demands from Moscow and Kyiv. But U.S. envoy Steve Witkoff said Sunday he held “productive and constructive” talks in Florida with Ukrainian and European representatives.

Zelenskyy said that “nearly 90%” of Ukraine’s demands have been incorporated into the draft agreements.

The backbone of the proposed deal is a 20-point plan, he said. There is also a framework document on security guarantees between Ukraine, European countries, and the United States, as well as a separate document on bilateral security guarantees granted to Ukraine by the U.S.

Zelenskyy mentioned several key points, such as the Ukrainian army remaining at a peacetime level of 800,000; membership in the European Union; and European forces, under the leadership of France and the U.K. and with a “backstop” from Washington, ensuring “Ukraine’s security in the air, on land, and at sea.”

“Some key countries will provide presence in these domains; others will contribute to energy security, finance, bomb shelters, and so on,” the Ukrainian president said.

Ukraine is arguing that the bilateral document with U.S. should be reviewed by the U.S. Congress, with some details and annexes kept classified, Zelenskyy said.

The U.S. team is now in talks with Russian envoys, and Washington has asked that no details be released, he added.

Zelenskyy said Monday he met with his military commanders who reported that defensive lines are holding firm against the Russian onslaught.

“In (recent) weeks, the Russian army has significantly increased the intensity of attacks, and the number of Russian losses has increased accordingly,” he said in a post on Telegram.

Ukrainian forces hit an oil terminal, a pipeline, two parked jet fighters and two ships in a series of strikes on Russian soil, officials said Monday.

The attacks are part of an ongoing campaign to disrupt the Russian war effort and sow fear behind the front line, where outnumbered Ukrainian troops are straining to hold back Russia’s bigger army.

The strikes also seek to undermine President Vladimir Putin’s attempt to portray Russia as negotiating from a position of military strength in U.S.-led peace efforts, which have yet to make a breakthrough on key points.

The killing of a top Russian general by a car bomb in Moscow on Monday, with investigators suspecting Ukraine was behind it, could be another instance of Kyiv picking surprise targets.

Ukrainian forces struck the Tamanneftegaz oil terminal, an ammunition depot and a launch site for attack drones inside Russian territory and Russian-held Ukrainian territory, Ukraine’s General Staff said in a statement Monday.

A pipeline, two docks and two ships were damaged in the southern Krasnodar region, and a large blaze broke out, the statement said, without specifying what kind of weapons were used in the attack.

It added that a Ukrainian-made missile also hit a temporary base for Russia's 92nd River Boat Brigade in Olenivka, in the occupied Crimean Peninsula.

A separate strike targeted an ammunition depot in a Russian-controlled portion of the Donetsk region, aiming to slow the Russian advance there, the General Staff said. A Russian launch site for attack drones was also hit.

Ukrainian partisans set fire to two Russian jet fighters in an operation on Sunday evening at a base near Lipetsk, a city in western Russia, according to Ukraine’s military intelligence.

Russia’s Ministry of Defense said only that its forces shot down 41 Ukrainian drones overnight, three of them over the Krasnodar region.

Meanwhile, Russian forces kept up their targeting of Ukraine’s energy sector, aiming to deprive civilians of heat and running water during the frigid winter. Russia has tried to knock out power in Ukraine throughout the war, in a tactic that Ukraine refers to as “weaponizing winter.”

Energy infrastructure across five regions were attacked during the night, Ukraine’s Ministry of Energy said.

Russia struck Ukraine with 86 drones of different types overnight, Ukraine’s air force said. Ukrainian forces stopped 58 of them, it said.

Follow AP’s coverage of the war in Ukraine at https://apnews.com/hub/russia-ukraine

In this photo taken on Saturday Dec. 20, 2025 and provided by Ukraine's 24th Mechanized Brigade press service, ruins in the town of Kostyantynivka, the site of heavy battles with the Russian troops in the Donetsk region, Ukraine. (Oleg Petrasiuk/Ukraine's 24th Mechanized Brigade via AP)

In this photo taken on Saturday Dec. 20, 2025 and provided by Ukraine's 24th Mechanized Brigade press service, ruins of buildings in the town of Kostyantynivka, in the Donetsk region, Ukraine. (Oleg Petrasiuk/Ukraine's 24th Mechanized Brigade via AP)

In this photo taken on Saturday Dec. 20, 2025 and provided by Ukraine's 24th Mechanized Brigade press service, a soldier walks through the ruins of the town of Kostyantynivka, in the Donetsk region, Ukraine. (Oleg Petrasiuk/Ukraine's 24th Mechanized Brigade via AP)