ARLINGTON, Texas — The season for the Dallas Cowboys ended Sunday with a devastating 23-17 penalty-marred loss to the San Francisco 49ers at AT&T Stadium.
San Francisco quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo passed for 172 yards as the 49ers (11-7) cruised into next week's playoff game at top NFC seed Green Bay.
The 49ers marched 75 yards for a touchdown on the opening drive of the game they never trailed from there as they scored on their first four drives to end the Cowboys' season.
The penalty-riddled Cowboys were flagged 14 times for 89 yards to hamper them throughout the game.
Dallas closed to 23-17 after an interception from Garoppolo. Five plays later, Dallas quarterback Dak Prescott scored on a 5-yard scramble for a touchdown with 8:02 left.
And after forcing a San Francisco punt with 2:42 left, Dallas had another chance.
Dallas marched to the San Francisco 47, but Prescott's fourth-down pass intended for Cedric Wilson was incomplete.
San Francisco punted again with 32 seconds left, giving Dallas one more shot.
The Cowboys then picked up 40 yards making three first downs - all getting out of bounds to preserve the clock.
Prescott then ran up the middle to the San Francisco 24. But the linesman was slow to spot the ball and the Cowboys couldn't line up in time to run another play.
Dallas finishes at 12-6, including a 6-6 record against teams from outside the NFC East.
The Cowboys' most recent Super Bowl triumph came in the 1995 season.
The Cowboys' last playoff victory was a wild card triumph over Seattle in the 2018 season.
