The Dallas Cowboys won a football game. Wait, what….seriously?
Yes! The Dallas Cowboys welcomed back Tony Romo today and defeated the Miami Dolphins 24-14.
The win improved the Cowboys to 3-7, also making them the only NFC East team to win this week.
The Cowboys first drive of the game came backed up near the goal line with the rain coming down hard in Miami. They went three and out, before forcing a three and out of their own to flip field position.
With the sun back out, the Cowboys offense led a promising drive – converting three third downs on the way to the red zone. However, with Romo under pressure, he lobbed one towards the end zone for Dez Bryant that easily fell into the hands of Brent Grimes, who intercepted the pass and ended the drive.
Rolando McClain would return the favor, intercepting Tannehill on the first play of the second quarter and returning it for a touchdown. The Cowboys took a 7-0 lead before both teams traded three consecutive punts.
Just before the half, Tony Romo would extend the lead with a vintage Romo-like drive. The 12 play, 93-yard march saw the Dallas debut of Robert Turbin – who had four carries on the drive for 28 yards.
Terrance Williams was happy to see Romo back on the field, as he made a 17-yard reception on second and long before following it up with a 31-yard touchdown to give the Cowboys a 14-0 lead.
Miami would waste no time getting back into the game, as a penalty after the touchdown combined with a short squib quick gave the Dolphins a short field. They took just three plays to find the end zone, with the big play being provided by Jarvis Landry – who made a 47-yard reception working on Byron Jones.
Jordan Cameron’s touchdown made the score 14-7 going into the locker room.
Tony Romo would throw his second interception on the opening possession of the second half, but the Dolphins could not get out of their own way – being driven backward by penalties and forced to punt.
The Dolphins next drive would tie the game though, as Tannehill drove them 58 yards in five plays. This time, it was Kenny Stills who got the best of Byron Jones on a 20-yard touchdown.
Romo and the Cowboys would have the immediate answer, responding with a lengthy 80-yard scoring drive. Dez Bryant capped it off with a sixteen-yard score, which proved to be the difference-maker.
A Dolphins mistake on the kickoff gave them horrible starting field position, allowing Lucky Whitehead to flip field position on the ensuing punt. Dallas settled for a Dan Bailey field goal, producing the final margin of 24-14.
While Romo will draw a lot of well-deserved attention, the Dallas defense allowed just nine first downs and allowed Miami to convert on third down once with ten attempts.
As RJ Ochoa said on this week’s Cowboys Cast, the Dallas defense is built to play with the lead – which was generated initially by a defensive score.
Watch out, NFC East, confidence is a hell of a drug. pic.twitter.com/1hgr4g5uZG
— Cowboys Nation (@CowboysNation) November 22, 2015
The Cowboys also recorded three fourth-quarter sacks, a rare sight from this unit over the previous seven games. They will face a quick turnaround as they prepare for the undefeated Carolina Panthers on Thanksgiving.
The Dolphins will travel up the east coast to face the rival Jets.
In the middle of the game when things were getting weird, I already could start seeing the commentary that would come out tonight and all throughout the week:
Romo's return didn't matter. Cowboys are a mess. Time to clean house. Who gets fired after the season? What will the Cowboys do with their top 5 draft pick?
It's a funny thing about losing hope in the NFL: when fans and the media lose it, they lose it HARD. While I don't personally buy into the idea that they're going to be able to get caught up to the Giants (who are notoriously at their best in the second half of the season), I just hate what happens to the media and fanbase when all hope is completely lost.
This win felt good. It was against a surging Miami team playing pretty good football under their interim head coach. Say what you want about their record on the season… they were 3-2 under Dan Campbell and Miami IS a talented football team.
Enjoy this one, fellas. I think everyone will stay down to earth for the next few days. If they beat Carolina on Thursday, though, be prepared to get your hopes up!
Think we will beat Carolina, but yeah Miami is no joke.