It never gets old.
Romo drops the snap, picks it up, scans the field, and finds Jason Witten for the game-winning score. How sweet it is.
There were a lot of fantastic plays during Sunday Night’s game against the New York Giants. Here are the ones that I believe had the biggest impact that led to getting the dubayoo.
JJ Wilcox Slams Into Odell Beckham Jr.
With just under three minutes left in the first quarter, Eli Manning hit the prized Odell Beckham Jr. near the Cowboys’ 20-yard line. JJ Wilcox was having none of that.
He blasted OBJ and jarred the ball loose, it was an incomplete pass not a fumble like Coach Garrett believed when he challenged it, and left Odell feeling pretty whoozy.
This play was impactful because it seemed like it got into Odell’s head. He was pretty quiet for the evening, the Madden cover athlete only had 5 catches for 44 yards total, and it was obvious that he was hesitant throughout the rest of the game. It’s as much of a psychological game as it is a physical one, and JJ gave Dallas the edge over OBJ in this instance.
Larry Donnell Can’t Hold On
We all know that Dez caught it; however, Larry Donnell did not. This was, I’m 100% serious here, actually ruled a catch on Sunday evening.
This happened on a 3rd and 6 when the Giants were inside of their 30-yard line. Manning “completed” the ball to Larry Donnell who couldn’t hold on as he fell to the ground (thanks to first round pick Byron Jones, FYI).
Jason Garrett wisely challenged the call, probably shouting that this type of play cost his team a trip to Seattle last year, and the ruling on the field was reversed. The Giants had to punt and the Cowboys were able to convert that into a field goal… 3 points that would prove to be precious near the end of the game.
Joseph Randle One-Hands It
Midway through the third quarter on 3rd and 1, Romo rolled out to the right and found his running back Joseph Randle on a screen pass. Pretty normal stuff, right?
Randle made it extraordinary when he had a nice one-handed grab on the catch that he quickly turned into a 26-yard pickup.
This kept the Cowboy drive alive when the Giants were in the lead, and had all of the momentum, 16-6. Randle was very present during this drive as on the very next play he had another screen pass that he turned into a first down.
The Cowboys used their running backs in the screen game a lot throughout the night, but this play stands out as the Cowboys were able to turn this drive into a touchdown (after a questionable pass interference call) set them up at the goal line.
A Cole New World
With the Cowboys trailing by 10 with under six minutes left, Romo had the offense in the redzone. On 1st and 10 he hit Cole Beasley for one of the more electrifying plays of the night.
Cole broke not one, not two, but three tackles as he evaded Giants left and right on his way to the 1-yard line. He used his small size and quick cutting ability to shake off the New York defenders.
On the very next play Tony Romo found Jason Witten for a touchdown, bringing the Cowboys within 3 points of the Giants with five full minutes left in the contest.
Arts And Crafty Tony Romo
With 13 seconds, on 3rd and 2, left in the game the Dallas Cowboys trailed the New York Giants 26-20. No timeouts. Touchdown wins it.
Romo went to the line and made some adjustments. He saw something and knew that he could beat it.
After the ball hit the ground initially, Romo picked it up and assessed the field. Thanks to his massive offensive line he had enough time to survey the field and the situation. He had a rookie linebacker on his veteran tight end, Jason Witten. That’s money all day, baby.
He fired away and hit #82 for the game-winning score… in 100% clutch fashion. Fans around the world celebrated as Tony Romo did what we’ve seen him do time and time again – lead the Dallas Cowboys to victory.
Agree with my analysis? Think there were some other plays with a big impact? Email me your thoughts at rjochoa@insidethestar.com or Tweet @rjochoa.
