- Tony Romo – 19-29 for 176 yards and 1 TD
- Dez Bryant – 10 catches for 103 yards 1 TD
- DeMarco Murray – 29 carries 167 yards 1 TD
Looking at those numbers you would think we went back in time to 1993 to Troy Aikman’s passing numbers, Michael Irvin’s receiving numbers, and Emmitt Smith’s rushing numbers.
That’s what Sunday’s performance has reminded me of after watching the Cowboys ram the ball down the Titans throat all game long and come away with a decisive victory in Nashville, Tennessee.
The Cowboys dominated the line of scrimmage, though it sure didn’t start out that way. What is one of the youngest offensive lines in pro football, they didn’t look like it at the start of the game. The Titans defensive line made the young o-line look old and slow in their pass protection.
The Titan defensive line came out stronger and quicker as they were able to get to Tony Romo multiple times in the first half. That pressure led to Tony Romo looking off-target and sluggish once again.
Although the titans were able to get pressure to slow down Romo and the passing game, the Titans had no answer for the Cowboys run game. DeMarco Murray came out of the gates like gangbusters and never looked back. The only thing that looked better than Murray in the first half was the Cowboy defense.
That’s right, you read that right. The Cowboys’ defense looked dominant in the first half.
Like the last game the Cowboys front four got pressure on the QB. That pressure threw Jake Locker off-balance and forced him to throw an interception as well. Going into halftime, the ‘Boys D only gave up two first downs and 68 total yards.
In the second half, the Titans came out looking like a different team as they drove the ball down-field and scored on their first two drives of the second half (a touchdown and a field goal). However, the Cowboys never let the Titans have much more after that. The Cowboys came out in the second half improved as well. The offensive line continued to maul Titan defenders in the run game and they were able to improve in pass protection, too.
Dan Bailey continued to look like the best kicker in the entire world by connecting on all of his field goal attempts – which was business as usual for him.
The Cowboys defense continued to play well in the second half, although Locker did heat up and started connecting with TE Delanie Walker, who had a career day. But that was about the only positive for the Titans.
The Cowboys won in a way that Cowboys fans have been longing for. A good defensive performance, a powerful running game, and mistake-free football. It’s been a while since Dallas Cowboys fans could say they won in every phase of a game.
