Dallas avoids going into the bye week 0-3 with a dominant victory over Houston. Roy Williams (above) led the charge offensively, scoring two touchdowns in his best game (statistically) as a Cowboy. (AP Photo/David J. Phillip)In a hostile environment, staring at a demoralizing 0-3 record going into the bye week, the Dallas Cowboys (1-2) responded with their best performance of the young season. The Cowboys showcased a dominant, ball-hawking defense along with a potent offense, both on the ground and in the air, during the course of a 27-13 dismantling of the previously undefeated Houston Texans (2-1).
"Our team came out and showed the way we can play," Cowboys' coach Wade Phillips said. "The little things that were missing for a couple of games, I thought we came through with. We played solid all the way around, made a lot of big plays in the game."
Big plays were the name of the game for a team that had next to none coming into Sunday's meeting with the Texans.
Offensively the running game finally got on track with the first 100+ yard rushing game of the season. Marion Barber and Felix Jones combined to rush the ball 24 times for 98 yards, with Tashard Choice chipping in the extra four on two carries. Barber stuffed in the Cowboys' first rushing touchdown of the season, crossing the goal line on a 1-yard run and giving Dallas a 7-3 lead in the second quarter.
The reinvigoration of the rushing attack was assuredly overdue and certainly needed, but the real stars on the offensive side of the ball were quarterback Tony Romo and wide receiver Roy Williams. Romo completed 23 of 30 passes for the game for 284 yards and two touchdowns, both to Williams.
Williams, criticized heavily since being acquired in 2008, by both Cowboys' fans and critics alike, had his highest receiving total (117 yards) in 28 games since joining the team. The Cowboys' wideout used some fancy footwork for both of his touchdowns, beating Texans' corners off the ball and using his soft hands on each catch. Williams also showed some of the breakaway ability that made him a Pro-Bowler in Detroit earlier in his career on a 63-yard catch and touchdown run in the third quarter.
"He's just an example of how to keep going and for him to come in here today and make the big plays he made today to me is inspirational and I think it inspires the team," Owner-General Manager Jerry Jones said.
Romo kept an even keel after the game.
"We knew that we needed to come out here and get a win," Romo said. "We know that it's not always going to be perfect, but we've got to find a way to keep getting wins."
Dallas Defense Dominates
The Cowboys defense, which came into the game with a grand total of zero takeaways through the first two weeks of the season, came out with an aggressive approach and it showed. Dallas had a fumble recovery and two interceptions, scoring 10 points off Houston turnovers.
Demarcus Ware, who had been consistently pressuring quarterbacks in recent weeks but only had one sack to show for it, came out against the Texans with a vengeance. Texans' left tackle Rashad Butler was no match for the Cowboys linebacker as Ware sacked quarterback Matt Schaub three times and had another five tackles for loss. Schaub looked uncomfortable and frazzled in the pocket all game long as the QB equaled his interceptions for the season with two, completing 23 of 32 passes for 241 yards with a garbage-time touchdown late in the game.
While Dallas did allow a running back to get to over 100 yards for the first time in 20 games, 106 on 17 carries to Arian Foster, but deterred the offense and created enough turnovers to hold the Texans without a touchdown until 1:15 left in regulation.
Buehler Bounces Back
Having missed two of the first four field goals of his career to start the year, and coming off a rough week of practice, Cowboys' kicker David Buehler came into Sunday's game as one of the biggest goats of the first two weeks of the season. The second-year kicker responded by nailing a career-high 49-yard field goal to put Dallas up 10-3 going into the half, and knocked in another 40-yarder for good measure to put the Cowboys up 37-6 with 3:36 left in the fourth quarter.
It's only one week, but Buehler finally made a pressure field goal (49 yards at that) and showed that he could be a decent kicker for Dallas.
What's Next
The Cowboys were able to beat one of the best teams in football (through two weeks) on the road in dominating fashion. If this is the Dallas football team that shows up every week from here on out, the Cowboys are guaranteed a playoff spot. Unfortunately, Dallas is going to have to be consistent week-in and week-out which has been a problem for the team so far this season.
Dallas goes into the bye with a win and will return back to big D for a week of rest before the Tennessee Titans (2-1) come to town Sunday, Oct. 10.
News and Notes:
- Three sacks ties a single-game high for Demarcus Ware. The Cowboys' outside linebacker has accomplished this feat five times in his career.
- Houston set a single-game attendance record at Reliant Stadium with an announced crowd of 71, 456.
- With the win, Dallas became only the second team since the AFL, NFL merger to reach 400 teams, joining the Pittsburgh Steelers.
(Portions of this article were taken from The Associated Press)
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