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There is a good chance that those of us on the forums this week will need to be reminded that the Cowboys beat the Bengals 31-22 on Sunday. In fact, if you never saw the game, and you couldn’t see the score on the screen, you might be surprised that the Cowboys were leading 17-6 when the camera spotted Romo in the above shot.
In fact, the second half of the game was as much about wondering what was happening on the sideline in the face of what was looking like an upset. We can look at Romo, who barely celebrated at all, probably due to a costly fumble and equally costly interception. Then we can look at Owens, who outshined Romo in the moping department to the extent that Jerry Jones was on the sideline apparently consoling the star receiver.
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Even in the face of this depressing win, the Cowboys had the benefit of pure luck. Leading 24-22 with 1:59 remaining, the Cowboys faced a 3rd-and-11 from the Cincinnati 15. Romo tried to rifle the ball to Miles Austin in the end zone. The ball ricocheted off of Austin’s hands and wound up in the arms of Patrick Crayton, who caught his first pass of the day on the strange touchdown play.
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First Half: Cowboys Take a 17-6 Lead
The Cowboys looked strong jumping out of the gate. On the Bengals’ opening drive, Greg Ellis took advantage of an errant pass by Carson Palmer, picking off the pass and returning it to the Bengal 17-yard line. Dallas settled for a field goal to take a 3-0 lead.
After forcing a punt, the Cowboys moved easily downfield on a 10-play, 75-yard drive that was capped off by a 33-yard touchdown run around the right end, giving Dallas a 10-0 lead.
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On the next offensive drive, Dallas moved the ball 80 yards easily thanks to a 16-yard run by Marion Barber along with a 29-yard pass from Romo to Jason Witten. A four-yard Romo-to-Witten touchdown gave Dallas a 17-0 lead with 12 minutes remaining in the second quarter.
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From that point, the Cowboys began to unravel. The Bengals drove into Dallas territory and kicked a field goal to cut the lead to 17-3. Dallas began to have trouble moving the ball, and after exchanging punts, the Cowboys gave Cincinnati the ball in Dallas territory when Romo was stripped by Frostee Rucker. The turnover led to another Cincinnati field goal, making the score at halftime 17-6.
Second Half: Cowboys Nearly Collapse, but Show Enough to Pull Out the Win
The defense had its woes in the second half. An long drive in the third quarter allowed the Bengals to move the ball into Dallas territory. Facing a 3rd-and-9 from the Dallas 18, Palmer found T.J. Houshmandzadeh near the 5, and he was able to wind his way into the end zone. This cut the lead to 17-13.
On the next drive, Dallas missed a huge chance when Patrick Crayton dropped a slightly underthrown Romo pass at the Cincinnati 30, and when the drive failed, Dallas had to punt. After forcing a Cincinnati punt, Dallas moved the ball into Bengal territory. However, Romo underthrew Witten over the middle, and the pass was picked off by linebacker Keith Rivers, who returned the pick 39 yards to the Dallas 41. The play led to a Cincinnati field goal, cutting the lead to 17-16.
The Bengals then took a big chance and tried an onside kick, which was successful. However, the Cowboys had luck and a good tackle by Tank Johnson on their side, as Johnson stripped Chris Perry at the Dallas 37. Anthony Spencer recovered the fumble, giving Dallas the ball at its own 41.
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Two plays later, Romo found Owens on a deep in pattern, and Owens was able to sprint past the Cincinnati secondary for a 57-yard touchdown. It was the 136th touchdown of Owens’ career, tying him for fourth all-time with Marshall Faulk.
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Cincinnati was not finished yet, though, as Glenn Holt returned the ball 60 yards to the Dallas 37. The return led to a Bengal touchdown, as Palmer hit Houshmandzadeh on a 10-yard touchdown with 7:39 left. The Bengals attempted a two-point conversion, but Palmer’s pass to Ben Utecht was knocked away by safety Keith Davis.
Dallas put the game away on the next drive, moving the ball 80 yards in 11 plays and taking 5:47 off the clock. When Romo hit Crayton (through Austin’s hands), the game was over.
Romo completed 14 of 23 passes for 176 yards and three touchdowns. He was off much of the day, over-and under-throwing several receivers. The big hero on offense was Felix Jones, who provided the spark that was missing for much of the Washington game.
On defense, the team did a good job stopping the run, and Spencer and Ellis came up with big plays. However, the secondary was shaky, and the team was unable to pressure Palmer much at all, especially in the second half.
Kick: I’m glad the Cowboys won, and I’ve never been one to whine about winning ugly — but the fact remains, it was the Bengals we beat by playing our “C” game. Anything less than our “A” game won’t cut it against the likes of Pittsburgh and the Giants.
Over the years, we’ve learned this team peaks early then scrapes by in December. Well, the schedule makers did the Cowboys no favors this year, as the degree of difficulty picks up in the second half of the season compared to the first half.
If this team doesn’t get its act together on a consistent, week-in, week-out basis, they’ll be watching January games on TV instead of from the sidelines.