I did not see most of last night's game. I turned the game on just as Eli Manning hit Martellus Bennett for a touchdown with 2:36 to play, pulling the Giants to within seven (why didn't Bennett ever come up big when he was a Cowboy?).
So it's 24-17 Cowboys as Dallas takes over at their own 28ish yard line with about 2:30 to play. New York had two timeouts and the two-minute warning. I had a flashback to last year's Patriots game after which I ripped Jason Garrett for his "run three times and punt" strategy which pretty much assured a Cowboys loss. The Cowboys did run the ball three times, forcing the Giants to use their remaining timeouts. On 3rd down DeMarco Murray picked up the first down and then smartly hit the grass instead of running out of bounds and stopping the clock. Unfortunately, flags flew and Jason Witten was (rightly) called for holding. On 3rd and 12, the Cowboys passed, and Romo hit Kevin Ogletree for a first down as the clock ticked down to the two-minute warning. Three kneel downs later, the Cowboys had won.
The Bad
Dallas' offensive line. Tony Romo got sacked twice - not a terrible number when you consider that New York has one of the fiercest pass rushes in the league - but he was on the run all night long. In addition the line committed numerous false starts and other penalties (ironically, Tyron Smith's horse-collar penalty as he illegally brought down a Giant returning an interception for an otherwise certain score, saved a touchdown and perhaps the game, so I won't fault him for that one). Some of that can be chalked up to first game jitters, but the Giants offensive line didn't seem to struggle as much, and Dallas has a history of being undisciplined. The Cowboys penalty count is something to keep an eye on. I consider it a key signal of focus and discipline for a team.
The Good
Pretty much everything else. Kevin Ogletree came up huge with 8 receptions for more than 100 yards. He's the #3 receiver and he has not impressed too many people his first three years with the Cowboys. It's important for him to step up, and last night he certainly did.
The running game apparently looked good. DeMarco Murray took some time to warm up, but in the end he finished with 131 yards and averaged over 6.5 per carry. Romo seemed to be on the run all night long, but hit a variety of receivers for numerous big plays (passes of over 30 yards to three different receivers). Romo's ability to escape pressure and extend plays is really incredible and can hardly be overstated. His receivers played well too. The two catches I saw Miles Austin make on replay were both in heavy traffic, with Austin going up aggressively and holding on to balls many wouldn't be able to. If he and Dez Bryant and Ogletree can all remain healthy this season, Romo will have a lot of options, and defenses will struggle to cover them all.
Rob Ryan's defense looked very good too. The new and improved secondary held Eli Manning to just 213 yards and 1 TD, which isn't terrible, but is a far worse night than Manning typically has against Dallas. Also, the defensive line sacked Manning three times and pressured him many more. DeMarcus Ware, with two sacks last night, became the second fastest player in history to reach 100 career sacks (after only Reggie White).
The Best
I'm still hesitant about my team. As I've written about before, the Cowboys' talent has never been the issue. They're always good enough to beat almost anyone. The problem is the culture of the franchise. If you're looking for a turnaround in this culture, though, last night's game is exactly what you would want to see. Ahead by two touchdowns late in the 4th quarter, Dallas did what they needed to do to close the game out. Last season they gave up late leads in at least 5 games. In a season opener on the road against not only a division rival but the defending world champions, the Cowboys showed (as one NFL writer put it) "testicular fortitude we didn't see a season ago" (thanks to Jase for the tip). It's only one game, and it was a bigger win for Dallas than it was a loss for New York. If you've been waiting, as I have, to see this team play with some real guts, I won't say start celebrating. But I will say that this is exactly the kind of start to the season you would hope to see. Stay tuned.
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