10. Admit it, your confidence level on 4th-and-goal from the 10 was less than 5%. Mine too. Then a desperation check-down turned into a transformation touchdown. Call it the Hail Murray!
9. If you feel like you’ve aged 4 years in the past 4 months, it’s because the Cowboys have played 4 games decided by 1 point this season. Chiefs (17-16). Lions (31-30). Packers (37-36). Redskins (24-23). And in the Jason Garrett Era they’ve experienced 16 heart-breaking losses. In the game following those losses they are 12-4.
8. Credit Cole Beasley with two of the biggest catches of the season. The 13-yarder on 3rd-and-10 that set up the game-winning field goal in New York and today’s 20-yarder on 4th-and-6 that set up a Dan Bailey field goal to set the table for Tony Romo’s magical last drive.
7. Orlando Scandrick, take a bow. I’ve been criticized for saying you’ve been Dallas’ best defensive player all season. But today you bailed out Brandon Carr’s embarrassing performance by at least locating Pierre Garcon.
6. You’d think an analyst for Fox would take a second to do some homework. You’d be wrong. John Lynch – or is it Lie-nch? – called Tyron Smith “ty-RONN” all day. Nope, it’s TY-run. Like Byron, but with a T. Maybe after he makes the Pro Bowl.
5. Cowboys escaped thanks to Romo’s 87-yard drive with one timeout on one leg, but even in this horrible season they haven’t played a worse 15 minutes than today’s third quarter. The offense coughed up consecutive turnovers on a fumble by Tyler Clutts and a Romo interception, and the defense allowed two touchdowns and kept a field-goal drive alive with a mind-boggling late hit by rookie safety J.J. Wilcox.
4. Cowboys are 5-0 against the NFC East. And in the key wins at the Giants and Redskins, Romo engineered game-winning drives of 64 and 87 yards.
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3. Danny White gets no credit for getting the Cowboys to three consecutive NFC Championship Games in the early ‘80s. Guess Romo won’t get many props for getting these Cowboys to three consecutive NFC East Championship Games? This one, however, will be at home. And it’ll be right here on NBC 5 next Sunday night at 7:15.
2. Two huge catches by a rookie who recently had disappeared. Don’t diminish Terrance Williams’ 15-yard tip-toe grab in traffic on the sideline to kick-start Dallas’ last drive. He doesn’t come up with that and it’s 3rd-and-10 from the 13. And then, of course, the 51-yarder when he and Romo improvised and Redskins’ cornerback Josh Wilson slipped in the slop.
1. Say what you want about Romo. He wasn’t great today, but he was good when he had to be. The fourth-down completions to Beasley and Murray were the stuff of legends. For a week, anyway. Sorry Romo haters, No. 9 doesn’t always choke in December.
A native Texan who was born in Duncanville and graduated from UT-Arlington, Richie Whitt has been a mainstay in the Metroplex media since 1986. He’s held prominent roles on all media platforms including newspaper (Fort Worth Star-Telegram, Dallas Observer), radio (105.3 The Fan) and TV (co-host on TXA 21 and numerous guest appearances, including NBC 5). He currently writes a sports/guy stuff blog at DFWSportatorium.com and lives in McKinney with his fiancee, Sybil, and two very spoiled dogs.
