Well, well, well. And here we were just a few weeks ago, ready to drive Tony Romo out of town and force Rob Ryan to braid his hair. After winning three in a row, your Dallas Cowboys are now, with tiebreakers factored in, in first place in the NFC East.
Not only that, their aggregate point differential (+44) is the best in the division, proving their lead isn't a fluke! And you know what the scary part of this whole thing is? That Jerry Jones was right! He didn't freak out after the Cowboys got crushed by the Eagles, and now he looks like the lone sane man in Texas. Up is down. Left is right. I am very confused and scared by this new paradigm.
Anyway, who do we have to thank for this pleasant surprise? Here are my candidates:
1. Graham Gano. There are few things more reassuring than knowing it's Graham Gano who's trying to kick a game-winning field goal against you. It's like he was born to miss these kicks. In fact, I'm not even sure why he's on the Redskins roster at this point. Seriously, is it just for comedic value?
2. Tony Romo. I dare say there was a dash of Big Ben to Romo's brilliant touchdown pass to Jason Witten that put the Cowboys up 24-17 yesterday. He eluded the rush with a nifty spin move, set his feet a second time, and then hit Witten in stride. It was Romo's finest play of the season, and it's those kinds of plays that make you remember why you liked Romo to begin with. Maybe we should break his legs now, so that we can always remember him this fondly.
3. DeMarco Murray. Murray had a pedestrian day against an underrated Skins front seven, but (and I can't believe I'm saying this) Peter King was right: Murray's presence back there has given Romo more confidence, and it's stabilized what was once a highly erratic offense. I can't live in a world where King and Jones are both clairvoyant.
4. DeAngelo Hall. He asked to be cut after botching the coverage on Dez Bryant's touchdown pass. If only every player were so candid about their suckiness.
5. Jake Ballard. Seriously, I think Glen Ballard has better hands.
6. Vince Young. But I wouldn't count on him EVERY week to help you out.
There's still a long way to go. The Cowboys have two games against the Giants still left, plus that Turkey Day date with the frisky Dolphins. It could all fall apart, and we could all be sitting here a month from now saying all things we always say about Tony Romo. But for now, enjoy the view from the top. It took a good long while to get here.
