Dallas drives methodically to the Colt 15 until Marlin Jackson makes a big run stop on Marion Barber. Passing game was all dinks and dunks, including a pass well short of the first down on 3rd-and-11 to Crayton. Dallas drove 9 1/2 minutes and settled for a Martin Grammatica FG. Oh Christ, he's still in the league? Romo's one long pass was an overthrow forced toward double-covered T.O. when he appeared to have Jason Witten wide open in the end zone.
Colts answer with a long kickoff return by TJ Rushing. It'd be funny if they took about a minute to take the lead. Both starting RBs in this game are young guys I've felt have Marshall Faulk-like potential. Addai should have lost 5 on the first handoff but he squirmed free and gained 4. Manning got forever to hit Harrison for about 30 thanks to good work by Tony Ugoh and Ryan Lilja. The whole Colt line, actually. You could see Cowboys giving up on the rush and jumping hoping for a pass block WELL before Manning let it go. Different result on 3rd-and-9 a couple of plays later. Demarcus Ware got a huge rush off the edge vs. Ugoh and forced an early throw. Vinatieri's not kicking tonight, but Shane Andrus hits a 40-yarder to make it 3-3. Colts took about 3:00 to score.
Fox had a graphic earlier that said Peyton Manning's the only player to be the league MVP, the Super Bowl MVP and the Pro Bowl MVP all in the same season. That's pretty impressive.
Impressive how bad Fox's research people are, that is. LADAINIAN TOMLINSON was the NFL MVP last season. Joe Buck didn't know that?
Cowboys get a drive extended because DE Jeff Charleston made a headfirst hit on Romo while he was on the ground. Wasn't a very hard hit at all but it keeps the drive alive. 3-3 after one.
Romo getting good protection, max protection, at the start of the 2nd. Hits Anthony Fasano 3 straight times to get Dallas inside the 20. Romo's the only starting Cowboy skill player still in the game. Dallas drives about 8 minutes to settle another FG, as the Colt run D stiffens against Barber in the red zone. Nick Folk's kick makes it 6-3 Dallas. Go Nick Folk.
Barber is totally vulturing Julius Jones from a fantasy standpoint. When Dallas gets inside the 20, Jones gets the hell out of there.
Looks like Texas Stadium might be about half full tonight, before everybody starts hollering about how bad St. Louis fans are.
Jim Sorgi and Lindenwood's DeDe Dorsey in the backfield now for the Colts. Colt tackles really struggling in pass protection this possession, but Sorgi is managing, hitting Fletcher several times. Ugoh's still in there. Colts go for it on 4th-and-1 at the Dallas 35 but Dorsey gets stuffed.
Brad Johnson in for Dallas. We get our first 3-and-out, and punt, of the game. Colt run defense holding up well tonight. Just 3:26 left in a very fast-moving first half. Romo finished a very impressive 10-11-93.
Ugoh appears to be learning the Tariq Glenn false start that is never called. Colts 3-and-out anyway.
Barber takes over the game in the last 2:00 of the half, juking Tim Jennings out of his shoes on a swing pass and cracking a 3rd-and-1 draw wide open for 16. Colts doing a terrible job accounting for the TE; Fasano has come wide open 4 or 5 times this quarter. Klutzy fumble by Johnson puts Dallas in a 3rd-and-26 hole and they end up punting it back.
Failing to block the punt, the Colts take a knee to eventually run out the half. 6-3 Dallas at the break.
Pass from Sorgi is tipped by blitzing LB Alex Obomese and picked off by CB Keith Davis, who returns it 41 yards for a TD. 13-3 Dallas.
Colts give up sack immediately after kickoff thanks to lousy work by Toudouze and Ulrich on the right side. Sorgi's really feeling the heat now, throwing a wild pitch on 3rd down.
Matt Moore in at QB and Tyson Thompson at RB for Dallas. Two pretty passes to TE Tony Curtis get Dallas to the Colt 20. Ron Meeks'd better get that whole cover-the-TE thing figured out. Ramel Meekins stuffs Thompson to force 4th-and-1 at the Colt 12. Thompson just barely converts the 4th down. He scores a short TD two plays later. 20-3 Dallas.
Sorgi not impressing at all as the Colts 3-and-out again. Two poor incompletions as he continues to feel more pressure than he's getting.
Moore's showing more composure in the pocket than Sorgi is. Meekins stuffs Thompson again to force another 3rd-and-1, at midfield. Thompson converts it in one try this time.
We enter the 4th quarter with Dallas up handily, 20-3, and driving for more.
Grammatica's 47-yard FG puts Dallas up 23-3. Moore has driven them to 10 points. He's getting decent protection and he's looked good.
Biggest shortcoming of the Cowboys tonight is probably their kickoff coverage. Josh Betts in at QB for the Colts. Drive starting across the 35. Somebody puts a great big beetle on Tony Romo during a sideline interview, but Pam Oliver hung in there like a real trooper. Betts keeps drive going with a 3rd down scramble and a 4th-down completion to Craphonso Thorpe. Scrambling again, Betts' long throw into the end zone is too short and picked off.
SIGN OF THE APOCALYPSE: "Viva Viagra".
Dallas drive ends with Edward Johnson beating two guys to sack Moore. Matt'll have to learn he had time to get rid of the ball on that play.
Betts converts a 4th-and-9 to keep Indy's drive alive. The Colts' server has apparently crashed, so I can't say who #15 was who caught it. Betts later miraculously escapes the rush for a 20-yard or so scramble down to the 11. Nicely timed slant pass to Trent Shelton gets Indy into the end zone for the first time with 2:08 left in the game. 23-10 Dallas.
Dallas recovers the onside kick. Cowboys run out the clock with Rich Bartel at QB and Jackie Battle at RB. 23-10 Dallas is the final score.
Dallas has to be happy with how well they controlled the ball tonight. They had a big advantage in time of possession. Romo looks sharp and Moore looks like a real find. Barber and Fasano showed they could step in without the offense missing a beat. Defensively, they seemed to bring the LBs a lot on the blitz, and they got good pressure against Indy's 1st and 2nd strings.
Indy probably doesn't take preseason that seriously - they've now lost 9 of their last 10 - but tonight showed they've got a couple of important things to clean up. Dallas put together long drives because no Colt defender ever accounted for any Dallas TE. And Sorgi looked pretty darn bad. They REALLLLY never want him to play. Ugoh's development bears watching; it looks like he can do the job.
2 down, 63 to go! Up next: NFL Network is supposed to be airing Bengals-Lions at 11pm, and I'll try to catch it then. And yes, I have to work in the morning.
Betts converts a 4th-and-9 to keep Indy's drive alive. The Colts' server has apparently crashed, so I can't say who #15 was who caught it. Betts later miraculously escapes the rush for a 20-yard or so scramble down to the 11. Nicely timed slant pass to Trent Shelton gets Indy into the end zone for the first time with 2:08 left in the game. 23-10 Dallas.
Dallas recovers the onside kick. Cowboys run out the clock with Rich Bartel at QB and Jackie Battle at RB. 23-10 Dallas is the final score.
Dallas has to be happy with how well they controlled the ball tonight. They had a big advantage in time of possession. Romo looks sharp and Moore looks like a real find. Barber and Fasano showed they could step in without the offense missing a beat. Defensively, they seemed to bring the LBs a lot on the blitz, and they got good pressure against Indy's 1st and 2nd strings.
Indy probably doesn't take preseason that seriously - they've now lost 9 of their last 10 - but tonight showed they've got a couple of important things to clean up. Dallas put together long drives because no Colt defender ever accounted for any Dallas TE. And Sorgi looked pretty darn bad. They REALLLLY never want him to play. Ugoh's development bears watching; it looks like he can do the job.
2 down, 63 to go! Up next: NFL Network is supposed to be airing Bengals-Lions at 11pm, and I'll try to catch it then. And yes, I have to work in the morning.
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