GAME RECAP: COWBOYS 23 – TEXANS 22

An article by Joe D.    2 Comments

Cowboys Survive Late Scare in 23-22 Win Over Texans

The Cowboys won their first game of the preseason by the skin of their teeth, 23-22 over the Texans at Texas Stadium on Friday night.  It almost slipped away from them late in the fourth quarter when Texans’ backup quarterback Sage Rosenfels scrambled 8 yards to cut the Cowboys lead to 23-22.  The Texans missed the ensuing 2 point conversion that would’ve given them a one point lead, and with the help of a defensive holding penalty on 3rd and 11, the Cowboys escaped with the win and brought the Governor’s Cup back to Dallas.

“It was one of those games that you needed to turn it on,” Phillips said. “I
thought everybody was right on that we needed to be able to turn it on and I
think we did.”

The Texans scored 13 points off of turnovers in the game, and two of those turnovers occurred inside the Houston 10:  The Romo interception in the end zone and the Felix Jones fumble at the Texans 9.  That took what possibly could have been 14 points away from the Cowboys, and gave 10 points to the Texans, a 24-point swing.

There were many positives to take out of this game though.

The starters look like they are ready for the season opener.  Tony Romo completed 15/19 passes for 166 yards and a touchdown and an interception each.  He connected with Patrick Crayton on a 6-yard pass to give the Cowboys a 7-3 lead early.  Marion Barber III carried the ball 13 times for 75 yards and a touchdown, and Terrell Owens caught four passes for 43 yards.  Sam Hurd also looked good, catching two balls for 43 yards.  Patrick Crayton reeled in 3 passes for 39 yards and a touchdown. The offensive line really did a nice job of opening up the holes and allowing Romo the time to find his targets.

“We came out and jumped on those guys, and didn’t wait around until the second
half,” guard Leonard Davis said. “I think that’s kind of where we caught them
off guard.”

The starting defense took exception to their performance last week against the Broncos.  They allowed just 10 total yards on their first three series.  Houston still got 3 points on a field goal though as Houston returned the opening kickoff to the Dallas 37.  They allowed just 10 points in the first half.

Nick Folk is still perfect on the preseason.  He connected on all three of his field goals Friday.  He kicked 48, 41, and 35 yard field goals virtually right down the middle. 

One more thing that Cowboys fans will be happy about is the fact that the Cowboys only committed 5 penalties for 38 yards in this game, a vast improvement over last week.

Don’t expect to see most of the Cowboys starters until the season opener against Cleveland on September 7.  This means that in the final preseason game against Minnesota on August 30, you can expect to see a lot of Felix Jones, Mike Jenkins, Orlando Scandrick, Martellus Bennett, and many others trying to make a good impression, and many will need to if they want to make the team.  

The reserves went the rest of the way in the second half.  Brad Johnson looked very good, completing 9/13 passes for 107 yards. 

“We were in a rhythm and we wanted to see Barber get some work in,” Phillips
explained. “He needed to carry the ball some. If you put Felix in you’re going
to share it a little bit and we really didn’t need that this game. We’ll need it
during the regular season, certainly.” 

The Cowboys suffered two injuries to key personnel in this game.  Left guard Kyle Kosier (sprained foot), and wide receiver Isaiah Stanback (shoulder subluxation) will both have MRI’s on Saturday.  Those injuries fail in comparison to the injury that Texans wide receiver Harry Williams suffered.

Williams suffered a spine injury early in the first quarter when he collided with a teammate trying to make a tackle on a kickoff return.  He fractured his C3 vertebra on the play and was paralyzed on the field.  He was eventually taken off the field on a stretcher and taken to Presbyterian Hospital in Dallas.  He has movement in his arms and legs and has regained most normal functioning.  He will have surgery to have the two vertebrae fused this weekend.  Thoughts and prairs go out to his friends and family.