Dolphins’ Defense Falters in Loss to Cowboys

ESPN noted that Romo threw well using his right hand, but the way he managed to escape being tackled by a Dolphins’ safety and even passed the ball using his left hand was a feat.

After the Sunday’s 24-14 victory over the Miami Dolphins, a whole lot of people wanted to give Tony Romo credit for the victory, but prior to the game, Romo addressed his teammates and said, he was inspired by how they kept performing despite a seven game losing streak. The record speaks volumes – the Cowboys are 3-0 when Romo is their starting quarterback and 0-7 when he is not.

The Cowboys face the Carolina Panthers next Sunday, the only 10-0 team in the NFL. Whenever the offense got behind the chains, they seemed like they would just concede the drive and throw little dump off passes.

CLAMPDOWN: Dallas’ defense dominated, beginning when linebacker Rolando McClain scored the game’s first points and his first career touchdown on a 12-yard interception return. He made an excellent read on a pass attempt from Ryan Tannehill early on in the first quarter as he slipped into the passing lane to pick off an ill-advised throw.

The Dolphins (4-6) are likely to miss the playoffs for the seventh year in a row. Romo, at that time was not able to inject pain killer before the game. “That’s why it’s the NFL”.

Each quarterback made a poor first-half decision, and both plays resulted in interceptions. A frustrated Romo yelled at intended receiver Bryant as they headed for the bench.

Romo showed some rust from his absence, throwing a pair of ugly, un-Romo like interceptions. “I did practice that about seven or eight years ago, so I was ready for it”.

“That just gave me a shiver, and I know it inspired our team”, the Dallas team owner said.

As expected, Romo sparked a team tied for next to last in the National Football League in points. The Cowboys once again reclaimed the lead on Romo’s 16-yard pass to Bryant. With that said, it’s not like his offensive line (aside from Jason Fox and Dallas Thomas) was bad, and his running backs, when used, were productive. “He has been for a long time”.

Darren McFadden provided offensive balance by rushing for 129 yards.

“We know how to do it”, said defensive tackle Ndamukong Suh, who was brought to Miami partially to end the Dolphins’ struggles against the run. “We didn’t do a good enough job in that area”.

The Dolphins had the ball for only 21 minutes and went 1 for 10 on third-down conversions. A coaching staff cleanup will be necessary, no matter how many Oklahoma drills Dan Campbell makes the Dolphins do.

“We don’t want a flag”, he said, “but that strikes confidence”. He’s exciting. Everyone in our locker room believes in him. “I just felt like we had one of our best players back in Romo”. If you include London, which was a home game, the Dolphins are 1-3 in home games this season. The penalties are simply killing Miami right now. “You always have (Jason) Witten inside, so this is a very tough offense”. A third-down holding penalty on cornerback Jamar Taylor allowed the Cowboys to keep the ball, and he was beaten deep by Williams on another third down for the TD.

“I put this loss on me”, Taylor said.

Speaking of that aforementioned first completion, in which Romo had to avoid the rush in his own end zone and make a left-handed pass, Jones, could barely contain his excitement, via the Star Telegram.

-SPECIAL TEAMS: B. Lucky Whitehead came through with an 18-yard punt return to set up a field goal.

NOTES: Neither team reported any injuries….

It’s just one game, but it certainly is a great start.