Rapid Reaction: Dallas Cowboys
A few thoughts on the Dallas Cowboys' 30-23 win against the Seattle Seahawks at CenturyLink Field.
What it means: If this doesn't signify the Cowboys are for real, what will?
For the first time since 2007 the Cowboys are 5-1 and have their longest winning streak since that season, which they finished with an NFC-best 13-3 mark. They beat the defending Super Bowl champs and handed the Seahawks just their second home loss of the Russell Wilson era.
The Cowboys did their best to give it away on special teams, but they continued to fight and claw and left with what was undoubtedly the best win of the Jason Garrett era. The offense stuck to its identity and the defense had its best game, punctuated by Rolando McClain's interception.
Six times at 100: It took him some time to get going, but DeMarco Murray saved his best for last and tied Jim Brown's mark with his sixth 100-yard game in a row to open the season.
Murray finished with 113 on 28 carries and he scored the game-winning touchdown with 3:16 to play to cap a nine-play, 80-yard drive. Murray carried three straight times for 46 yards on the drive, willing the Cowboys into the end zone.
That it came against the NFL's top-ranked run defense was even more impressive. The Cowboys finished with 161 yards on 35 carries and Seattle was allowing just 2.6 yards per carry entering the game.
And it wasn't just Murray. Joseph Randle produced 52 yards on five carries and kept the Seahawks off balance with his cutback ability in the first half.
Game ball: Maybe it's time to believe in this defense. Special teams led to 14 Seattle points and an offensive turnover at the 20 led to a field goal. The defense corralled Marshawn Lynch on all but one 32-yrd run. It contained Wilson, limiting him to just 126 yards. It made Percy Harvin a nonfactor. The Cowboys sacked Wilson twice and affected the quarterback for most of the game. McClain ended the game with an interception of Wilson at the Cowboys' 48. Credit Rod Marinelli for the scheme but credit the players for executing and believing.
Stock watch: If not for Dan Bailey there would not be anything special about the Cowboys' special teams. Bailey became the NFL's most accurate kicker with his 42-yard field goal in the second quarter and added a career-long 56-yarder in the third, but it was a bad day for the entire unit. Chris Jones had a punt blocked for a touchdown on the Cowboys' first possession, just like in 2012, that was returned for a touchdown. Dwayne Harris muffed a punt that was turned into a touchdown. Garrett talks about the need for all three phases to play well to win. That didn't happen Sunday but the Cowboys got away with it.
What's next: The Cowboys return to AT&T Stadium to take on the New York Giants. It will be the first of three straight home games before the Cowboys travel to London to take on the Jacksonville Jaguars at Wembley Stadium. Last season the Cowboys earned their first win against the Giants in Arlington, Texas, in five tries at the $1.2 billion stadium.
