Another Win For The Cowboys

Some teams run trick plays because they do not have the talent to beat their opponent straight-up. Some do it because they have prolific talent and they want their future foes to spend time looking at the tape and preparing for such plays.

The Dallas Cowboys pulled one off against the Detroit Lions in their 42-21 victory Monday night that firmly established Dallas as a serious and solid Super Bowl contender and left the Lions in a more precarious playoff position.

Late in the fourth quarter, the Cowboys ran a little toss-option play on which Dez Bryant connected with Jason Witten for a touchdown and a 35-21 lead. Bryant had never before thrown pass in the NFL; Witten had caught more than a few. That came in the midst of a string of four unanswered Cowboys touchdowns.

Make no mistake, the Cowboys are to be reckoned with, and are fun to watch. Rookie quarterback Dak Prescott answers every question about poise and polish, running back Ezekiel Eliott is a threat on every play, there are Bryant and Witten to cover and an offensive line as good as they come. The defense is aggressive.

Nor did the Cowboys treat a game they didn’t need to win as a game they didn’t need to win. They played their starters and they pounded a team desperately seeking a playoff berth.

“There’s just one way to play, one way to practice,” Cowboys coach Jason Garrett said. “You can’t put a different meaning on different competition, all of a sudden saying one game is more important than the other. That’s not how we operate.”
 
 
Post By: Larry Weisman, a longtime sportswriter for USA TODAY, blogs for Twistity.com. Follow him on Twitter @MrLarryWeisman