ARLINGTON, Tex. - After what seemed an eternity of 8-8 seasons and perpetual exclusion from the playoffs, the Dallas Cowboys once again find themselves in contention when it counts.
Capturing their first division crown since 2009, the Cowboys will host the Detroit Lions for an NFC Wild Card game on Sunday.
Quarterback Tony Romo finished his regular season campaign with 34 touchdowns (fourth-most) and 9 interceptions (10th-fewest) on 3,405 yards passing, and seeks a second win in his postseason career against three defeats. Sunday will find Romo in his first playoff contest in five seasons.
"I'm playing at a level I'm proud of and hope to get better," Romo said. "I'm just excited about the progression of improvement and want to keep this going in our next game."
"He's the guy who orchestrates and leads everything we do on offense," Cowboys head coach Jason Garrett said of his quarterback.
Dallas (12-5) rebounded from a 23-point defeat to the Eagles on Thanksgiving with four straight victories to end their regular season, scoring 41 points per game and ending the year as one of four undefeated teams in December.
And made history in the process as running back DeMarco Murray and wide receiver Dez Bryant secured Cowboys franchise records in their fields at the Washington Redskins in Week 17, a 44-17 Dallas rout.
Bryant hauled in two touchdowns in that contest, good for his 15th and 16th this season, the most of any Cowboys receiver in 54 years of football.
"Dez is really a remarkable player," Cowboys tight end Jason Witten said, "a dynamic player, and it's great to see his growth.
"As a teammate, as a leader, as a veteran guy, you can take a lot of pride in seeing the growth of Dez and DeMarco [Murray] mature as players."
Murray's 32 yard rush last Sunday would brake the franchise's single-season rushing record held by Emmitt Smith since 1995. He finished that game with 100 yards on 20 rush attempts and a touchdown.
He gained 100 yards in 12 contests this season, the second-highest total in the league's history.
The Cowboys rush the football a league-high 68 percent of the time, aiding DeMarco Murray to the rushing title with 1,845 yards and 13 touchdowns, both marks the best in the game. He rushed for at least one touchdown in his last three appearances for Dallas.
Murray will rush behind a front five that had three of its own elected to the Pro Bowl en route to the second-most rushing yards every Sunday (147.1 ypg) behind only the Seahawks.
Though the Cowboys' backfield will face a stiff test in the Lions' defensive line, a unit that allows a league-low 69.3 yards per game and 3.3 yards per first down rush attempt.
Detroit (11-5) will feature Ndamukong Suh on that line after he won his appeal of a one-game suspension he intially received for stomping on the leg of Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers in their game last Sunday.
"I'm just pleased with the decision and glad I have the opportunity," said Suh this week, whose suspension was replaced with a $70,000 fine. "I can go against Dallas and help my teammates win the game. I think that's most important."
His 8 1/2 sacks were the most for the Lions' stout group, which held opponents to under 100 yards rushing in 14 of 16 outings this season. In five games, opposing backs could not surpass 50 yards against them.
"We have a great defense, they've held us in games a lot of times," Lions receiver Calvin Johnson said of their stopping eleven. "Like they say, 'defense wins championships', so if we just step our game up on offense we'll be alright."
The Lions failed to secure the NFC North in their game at Lambeau Field, falling 30-20 to the Packers, though will appear in the postseason under head coach Jim Caldwell after a two-year drought.
They play extra football for the second time in 15 years, though have lost 10 of 11 playoff games in the Super Bowl era.
Lions quarterback Matthew Stafford in 0-16 in career road games against teams with a winning record, the third-most defeats by a passer in that category since the 1970 merger.
"I think, obviously, you watch every game and find ways that you can get better, win, lose, or draw," said Stafford, in search of his first playoff win. "We're a battle-tested team and have won 11 football games this year. We found ways to win a lot of them and we'll continue to do that. We just have to move forward."
Stafford found 22 touchdowns and 12 interceptions and is 2-0 in his career against the Cowboys. He surpassed the 4,000 yard mark for his fourth straight season, tossing for 4,257 yards this year.
Detroit scored 15.5 points per game away from Ford Field, underscored only by the Raiders and Jaguars.
Dallas leads Detroit 13-12 in their all-time series and both sides have split two playoff meetings.
No comments:
Post a Comment