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IRVING, Texas - Amidst all the big plays, from the long passes to the punt return touchdowns, in last Sunday's win over the Falcons, two consecutive plays might have told the story better than any others.
One was a huge hit from right cornerback Mike Jenkins, who crushed Falcons receiver Marty Booker that nearly caused a fumble. The next play came from left corner Terence Newman, who delivered an even bigger blow to receiver Roddy White, jarring the ball loose, although it went out of bounds.
Two huge hits from two of the most unlikeliest players.
"I don't think people expect to see hits like that from me and T-New," Jenkins said. "But that's part of our game, too. I know we want to be very physical and when you get the opportunity to make a hit like that, you have to be able to come through."
Jenkins was manhandling Falcons receivers all game, blasting them at the line of scrimmage, and redirecting them on routes. He even knocked down two receivers on the same play.
"He's real physical," head coach Wade Phillips said. "I don't know if you saw it, but he knocked the guy down - the receiver on the outside - knocked him on his back and then went over and made the interception on the other guy's player, because he had knocked his player down."
Safety Gerald Sensabaugh, who had a few big licks of his own on Sunday, said physical play can be contagious throughout the defense, but you have to pick your spots.
"During the ballgame, there are times when you can make a nice kill-shot and there are times when you have to make a good, sound tackle," Sensabaugh said. "Last game, there were lots of situations when you can take those kill-shots and guys were capitalizing on those opportunities.
"It always get you jacked up when you see a guy get a big hit like that. I guess it does kind of roll over and other guys want to make big hits, too. A tackle is a tackle. But when we're playing solid, I don't think anyone can beat us when we're playing like that."
Another Tight Match-Up
The Cowboys faced arguably the best tight end in NFL history last week in Atlanta's Tony Gonzalez. This week it won't get much easier, although Seattle's John Carlson doesn't quite carry the same reputation.
But Carlson isn't that far behind on the stat sheet, recording 24 catches for 294 yards this season with two touchdowns already.
"He's pretty good. He's probably one of the more underrated players in the league. He's definitely a good player," said Sensabaugh, who was matched up with Gonzalez often last week. "We'll have a scheme and if it calls for me to be on him, I'll take the challenge and we'll get it going again."
The Cowboys also used Bobby Carpenter to stop Gonzalez last week and Phillips said his linebacker played rather well against one of the elite tight ends in the game. Look for the Cowboys to use similar match-ups to stop Carlson, although he may not be used as much in the passing game.
The Seahawks are banged up on the offensive line, evident by Wednesday's move to put All-Pro tackle Walter Jones on injured reserve. Carlson may be used more on the line to help block pass-rushers like DeMarcus Ware, who has four sacks in two games.
Hard To Forget
Being a veteran linebacker for 12 seasons, Keith Brooking knows the football lingo. He knows that you're supposed to say things like "that game is behind us, and we're moving on."
But Brooking is human, too. And he admits it's not easy to forget last week's huge win over the Falcons, a team for whom he not only played his entire career, but grew up watching and idolizing.
"Trust me, it's hard for me to do," Brooking said Wednesday. "I want to keep thinking about that one. But really, we have to put that one behind us. When I walked into these doors today, I put that game behind me and now we're focusing on the Seahawks."
Smiles Austin
Former Cowboys running back Julius Jones has an image of Miles Austin. Ironically enough, it occurred in Seattle back in the 2006 playoffs.
But Jones recalled Austin, a rookie wide receiver at the time, returning a kickoff for a touchdown against Seattle, the only postseason kickoff return in Cowboys franchise history. And Jones remembers Austin kept a smile throughout the play.
Even from afar, Jones said he's happy for the sudden breakthrough that's occurred with Austin, who has 421 receiving yards in two games.
"I'm extremely happy for Miles," said Jones, who played for the Cowboys from 2004-07. "He's been the same Miles since day one. He's running with that smile on his face. All they have to do is get him the ball. He's been making plays every time he gets the chance. He's doing what you should do with an opportunity - that's Miles Austin."
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Nick Eatman - 
