MIAMI – Tony Romo and the Cowboys ended their seven-game losing streak in convincing fashion Sunday, beating the Dolphins 24-14 in Romo's long-awaited return from injury.
On Saturday, the staff writers gave their gut feeling for Sunday's game. Check out the instant reactions from the staff of DallasCowboys.com.
Nick Eatman: After a couple of misses with Gut Feeling here lately, I must say I got one today. Off by just a point with my predicted score, I had the Cowboys winning 23-14 with McFadden rushing for 125 and he ended up with 129. Yeah, I was off with Witten getting eight catches - just two - but overall I thought Romo would make everyone around him better and he did that and more. With all of this Romo talk, let's not forget the performance of the defense. Not only did that unit get on the scoreboard, but kept the Dolphins off the field for most of the game. The pressure was strong from start to finish. Overall, it was a great team win and a much-needed one at that.
David Helman: I didn't nail all the intricate details, but I felt like I had a pretty good grasp on exactly how this one would play out. It was sloppy, there were far too many penalties and Tony Romo didn't play his best game, but that was the offense we were used to. Romo hit his receivers for enough gains to soften up the Miami defense, and that opened up the trenches for a gutsy, effective day from Darren McFadden and Robert Turbin. Dallas ran for an outstanding 166 yards and exerted their will. With the offense able to play that physical, clock-controlling offense we saw last year, the defense thrived by getting elusive sacks and turnovers. This was the team we expected to see in 2015, and they took a big step forward in attempting to turn their season around.
Bryan Broaddus: With Romo back in the lineup the one feeling that I had was that all of the skill guys would be in play during this game. I especially thought with the struggles that the Dolphins have had with tight ends, that Jason Witten and Gavin Escobar would have some success. Early in the game the Dolphins decided they were going to bracket Witten and not allow him to play in the middle like he is accustomed to. He was able to snag a pass or two when signal covered and came back with a big catch on third down in the fourth quarter to keep a drive going. Escobar ran several good routes and made himself available if needed. If Romo could have found him a little bit sooner in the end zone, they would have had a touchdown. Give some credit as well to James Hanna for some solid point of attack blocking as well.
Rob Phillips:Clearly Tony Romo had some rust, with at least two throws he'd like to have back. But the Dolphins didn't score any points off his two turnovers. Really impressive performance by the Cowboys' defense. Offensively, Terrance Williams had his first touchdown catch since Week 4 and Gavin Escobar had his first multiple-catch game since Week 2. And Romo's 80-yard touchdown drive and throw to Dez Bryant to take the lead for good was the type of answer the offense is used to having with No. 9 under center. He certainly wasn't perfect, but it's clear the entire team benefited from his return, as expected. The losing streak ends just in time for a crucial four-day turnaround on Thanksgiving week.
For the initial gut feeling predictions of the staff writers posted on Saturday, click here:
http://www.dallascowboys.com/news/2015/11/21/dallascowboyscom-writers-share-their-gut-feelings-cowboys-dolphins
