Cowboys rally past Bills on late FG
Folk's 53-yarder caps comeback
Posted by the Asbury Park Press on 10/9/07
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
ORCHARD PARK, N.Y. — Tony Romo is nothing if not resilient. And because he didn't let four interceptions in the first half, two returned for touchdowns, destroy his night, the Dallas Cowboys pulled off a stunning comeback victory.
The Cowboys scored nine points in the final 20 seconds Monday night, with Nick Folk's 53-yard field goal as time expired giving them an improbable 25-24 win over the Buffalo Bills.
Romo, after being intercepted five times and also losing a fumble, drove Dallas (5-0) 80 yards and hit Patrick Crayton with a 4-yard TD pass with 20 seconds remaining. The 2-point conversion try failed when Jabari Greer stripped Terrell Owens of the ball in the end zone.
But Nathan Jones recovered the onside kick and after two completions, Folk nailed his fourth field goal, shocking the sellout crowd that came to celebrate the first Monday night home game for Buffalo (1-4) in 13 years.
It was the second last-second loss on a field goal this season for the Bills; Denver did almost the same thing in the opener.
And the win kept the Cowboys as the NFC's only unbeaten team heading into a megamatchup with 5-0 New England next week in Texas Stadium.
This latest victory was one of the most incredible in the Cowboys' illustrious history. Buffalo made nearly all the big plays, including interceptions for TDs by George Wilson and Chris Kelsay and a 103-yard kickoff runback by Terence McGee.
In position to clinch it, Trent Edwards' pass from the Dallas 11 was tipped by DeMarcus Ware and returned 70 yards by Terence Newman. Romo looked for tight end Jason Witten, his favorite receiver. Instead, he found linebacker John DiGiorgio at the goal line and DiGiorgio returned his first career pickoff 38 yards.
It was the third time a pass intended for Witten was stolen by Buffalo.
Yet the Cowboys didn't go away. And after their long drive to Crayton's touchdown, Sam Hurd deflected the onside kick ahead to Jones.
Immediately, Romo hit Owens, but he couldn't hold onto a 20-yard pass to the Buffalo 25; officials needed a replay review to overturn the original call.
Romo completed two more passes and Folk, after having his first try from 53 yards negated by a Bills timeout, won it.
The Bills defense and special teams combined for three scores, including McGee's electric kickoff return, giving Buffalo a 24-13 lead after three quarters.
McGee's score was the fifth kickoff return for a TD of his career, and came immediately after Folk hit a 29-yard field goal cutting Buffalo's lead to 17-13 early in the third quarter.
Posted by the Asbury Park Press on 10/9/07
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
ORCHARD PARK, N.Y. — Tony Romo is nothing if not resilient. And because he didn't let four interceptions in the first half, two returned for touchdowns, destroy his night, the Dallas Cowboys pulled off a stunning comeback victory.
The Cowboys scored nine points in the final 20 seconds Monday night, with Nick Folk's 53-yard field goal as time expired giving them an improbable 25-24 win over the Buffalo Bills.
Romo, after being intercepted five times and also losing a fumble, drove Dallas (5-0) 80 yards and hit Patrick Crayton with a 4-yard TD pass with 20 seconds remaining. The 2-point conversion try failed when Jabari Greer stripped Terrell Owens of the ball in the end zone.
But Nathan Jones recovered the onside kick and after two completions, Folk nailed his fourth field goal, shocking the sellout crowd that came to celebrate the first Monday night home game for Buffalo (1-4) in 13 years.
It was the second last-second loss on a field goal this season for the Bills; Denver did almost the same thing in the opener.
And the win kept the Cowboys as the NFC's only unbeaten team heading into a megamatchup with 5-0 New England next week in Texas Stadium.
This latest victory was one of the most incredible in the Cowboys' illustrious history. Buffalo made nearly all the big plays, including interceptions for TDs by George Wilson and Chris Kelsay and a 103-yard kickoff runback by Terence McGee.
In position to clinch it, Trent Edwards' pass from the Dallas 11 was tipped by DeMarcus Ware and returned 70 yards by Terence Newman. Romo looked for tight end Jason Witten, his favorite receiver. Instead, he found linebacker John DiGiorgio at the goal line and DiGiorgio returned his first career pickoff 38 yards.
It was the third time a pass intended for Witten was stolen by Buffalo.
Yet the Cowboys didn't go away. And after their long drive to Crayton's touchdown, Sam Hurd deflected the onside kick ahead to Jones.
Immediately, Romo hit Owens, but he couldn't hold onto a 20-yard pass to the Buffalo 25; officials needed a replay review to overturn the original call.
Romo completed two more passes and Folk, after having his first try from 53 yards negated by a Bills timeout, won it.
The Bills defense and special teams combined for three scores, including McGee's electric kickoff return, giving Buffalo a 24-13 lead after three quarters.
McGee's score was the fifth kickoff return for a TD of his career, and came immediately after Folk hit a 29-yard field goal cutting Buffalo's lead to 17-13 early in the third quarter.
posted by The Gryphon at 7:33 AM
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