ESPN

IRVING, Texas -- Tony Romo is well aware of Emmitt Smith wondering whether the Cowboys have the mental toughness required to win a road game of this magnitude and points to a pair of victories as proof that they are.

Those victories: road comebacks over the San Francisco 49ers and Washington Redskins earlier this season.

“This football team just has a way of keep coming back and keep grinding,” Romo said. “Obviously, it comes down to a game like this. That’s why you play sports.”

Granted, neither of those were win-or-go home games with the type of hype and scrutiny that comes with an NFC East title game against the New York Giants. But they both had a gotta-have-it feel for the Cowboys.

The comeback in San Francisco is an especially interesting example, although nobody knew at the time that the 49ers were one of the NFC’s top teams. Romo returned from a fractured rib and punctured lung suffered in the first half to lead a rally from a 10-point deficit in the fourth quarter to allow the Cowboys to win in overtime.

That came on the heels of a catastrophic ending in the season opener, when two Romo turnovers played a major role in the Cowboys blowing a 14-point fourth-quarter lead in a loss to the New York Jets. Coming off of last season’s awful start, the Cowboys couldn’t afford to dig an 0-2 hole.

“It felt like a must-win at that time, and we went out there and laid it on the line and the team won and we were trailing late in that game,” said Romo, who completed 12 of 15 passes for 201 yards and a touchdown in the fourth quarter and overtime period at Candlestick Park. “So there was a lot of mental toughness in that game.”

Regardless of Emmitt’s doubts, Romo expects the Cowboys to show a lot of mental toughness again with the season on the line in the Meadowlands.

IRVING, Texas – Defensive coordinator Rob Ryan believes his staff spends more time studying the red zone than anyone in the NFL. It hasn’t been enough.

The Cowboys are ranked 22nd in the NFL in red-zone defense efficiency, having allowed 17 touchdowns on 29 possessions.

"We're not playing good defense and it's only because of the red zone,” Ryan said Wednesday. “If we get that cleaned up, we'll have a great defense. It's been disappointing. It takes everybody's focus and for us to be where we want to be, where everybody wants us to be, we have to play better there."

Ryan was particularly embarrassed by last week’s performance against the Redskins. Washington scored three touchdowns in the red zone, including a quarterback draw and completion over the middle caused by a coverage bust.

All season long, Ryan has taken the blame when things went wrong for his defense. Those two plays are the exceptions.

The 4-yard touchdown run by Rex Grossman, who has never been known for his speed, came on a third-and-goal.

“Everybody in the building knew it was a quarterback draw and we didn’t execute how we wanted to stop that play,” Ryan said. “That’s embarrassing.”

The touchdown in the final minute of the first half might have frustrated Ryan even more. Grossman hit Jabar Gaffney on a crossing route in the back of the end zone for a 16-yard score. Slot corner Frank Walker bit on an underneath route and Gaffney got inside Gerald Sensabaugh.

“You know me, I'll be the first one to wear the hat when anything is a little skewed, but there is no excuse to give up a touchdown in five-deep coverage on two-deep receivers," Ryan said. "That was a little annoying and we have to do better than that.

“It takes everybody's dedication to play better in the red zone. To me, that was two plays that signified that it's not right yet."

The Cowboys fought for a 27-24 victory over the Washington Redskins on Sunday afternoon. We review the showdown in Landover with our weekly Beat Writers recap.

*The Cowboys did miss fullback Tony Fiammetta on Sunday. He's been credited for moving defenders out of the way during this amazing stretch for running back DeMarco Murray. However, John Phillips lined up at fullback for 33 snaps on Sunday and should receive high grades from the offensive coaches. He didn't miss any blocks and made sure Felix Jones and Murray were able to get to the line of scrimmage with little problems. Phillips even caught a pass, for nine-yards, out of the backfield. If the Cowboys don't have Fiammetta for an extended period of time, Phillips is more than capable of handling it. The biggest difference between Phillips and Fiammetta is the tight end has to get lower to the ground to make his blocks which keeps him upright and prevents him from moving defenders. Fiammetta is shorter so he's able to get more power in his legs to move defenders a little better.

*It was a rough day for slot corner Orlando Scandrick. He's starting now with Mike Jenkins out of the lineup with a hamstring injury. Jenkins hopes to play Thursday vs. Miami. But Scandrick has slumped in his absence. On the Redskins game-tying scoring drive, Scandrick made two critical mistakes. He had a chance to tackle fullback Darrel Young in the flat for a short gain, but missed the tackle. Young trots down the field for 27 yards. Scandrick's other poor play came on a third-and-two from the Cowboys 21. Scandrick grabbed the back of receiver Jabar Gafney's jersey after getting beat inside. Scandrick was called for a hold costing the Cowboys five yards.

*The same problems Akwasi Owusu-Ansah had last year as a returnman continues in 2011. He doesn't make defenders miss, runs tentativiely out of the end zone and doesn't know what to do on punt returns. In the first quarter, Owusu-Ansah had a chance for a nice punt return but was calling for a fair catch with Danny McCray and Alan Ball in front of him as blockers. Kevin Ogletree also picked up a block. Cowboys either need to challenge him to attack the defenders or find someone else to return kicks.

*Anthony Spencer is not playing like a man in his contract year. He's been so up-and-down it drives you crazy. He saw plenty of one-on-one blocking from tackles Trent Williams and Jammal Brown on Sunday and was left with a four tackle, one tackle for loss and one quarterback hurry efforts. Very good but sometimes you wonder if there is more for Spencer to do. Tight ends Fred Davis and Logan Paulsen contained Spencer on some plays too. Yes Spencer's job is to contain the edge and stop the run but it seems he's more of a pass rusher. Spencer is an athletic player who maybe doesn't get enough credit for doing the dirty things on the field, the plays we don't see.

*There was an interesting trio of linebackers of Bradie James, Sean Lee and Keith Brooking on Sunday. This group was on the field at the same time for about 10 snaps. It gives the Cowboys some interesting matchups. It allows them to employ two good run stoppers in Brooking and James and someone who is solid vs. the pass in Lee. One thing we like from defensive coordinator Rob Ryan is the creativity he displays. He's not afraid to use different players in different situations.

*Gerald Sensabaugh continues to play well. He finished with nine tackles, a team-high seven solos on Sunday. He also forced a fumble and recovered one as well. He's playing much better this season and we've said in the past it's due to Abram Elam's work of getting guys lined up before the snap. But Sensabaugh is very aggressive. He's not afraid to mix it up on run plays and breaks to the ball faster and harder this season after catches from receivers.

*From ESPN Stats and Information: Tony Romo is tied for second in the NFL with 13 touchdowns when pressured by five or more rushers. ... Jason Witten leads the Cowboys in yards-after-catch with 237. ... Cowboys have been penalized 24 times for 204 yards last three weeks.

When getting ready for this game, there was no doubt in my mind that the Washington Redskins would give the Cowboys their best shot. Defensively, the Redskins were still playing hard despite being put in terrible position by their offense. The Redskins' offense was as bad as any as I've studied this season, and the majority of their struggles had to do with the quarterback play of Rex Grossman and John Beck.

I really felt the Cowboys defense would be able to take advantage of how poorly Grossman had played since being put back into the lineup after Beck proved he couldn't handle the job. But when you struggle to get consistent pressure and you struggle with communication problems, even poorly playing quarterbacks can enjoy success.

Redskins' receivers had too much room to operate

For the previous two weeks, the Cowboys secondary had been outstanding. Against the Redskins, however, there were too many plays where receivers had room to operate. It all really started to fall apart when Orlando Scandrick was flagged for holding after he was beaten off the line because he wasn't in good position and had to grab his man. There was another time where the Redskins spread the Cowboys' defense across the field, forcing Terence Newman to play between two receivers on the outside because Gerald Sensabaugh failed to get over in coverage and replace Abe Elam, who had blitzed. It resulted in an easy pitch and catch for Grossman.

Scandrick also failed to get his hands on David Anderson during an out-and-up route, which resulted in a nice gain for the Redskins. If Scandrick gets his hands on Anderson in the 5-yard zone, he has no shot at getting that ball.

The Redskins drove into the Cowboys' red zone, and Grossman was able to deliver a touchdown pass in the back of the end zone to Jabar Gaffney. On the play, Sensabaugh thought he had inside help from Frank Walker, who was lined up at the other safety. At the snap, Gaffney runs up, nods to the outside and then gets Sensabaugh to have to try and adjust to him. Sensabaugh got turned and was unable to get back inside, and Walker wound up jumping an across-the-middle route underneath when he should've been helping Sensabaugh with Gaffney.

Loose coverage proves costly for Newman

While Scandrick and Sensabaugh had their struggles, so did Newman. He didn’t play near as aggressively as he had against Buffalo or Seattle. Maybe it had something to do with the chopped-up condition of the field and he didn't have confidence in his footing. Nevertheless, he played way too cautious on routes.

There was only one time where he drove on a ball, and that was on a pass over the middle to Anderson. Newman read it well, avoiding Anderson and knocking the ball down. Newman's problems were a result of always being four to five yards off in coverage. On third-and-11, Newman allowed Gaffney to run up the field and turn inside with plenty of room to catch the ball. Newman was a good four yards off.

There was another time where Newman got bumped off coverage when covering Donte Stallworth and couldn't rally to make the play. In previous games, Newman had been played much more physical.

Hatcher, Ratliff stand out on defense

When teams were able to run the ball against the Cowboys, it was mainly because of the poor play of the defensive ends. When the defense had success stopping the run, it was because Kenyon Coleman, Marcus Spears, Jason Hatcher and Sean Lissemore did a nice job of holding blocks at the point of attack.

If I had to give a game ball to one of these ends, I would hand it over to Jason Hatcher, who clearly outplayed former teammate and Redskins DE Stephen Bowen. Hatcher was able to get pressure several different ways. Ryan used him on twist stunts and over the guards in the nickel. Hatcher was always working his way up the field in the passing game, but he also did a nice job of stacking blockers at the point of attack.

Jay Ratliff keeps putting outstanding games together as well. He is one of those players that you really don't appreciate until you go into the lab and break his work down. Ratliff was strong at the point in the running game, overpowering center Will Montgomery several times, causing problems inside for the Redskins' zone running scheme. Ratliff was able to draw a holding call that brought back a nice gain on a pass play to tight end Logan Paulsen in the flat. In this game, the numbers were there for Ratliff, who has played well the last several weeks.

Where was Ware on game-tying drive?

Nobody appreciates the fine work of DeMarcus Ware and what he means to this team on a weekly basis more than I do. There is no questioning his talent and passion, but it's my job to point out flaws that I see during my film study. In this game, the defense allowed the Redskins to drive the ball down the field and score the game-tying touchdown. The 12-play drive -- for another weekend -- showed the Cowboys' defense couldn't close the game out, much like they couldn't against the Jets, Lions, and Patriots. On that final drive in regulation, the Redskins only doubled Ware once. On four of the plays, he was matched up against Jammal Brown. On the other eight, he went against young LT Trent Williams. The result for Ware: Not one sack or even a pressure.

Romo makes most of second-chances

Tony Romo won this game for the Cowboys, plain and simple, through his abilities to buy a second chance with his feet, think on the move and deliver a play when his team needed it the most.

There was no doubt in my mind that the Cowboys were going to have difficulties running the ball against the Redskins' defensive front. As well as DeMarco Murray had been carrying the ball, this was a game where the blocking was less than perfect and he had to fight for every yard.

Romo's reads and execution were spot on. Where he was at his best was his ability to feel the pressure and move to avoid it. Two examples were on touchdown passes to Laurent Robinson and Jason Witten.

Romo on the run: Example No. 1

Robinson did an outstanding job of getting in position to catch the ball. When the play started, it looked like Robinson was going to be brought in motion to create a bunch formation, but Romo did not bring him inside. At the snap, Robinson had to work up to the goal line and then sprint across to get Romo's attention. On the other side, Dez Bryant was jammed at the line.

With the pocket closing around him, Romo moved to his left to buy more time, and Bryant was trying to work himself free in the corner of the end zone. At the same time, Robinson is in the clear but is quickly closing ground to the Redskins corner on the other side of the field.

Romo, moving to his left, pointed to the left corner of the end zone to try and freeze the defender to that side. Bryant tried to work back that way, but Romo really was trying to create space for Robinson along the goal line.

At the moment of truth, Romo, instead of leading Robinson with the ball into the defender, throws the ball behind Robinson so he can brace for the catch. Robinson is able to adjust, make the catch and secure the touchdown.

Romo on the run: Example No. 2

On the TD pass to Witten, it was really a heady play by two veteran players.

Once again, Romo has to deal with pressure, but he's able to spin to his left to avoid the rush. Witten, on the right side of the formation, runs a curl at about 12 yards. When he turns, Witten sees Romo spinning out of the pocket, so he starts across the field to mirror the direction that his quarterback is turning.

Romo doesn't see Witten at first, but Witten makes himself available up and across the field. The Redskins had no safety help in the middle of the field where Witten attacked. Moving to his left and with pressure in his face, Romo delivered a strike to Witten, who was able to finish the play by getting to the end zone.

Less is more for DeMarco Murray

I knew it wasn't going to be easy for Murray, but the way he carried the ball was more impressive than his 250-yard effort vs. the Rams. On fourth-and-1 in the third quarter, with the Cowboys trailing 17-10, Jason Garrett decides to go for it.

On the field, Garrett has three tight ends, one wide receiver and Murray in the backfield. John Phillips is lined up as a wing to the left and comes in motion across the formation. Martellus Bennett is lined up on the line right, with Witten slightly off the line to his right. WR Robinson is wide left.

At the snap, the Redskins defense pinches down inside on both sides in an effort to clog the middle. Montrae Holland pulls from his left guard to the right. On the front side, Witten, Bennett, Tyron Smith and Kyle Kosier all block down inside to cave the edge.

Holland managed to get around the corner with Phillips out on the support. Holland pulled to block London Fletcher, but missed. Murray is now heading for the edge as Phillips loses contact with DeAngelo Hall, who is able to grab Murray in space. Murray, however, is much too strong for the cornerback and is able to finish the run by carrying Hall an extra four yards for the first down. The drive later was capped with the game-tying touchdown pass to Robinson.

Jerry Jones isn’t going to sugarcoat things just because the Cowboys pulled out an overtime win Sunday.

Jones knows that wasn’t a playoff-caliber performance against the Washington Redskins, who came a couple of feet away on a 52-yard field goal attempt from snapping a five-game losing streak.

“We did not play well against the Redskins,” Jones said Tuesday on KRLD-FM. “(Tony) Romo did. Early, if we hit on a couple of things, then it might have been a different story. We just missed on a couple of throws, but still, we did not play well across the board. We’ve got to do better than that at a future here in terms of this year.”

Nevertheless, the Cowboys ended the weekend at the top of the NFC East standings with a 6-4 record and possession of the tiebreaker over the New York Giants.

The Giants have a road game against the NFC South-leading Saints and host the undefeated Green Bay Packers before coming to Cowboys Stadium on Dec. 11. The Cowboys face a pair of 3-7 teams the next two weeks, hosting the Miami Dolphins and playing the Arizona Cardinals on the road.

Not that Jones is taking anything for granted.

“We know we were lucky to get out of that game the other day, but we’ve lost some we weren’t lucky in, too,” Jones said. “But you’re going to have games lost by teams that on paper they shouldn’t have lost. That’s why you can’t tell anything now. You really do just have to put your nose down and head down and go get it one at a time.”

IRVING, Texas -- Jason Garrett did not go home after the Cowboys returned from Washington D.C. on Sunday night, heading straight to Valley Ranch to begin work on Thursday’s opponent, Miami.

The assistant coaches reviewed the game film of the Redskins’ win on the plane ride home and got to work on the Miami plan Monday morning.

In Garrett’s focused world, he did not want to turn attention away from Washington in leading up to the Redskins’ game.

Miami coach Tony Sparano, who was a Dallas assistant from 2003-07, had a slightly different approach even as the Dolphins have put together a three-game winning streak.

“Well the challenge for me and the challenge for the players is completely different,” Sparano told the Dolphins’ media. “I mean coaches we’ve spent the last couple weeks, last couple weekends in preparation for this and then came right back after the game here and got work done early this morning so everything was ready to go.”

Because of Sparano’s history in preparing for the Thanksgiving game with the Cowboys, any advantage the Cowboys would have in a short week could be mitigated.

“I think a lot of people around the league have played in Thursday games,” Garrett said. “I don’t think that’s a huge, huge advantage. Tony is obviously a great football coach and we were fortunate to have him here and I was fortunate to work with him for a year when I first got here. He’ll have his team ready no doubt.”

LANDOVER, Md. -- Maybe there wasn't anything to say but Cowboys defensive coordinator Rob Ryan offered few words after the Cowboys' 27-24 victory over the Washington Redskins.

"We won, so I'm fired up," Ryan said as he walked to the team bus.

PODCAST
Ben and Skin talk about the first-place Cowboys. Tony Romo was spectacular on third down, keeping drives going when the pressure came from the Skins' defense. Listen

When asked about Rex Grossman leading the Redskins to a game-tying drive at the end of regulation Ryan noted, "Rex is streaky and he's always been."

On the kicker, Dan Bailey who won the game with a 39-yard field goal, Ryan said, "Our kicker is great."

Ryan has to be concerned with a defense that allowed 24 points to the Redskins, who was averaging 15.1 points per game, ranked 28th in the NFL. The Redskins drove 89 yards to tie the game and rallied from a 10-point deficit. The defense played well at the start forcing four punts and a fumble on the first five possessions.

But Washington scored two touchdowns by starting drives in Cowboys territory. There were two other drives leading to field goals, a make and a miss but the last three possessions resulted in a punt, interception on a deep ball and a game-tying touchdown.

The Cowboys allowed a season-high six plays of 20 or more yards, all occurring in the second half. The Cowboys had allowed four plays of 20 or more yards the last two weeks.

"Early on in the game they really created a number of different stops," Jason Garrett said. "Then as the game wore on Washington kept plugging away, they made some throws in the passing game but I thought our guys just hung in there, kept battling and that's what you have to do. They were on the field a long time, if you think about the last part of the fourth quarter then starting overtime. To me that is a gut check, it's got to come in from deep down and they made the critical stops when we needed to, to give us the chance offensively to have that last drive that allowed us to kick the field goal."

LANDOVER, Md. -- On Friday, punter Mat McBriar joked with some reporters about having to tackle someone on a punt return. McBriar didn't think it would happen.

Well it did Sunday when McBriar, playing with a bad left foot, had to move toward his left and push Brandon Banks out of bounds after a 55-yard return in the third quarter.

Banks' return set the Redskins up at the Cowboys 34 and the drive stalled when kicker Graham Gano's 49-yard field goal was wide right, which could have given the Redskins a 10-point lead. Instead, the lead remained seven.

"Downfield, I'm OK," McBriar said. "It's just the side-to-side [stuff]. Not really good especially going to the left."

When McBriar was told he made one of the biggest plays of the game, he had a bewildered look.

"Biggest play of the game?" he said. "I don't know about that."

It was a rough day for the talented punter, who shanked a 23-yarder, the shortest of the season, which put the Redskins in position to get their first score of the game.

After that, McBriar was on target, booming punts of 51, 60 and 30 yards. His 60-yarder was returned 55 yards by Banks. McBriar shouldn't have kicked it to him, but his 30-yarder landed at the Redskins 11 and was downed by deep snapper LP Ladouceur.

"I was just trying to get it out of bounds," McBriar said of his 23-yarder. "I ended up hitting it [short]."

But everything was good for McBriar. He smiled like a big brother when kicker Dan Bailey was talking to reporters about his game-winning field goal in overtime.

"The rookie is doing great," McBriar said. "For a young guy, he's capable of kicking [well]. He's had to deal with a lot. Six field goals last time. He's a heck of a rookie."

Back from D.C. and the Cowboys' 27-24 victory over the Washington Redskins has pushed them into first place in the NFC East. As always we have our weekly Stock Report where we tell you who is playing well and who isn't.

STOCK UP

Dan Bailey. The man can't miss. He's made 24 consecutive field goals including the game-winner in overtime. His kickoffs are pretty good too. Of his six kickoffs, five reached the end zone and there were two touchbacks. Bailey's calm demeanor allowed him to block out the Redskins timeout prior to the game-winning kick.

Tony Romo. Romo threw for 292 yards on Sunday but converted three touchdowns and hit Martellus Bennett and Dez Bryant on some big plays on the game-winning drive. Romo isn't forcing throws into coverage and is taking command of not only the offense but the team.

Dez Bryant. The second-year receiver broke off his route and made himself available for Romo to make a pass in overtime that eventually setup a Bailey field goal. Bryant finished with just three catches for 68 yards, but defenses are worried about him and that's giving opportunities for other players to produce.

STOCK DOWN

Mat McBriar. He's playing with a bad left foot and he made a key stop of Brandon Banks on a return by pushing him out of bounds. He booted a season-low 23 yard punt and his net average of 24.1 was the lowest of the season. McBriar is normally money but Sunday he was off.

Special teams unit. McBriar punting the ball directly to Banks, who returned one 55 yards, there was a 27-yard kickoff return, another special teams penalty, Phillip Tanner for holding, and the poor return game. While there is so much praise for Bailey, the return game and coverage units have struggled.

Orlando Scandrick. Yes he did have an interception, but he struggled in the slot and covering outside on Sunday. Scandrick said it was not one of his best efforts and he might be pressing a little bit. The return of Mike Jenkins could take some pressure off Scandrick.

LANDOVER, Md. -- Normally Jason Garrett wants his players to forget the previous game following the day-after game team meeting. This week, the Cowboys had the plane ride home to enjoy their 27-24 overtime win against Washington.

On Thursday they play Miami, which has won three straight, like the Cowboys.

“It’s fast,” right guard Kyle Kosier said. “I think the first group goes out in about 36 hours. We’ve got to enjoy this for about four hours and get on to the next one.”

The Cowboys have not played a road game prior to their annual Thanksgiving Day game since 2004 when they lost at Baltimore and beat Chicago four days later in a game started by Drew Henson.

Late last week coach Jason Garrett said the coaches’ focus had been on Washington, not Miami. Any advantage in the short week might be mitigated by the fact that Dolphins coach Tony Sparano was a Dallas assistant from 2003-07.

LANDOVER, Md -- DeMarco Murray’s ascension has been nothing short of amazing given his franchise-record 253-yard effort against St. Louis and 100-yard days against Seattle and Buffalo, but you might have learned more about him Sunday against Washington.

Seriously.

Murray ran 25 times for 73 tough yards. They were so tough that Murray called it the most physical game he had ever played.

“I’ll give him this, he runs hard even if there’s nothing there for him,” right guard Kyle Kosier said. “He’s going to hit it and get two or three yards, which he did [Sunday]. We didn’t pick up a lot of stuff up front and kind of made it hard for him.”

Coach Jason Garrett liked Murray’s perseverance against the Redskins.

“That’s what you have to do, you have to keep playing,” Garrett said. “They have a good run defense and have been for a long time. They’re committed to stopping the run. They did a nice job. DeMarco is what we’ve seen him to be throughout the year, which is, ‘Hey, I’m going to do my job, keep banging way, have the right demeanor.’ … It’s not always going to be easy. You’ve just got to fight through the adversity.

LANDOVER, Md. -- After the Dallas Cowboys were obliterated, 34-7, at the Philadelphia Eagles on Oct. 30, owner and general manager Jerry Jones preached patience.

Three weeks later, Jones looks prescient as the Cowboys are in first place in the NFC East.

The Cowboys’ 27-24 overtime win Sunday at the Washington Redskins was their third straight and improved their record to 6-4.

The 17-10 loss suffered by the New York Giants to Philadelphia on Sunday night left them with a 6-4 record.

The Cowboys are in first place thanks to a 2-1 division record. The Giants are 1-2 in the division. The two teams meet twice in December.

And don’t bury the Eagles. While Philadelphia is just 4-6 overall, it is 3-1 in the division and its toughest non-conference games against the New England Patriots and the New York Jets come at home. They play at the Cowboys on Dec. 24.

LANDOVER, Md. -- By the time the Cowboys land in Dallas on Sunday night after beating Washington in overtime, undoubtedly some players will head straight to Valley Ranch to begin rehab on some nagging injuries with such a quick turnaround for the Thanksgiving game.

At different points against the Redskins, nose tackle Jay Ratliff, Gerald Sensabaugh and Alex Albright left the game with injuries, although they were all able to return. Defensive end Jason Hatcher had his left ankle wrapped in ice after the game.

Ratliff hurt his left knee in the first half but returned after getting it taped. Sensabaugh hurt his foot in the second quarter and Albright hurt his right shoulder on the opening kickoff of the second half.

“This team just hasn’t been at full strength all year,” cornerback Orlando Scandrick said.

The Cowboys were without starters Miles Austin (hamstring), Mike Jenkins (hamstring), fullback Tony Fiametta (illness) and backup quarterback Jon Kitna (back). Jenkins expressed hope last week he could return against Miami on Thursday but that could be pushing it.

LANDOVER, Md. -- Jason Witten did not have a catch in the first half Sunday against Washington and finished with a season-low three for the game, although one was a big one on a 59-yard touchdown grab.

“Lot of bracketing,” Witten said of the Redskins’ defense on him. “The coverage wasn’t allowing it to go my way but we kind of just stuck with it.”

Witten’s first catch nearly resulted in a lost fumble, but he managed to pull the football back in for an 11-yard gain. His second catch was a 15-yard corner route for a first down on a drive that ended in Laurent Robinson’s touchdown.

The 59-yarder was just two players “playing ball.” Witten ran a curl initially but Romo was flushed to his left.

“They were setting the hook so high playing Cover 2 that they weren’t going to let my by them, so we were hooking it up,” Witten said. “It was the same as the first [catch], but I see him scrambling and just tried to stay in his vision. That was a great job by Tony.”

LANDOVER, Md. – He’ll take the win, but Orlando Scandrick is not looking forward to watching the film of this game.

“I didn’t play my best game,” Scandrick said. “Quite frankly, I think I played bad. Made a big play, but a couple penalties, a couple penalties, a couple missed assignments, a couple misalignments and they’re right back in the game.”

Scandrick, who had an interception and two defensive holding penalties, had plenty of company in the Cowboys’ secondary. They made Redskins quarterback Rex Grossman and a bunch of waiver-wire-type wide receivers look like a legitimate NFL passing attack.

Grossman completed 25 of 38 passes for 289 yards and two touchdowns. Jabar Gaffney had seven catches for 115 yards and a score, a huge day for a receiver whose previous season high was 68 yards.

“They executed,” said cornerback Terence Newman, who was in coverage of several of Gaffney’s catches. “We didn’t execute as well as we would like, but you’ve got to tip your hat to the guy because he’s took a lot of criticism throughout his nine years in the league. He’s showing everybody that he’s a quality quarterback.”

Yes, he’s talking about the same Rex Grossman who was benched for John Beck.