ESPN NFL

Posted by ESPN.com's Matt Mosley

PHILADELPHIA -- Greetings from Philadelphia International Airport, where Eagles fans and commuters are still celebrating a 33-14 win over the winless Bucs. In other news, little-known wide receiver Miles Austin saved the Cowboys' season Sunday with his 10-catch, 250-yard performance that folks will be talking about for years to come.

	Jamie Squire/Getty Images
	Miles Austin caught 10 passes for 250 yards in Sunday’s victory.

Some of you would like to know where in the world Austin came from. Well, he grew up in Garfield, N.J., and he attended Monmouth University. Austin wasn't drafted by the Cowboys, but coach Bill Parcells signed him as a free agent, in part, because he grew up close to Parcells' old Bergen (N.J.) County neighborhood. In an unrelated note, Austin owns the second-longest javelin throw (214 feet, 8 inches) in Bergen County history.

As you might imagine, Austin looked incredibly raw during his first training camp in '06. But at 6-foot-3, 205 pounds, you could tell he had some of the tools. He returned a kick 93 yards for a touchdown in a playoff game against the Seahawks his rookie season. By 2007, quarterback Tony Romo was whispering to some of us that Austin had a chance to be special.

This past offseason, the Jets actually thought about going after Austin as a restricted free agent. In fact, he visited the Jets' facility and there was talk of them possibly giving up a second-round draft pick for him. For most of this season, Austin has remained in the background. He had a long touchdown against the Bucs in Week 1, but that seems like such a long time ago now. On Sunday, he performed like a No. 1 wide receiver. He made play after play with the game on the line. And there was Jerry Jones in the postgame locker room, once again comparing Austin to Terrell Owens.

Here's a look at what folks around the country and North Texas are saying about Austin's performance this morning:

• Tim MacMahon of ESPNDallas.com thinks it's time for Austin to become a starter.
• Jacques Taylor of the Dallas Morning News agrees that Austin saved the season for the Cowboys.
• Clarence E. Hill Jr. of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram focused on Austin as well.
• Randy Galloway of the Star-Telegram and ESPN 103.3 FM in Dallas says that Romo should say thank you to Austin.