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Cowboys hand Colts first loss of season, Pats crush Packers
2006-11-20
Marion Barber III rushed for two fourth-quarter touchdowns to help the Dallas Cowboys end the Indianapolis Colts' perfect start to the season with a 21-14 comeback win on Sunday. The Colts (9-1) arrived in Dallas as the NFL's last unbeaten team and looked ready to extend their streak when they took a 14-7 lead into the final quarter. But Cowboys quarterback Tony Romo, making his fourth career start but first at home, engineered a pair of fourth quarter drives capped off Barber touchdown plunges from one and five yards. The loss ended the Colts' bid to join the 1972 Miami Dolphins as the only team to go an entire NFL season without defeat. The only team in NFL history to open consecutive seasons with nine straight wins, Indianapolis drew first blood when Peyton Manning hit Reggie Wayne with a 23-yard touchdown strike just 10 seconds before halftime, quietening the capacity crowd at Texas Stadium. However, after the intermission the party was back in full swing when Kevin Burnett intercepted Manning and returned the ball 39 yards to level the score at 7-7. DEFENCE STIFFENED Manning made up for the miscue with a four-yard touchdown pass to Dallas Clark before the end of the third quarter but it would be the last time the Colts found the end zone as the Cowboys' defence stiffened. Romo confirmed his status as Dallas's new leading man, taking firm control of the Cowboys' offence and completing 19-of-23 passes for 226 yards with one interception. After spluttering through the first part of the season with quarterback Drew Brees, the Cowboys have now won three of four games since Romo took over and have a 6-4 record that puts them back in the thick of the NFC playoff race. *Tom Brady threw for 244 yards and four touchdowns as the New England Patriots crushed the Green Bay Packers 35-0 at Lambeau Field to snap a two-game losing skid. Packers quarterback Brett Favre, who started his 251st consecutive game, was forced from the contest late in the second quarter with an injured elbow. Favre did not return to the game and there was no immediate word on whether the three-times league MVP would play next week against Seattle. *The Philadelphia Eagles suffered a double blow when they were beaten 31-13 by the Tennessee Titans and lost Pro Bowl quarterback Donovan McNabb for the remainder of the season with torn knee ligaments. McNabb sustained the injury early in the second quarter when he fell awkwardly after being chased out of bounds. *Rex Grossman hit Mark Bradley with a 57-yard touchdown pass and Robbie Gould booted a 20-yard field goal and a ferocious Bears defence did the rest as Chicago shut out the New York Jets 10-0 in East Rutherford, improving their record to 9-1. *Carson Palmer and flamboyant wide receiver Chad Johnson hooked up for three touchdowns to lead the Cincinnati Bengals to a 31-16 win over the New Orleans Saints.
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