ARLINGTON, Texas -- Tony Romo and the Dallas Cowboys pleased their toughest critics: their own fans.
Outdueling Drew Brees in a matchup of quarterbacks wearing No. 9, Romo sparked the Cowboys to a 38-17 victory over the favored New Orleans Saints before 91,176 at AT&T Stadium and an NBC Sunday Night Football audience.
Romo went 9 for 9 in the first quarter and finished 22 of 29 for 262 yards and three touchdowns, two to Terrance Williams and a late clincher to Dez Bryant. And without an interception, the main knock against the 12th-year quarterback with more back surgeries (two) than playoff victories (one).
In his first home game since throwing three picks early in an opening loss to San Francisco, Romo directed an error-free attack while the Dallas defense, much maligned during the offseason, held New Orleans out of the end zone until the fourth quarter.
"Anytime you have a 3-0 edge in turnovers, which we did, you have a good chance to win," said Cowboys coach Jason Garrett, New Orleans' previous streak of four straight road wins over Dallas compiled largely with a 10-4 plus-minus ratio.
With Philadelphia losing at San Francisco, Dallas (3-1) grabbed a share of the NFC East lead with the Houston Texans visiting for a noon kickoff Sunday.
New Orleans (1-3), meanwhile, is a team with a split personality, 9-0 at home since 2013 and 1-10 on the road in the same span.
"We didn't do much right," Saints coach Sean Payton, a former Cowboys assistant, said after his team went to halftime down 24-0.
Completing seven passes, Romo took the Cowboys 80 yards from the opening kickoff, finding Williams in heavy traffic at the back of the end zone from the six. Dan Bailey kicked it to 7-0 after a 12-play drive lasting 7:10.
Bailey's 51-yard field goal, following a 41-yard Saints miss, ignited a 17-point flurry in the last 5:38 of the half.
Two linebackers, another reviled Dallas unit, collaborated on the biggest defensive play of the half, Bruce Carter tipping a Brees pass that Justin Durant returned 12 yards to the New Orleans 39. Romo faked nicely on first down on a 24-yard flat pass to Lance Dunbar, then left it with DeMarco Murray for a 15-yard sweep of right end. It was 17-0 with 4:03 on the clock.
After a New Orleans punt, Dallas punctuated its splashiest half of the season with a 77-yard drive that Romo, working out of the shotgun, found Williams in single coverage on the left side from 23 yards out with 19 seconds before the break.
Romo spread his 22 completions among 10 receivers, Williams with six catches for 77 yards and Jason Witten five (in as many looks) for 61. Murray supplied the ground surge with 149 yards on 24 carries, a long gain of 28. Dallas converted eight of 14 third downs and controlled the ball for 34 minutes, 45 seconds.
"I don't know if we've ever had this much depth offensively," Romo said. "Jason (Witten) is still Jason, and we've got a good flock of receivers. Terrance on the outside is really coming on, and DeMarco gives you a chance to control things on the ground."
Following a New Orleans field goal, Dallas led 31-3 after Murray rambled 28 yards on its first possession of the third quarter. Brees completed seven passes on the ensuing Saints drive, but tight end Jimmy Graham fumbled at the Dallas 16 after an 11-yard reception, safety J.J. Wilcox recovering for the Cowboys and Brandon Carr mopping up after Wilcox was stripped of the ball.
"They're balling," Bryant said of the defense. "I honestly think they're playing with a chip on their shoulders because of all the criticism they've been getting. They're really showing the world what they can be."
Khiry Robinson's 62-yard run to the Dallas 12 ignited the Saints early in the fourth quarter, Brees throwing to Josh Hill for a touchdown on the next play. After a three-and-out defensive series, Brees completed three straight passes on a 59-yard drive, hitting Graham for the last 13 yards. Suddenly, it was 31-17 with 9:49 left, making Dallas fans mindful of late opposing comebacks under the same roof uneasy.
This time was different, the Cowboys smearing a fake punt and Romo passing to Witten for 16 on third-and-nine and to Bryant for the last 18 on the ensuing drive. Durant, whose interception highlighted Dallas' first-half defense, forced a fumble recovered by Sterling Moore on New Orleans' last possession.
"Coach always talks about starting fast, and that was definitely what we did," said Durant, whose interception and forced fumble ranked high with his team-high eight tackles.
Garrett talked proudly of the entire unit, which lost All-Pro Demarcus Ware to free agency and linebacker Sean Lee with a season-ending injury in training camp. Right corner Orlando Scandrick, frequently targeted by quarterbacks and a critical local media, had seven tackles and two pass breakups.
"It all starts with our defense," Garrett said. "We told them to just play hard. The Saints do most of their damage when they break a tackle at the line of scrimmage and go 60 yards. We told them to just contain that stuff and they should do all right."
Sports on 09/30/2014