This Cowboys Redskins game was supposed to be a night of celebration. After all, Troy Aikman, Emmitt Smith and Michael Irvin were inducted into the teams Ring of Honor at halftime.
But somewhere along the way, the celebration faded, and the Cowboys defense forgot to play all sixty minutes.
Dallas was leading 13-to-0, when Mark Brunell hit Santana Moss for a 39-yard touchdown with 3:55 left in the game. It was the Redskins first touchown of the season.
“It’s my fault, I take total blame for that,” said Cowboys Safety Roy Williams. “I take total blame, because you know what I'm saying, I should have read it faster.”
But getting help from the offense to ice the win, by taking time off the clock, didn't happen either. Cowboys Assistant Head Coach Sean Payton is calling the plays these days, and he didn’t exactly look like Einstein Monday night.
In trying to protect a 6-point lead, Dallas ran seven-plays, including a holding penalty, that took just 45-seconds off the clock. That left plenty of time for the Redskins who had all the momentum in their favor.
“I was very surprised,” said Cowboys quarterback Drew Bledsoe. “I really expected out two minute offense to be more effective than that.”
But it wasn't, allowing the Redskins to come back with the same play to Moss, to give the Redskins a 14-to-13 lead.
Cowboys Head Coach Bill Parcells didn’t know what to say. “Well you got to learn to close the show, and we didn't do that, we had a fourth and fifteen, make one play, the game is over,” he said. “We had a key first down made, got a holding penalty, cut us back, and when you let a team hang around, that can happen.”
Moss, the hero on this night, was excited. “All I can say, is we fought through it, fortunately we got two big scores, to win this game.”
Renaldo Wynn, the Redskins defensive lineman, said “Hey redskins fans, its for you man, we brought it back, you guy’s always said beat Dallas, we did it. Without you, you guys, we're all in it together, the whole community man.”
As far as the rivalry is concerned, Wynn said, “We just started a new one, the new streak is alive man, its alive bro, we brought the rivalry back, to where it has always belonged, Cowboys, Redskins, what else could you ask for man,
For the Cowboys, it was devastating blow. Next up, two games on the west coast, at San Francisco and Oakland, and how this team plays in those two games will say a lot. Dallas won't be back home again until October 9th, against Philadelphia.
As for the series, it was the first for Joe Gibbs since his return as Washington’s head coach. It snapped a four game Dallas winning streak, but only the second for the Redskins in 16-years.
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