McCoy Leads Redskins Over Dallas

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ARLINGTON, Texas — The Dallas Cowboys dodged one bullet Monday night but couldn’t get out of the way of a second in a 20-17 overtime loss to the Washington Redskins.

Quarterback Tony Romo left in the third quarter with an injury to his surgically repaired back, though he returned in the fourth quarter after receiving an injection.

Romo expects to be back in the lineup Sunday when the Cowboys (6-2) play host to the Arizona Cardinals.

“It’s sore,” Romo said. “We’ll look it at tomorrow and get ready for next week.”

As for the Redskins (3-5), they might have found new life, recording back-to-back wins for the first time since 2012. Washington quarterback Colt McCoy, a third-stringer coming into the season, started for the first time in nearly three years and engineered the upset.

“I made a ton of mistakes early in the game,” McCoy said. “I was just a little rusty and didn’t do some things quite as well as I should have, but I settled in because our defense created turnovers and kept us in the game.

“Huge win for us.”

McCoy did more than just keep the seat warm as the Redskins await the

return of starter Robert Griffin III. He passed for 299 yards, and his 16-yard pass to tight end Jordan Reed set up the game-winning field goal in overtime.

McCoy (25 of 30, one interception) was rolling to his left when he deftly dropped a floater into Reed’s hands down the sideline. Kicker Kai Forbath drilled a 40-yarder four plays later.

McCoy didn’t bite when asked about a budding quarterback controversy with Griffin recovering from a dislocated ankle.

“I prepare as if I’m the starter, whether I’m playing or not,” said McCoy, who rallied Washington past the Tennessee Titans last week. “That decision is not my decision. I’m a team player, and I’m going to do whatever they ask me to do.”

Running back Alfred Morris rushed for 73 yards and a touchdown as Washington won for the first time on the road this season in four tries. Wide receiver DeSean Jackson caught six passes for 136 yards.

“We can’t afford to lose any more games,” Jackson said.

Cowboys backup quarterback Brandon Weeden led two scoring drives in Romo’s absence. Romo completed one of passes for a loss of 1 yard in overtime, and his incompletion on fourth-and-3 ended the game.

Dallas saw its six-game winning streak end. The NFC East leaders were looking for the franchise’s first 7-1 start since 2007.

Romo was hurt while being sacked by linebacker Keenan Robinson. Romo remained on the field for several minutes while being attended to by the Cowboys’ medical staff. He eventually walked gingerly to the sideline accompanied by coach Jason Garrett.

“He got hit in the back,” Garrett said. “It appears to be a back contusion. The X-rays were negative, which is a positive for us.”

Cowboys running back DeMarco Murray extended his NFL record with his eighth consecutive 100-yard rushing game to open the season. The NFL’s rushing leader ran for 141 yards on 19 carries, putting him over 1,000 yards on the season. He also lost a fumble in the first half.

Romo finished 17 of 28 for 209 yards and a touchdown. Weeden completed four of six passes for 69 yards and a score. Murray led the Cowboys with 80 receiving yards on four catches.

On Dallas’ first possession after Romo was hurt, Murray broke off a 51-yard run on Weeden’s first play. The run set up kicker Dan Bailey’s 21-yard field goal to tie it 10-10.

McCoy answered with his best series of the night to put the visitors ahead 17-10. A 45-yard pass to Jackson set Washington up at the Dallas 8. McCoy ran the final 7 yards on a third down less than two minutes into the fourth quarter.

Weeden responded by engineering a long touchdown drive that included a 23-yard screen to Murray and ended with a 25-yard pass to tight end Jason Witten with 9:27 play.

Morris put the Redskins back on top in the third with his 5-yard touchdown run. Washington received the opening kickoff of the second half and marched 80 yards in eight plays to grab a 10-7 lead.

Dallas took a 7-3 lead into locker room despite an inconsistent first half. The Cowboys punted or turned the ball over on each of their first four drives.

Wide receiver Dez Bryant’s 5-yard touchdown catch with 4:45 remaining until halftime finally put the Cowboys on the board. Romo’s pass out in the flat was one-handed by Bryant just inches off turf before the receiver stretched the ball over the goal line.

The Redskins went up 3-0 early in the first quarter on Forbath’s 44-yard field goal. A 37-yard punt return by Andre Roberts set up the score.

Washington blew a golden chance to add to its lead after recovering a fumble on the Dallas 25-yard line. Two plays later, McCoy threw into double coverage in the end zone and was picked off by safety J.J. Wilcox.

The Cowboys gave the ball back again after Murray was inside the Washington 10. Fighting for extra yards after nearly taking a screen pass the distance, the NFL’s leading rusher fumbled the ball for the fifth time this season.

“Those two turnovers early hurt us,” Garrett said. “Hurt our scoring chances early, and we’re playing catch-up from then on.”

Washington finished with a 409-390 edge in total yardage and a nearly 10-minute advantage in time of possession.

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