The Dallas Cowboys ended their NFL playoff skid on Saturday with an emphatic 34-14 first-round victory over the Philadelphia Eagles.
Quarterback Tony Romo piloted five consecutive scoring drives in the second quarter as the Cowboys won a playoff game for the first time since 1996.
They had lost six straight post-season contests since then and would have set an NFL record with another.
PHOTO: EPA
Instead, they reprised their victory over the Eagles on the last day of the regular season and booked a National Conference second-round clash at Minnesota, where Romo will take on his boyhood hero, Brett Favre.
“The demons are gone,” crowed Cowboys owner Jerry Jones, whose new billion-dollar Cowboys Stadium was packed with 92,951 spectators, the most in NFL history for a post-season game other than the Super Bowl.
The victory was a playoff first for Romo, who was 0-2 in the post-season, and for Cowboys coach Wade Phillips, who was 0-4.
“Just keep trying to get better and eventually things will go your way,” Romo said. “Going out there and playing this way we have lately is very exciting. If we just keep going forward, we’ve got a chance.”
The Cowboys lost two straight games last month, but haven’t trailed in their last four contests.
“This team has hung together all year, got stronger at the end of the year and is playing our best football,” Phillips said.
Dallas again dominated an Eagles team they had beaten twice in the regular season. The Eagles did get Michael Vick back from injury and used him in place of starting quarterback Donovan McNabb for several plays.
Vick, a controversial addition by the Eagles after his prison term for bankrolling a dog fighting ring, threw a 76-yard touchdown pass that made it 7-7 in the second quarter, but then botched a handoff in Eagles territory. Dallas recovered the fumble and Romo parlayed it into a touchdown.
“They were better all the way around,” Eagles coach Andy Reid said. “When you get your tail kicked, it’s not a great feeling. No one expected it.”
Romo threw for 203 yards to McNabb’s 39 in the first half as the Cowboys built a 27-7 lead.
Romo finished 23-of-35 for 244 yards with two touchdowns and no turnovers.
Felix Jones extended the lead to 34-7 with a 73-yard touchdown run midway through the third quarter.
With Marion Barber limited by injury, Jones stepped up and notched the first 100-yard game of his career. He finished with 148 yards on 16 carries.
In Cincinnati, New York Jets rookie quarterback Mark Sanchez made a stellar post-season debut, going 12-of-15 for 182 passing yards in a 24-14 victory over the Cincinnati Bengals.
Sanchez joined Shaun King, Joe Flacco and Ben Roethlisberger in the exclusive club of rookie signal-callers to start and win a playoff contest.
“He had the eye of the tiger today and he was ready to get out there and throw it around,” Jets coach Rex Ryan said. “I see him getting better and better each day on the practice field. What a job he’s done.”
Not only did the Jets get their first post-season win since 2004, but they engineered a back-to-back sweep of Cincinnati after beating the Bengals in the regular season closer for both teams.
Tight-end Dustin Keller had a 45-yard touchdown catch to put the Jets ahead to stay in the second quarter.
Shonn Greene, who was a third round draft pick, also rushed for 135 yards, including a 39-yard touchdown for the Jets.
“Our guys are resilient,” said Ryan, who thought his team were out of playoff contention after a late-season loss to Atlanta. “We are a heck of football team. If people don’t believe that then hopefully one day they will and soon.”
The teams had to battle bitter cold that made handling the ball difficult.
Cincinnati suffered a serious blow on the opening play of the game when starting linebacker Rashad Jeanty fractured his leg on the kickoff.
Jeanty was trying to block for teammate Bernard Scott when he fell and broke his left fibula.
Unfortunately, it was a sign of things to come for the Bengals.
One bright spot for the Bengals was Cedric Benson, who ran for a playoff team record of 169 yards.
Bengals’ kicker Shayne Graham missed two field goals in the second half, including a 28-yarder with just under four minutes remaining.
Cincinnati quarterback Carson Palmer had one touchdown pass and an interception. He completed 18-of-36 throws for 146 yards.
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