Dallas’ DeMarco Murray ran for a season-high 179 yards and a touchdown, while quarterback Tony Romo threw for three scores as the Cowboys beat Chicago 41-28 on Thursday.
The Cowboys (9-4) made it look easy for most of the night against a struggling team that lost star receiver Brandon Marshall to a rib injury. Dallas ensured they would finish the regular season with more wins than losses for the first time since 2009, but are looking for more, with an NFC East title and first playoff appearance in five years in sight.
Led by Romo and Murray, Dallas rebounded from a blowout loss to the Eagles on Thanksgiving Day and pulled within half a game of them in the standings with another meeting in Philadelphia next weekend.
Photo: AFP
The Cowboys took a 14-7 halftime lead and scored 21 unanswered in the third quarter before the Bears (5-8) rallied in the fourth.
With that, the Cowboys improved to a league-best 6-0 on the road this season.
Romo, who has been bothered by a bad back, completed 21 of 26 passes for 205 yards.
Murray, the league’s leading rusher, carried 32 times. He also had 49 yards receiving. Dez Bryant had six receptions for 82 yards, while Cole Beasley caught two touchdowns.
For the Bears, Marshall’s injury was another low in a disappointing season that will likely end with them missing the playoffs for the seventh time in eight years.
He was hurt taking a knee to the right side from the Cowboys’ Barry Church following a reception in the second quarter. That happened moments after he made a spectacular 42-yard catch, juggling the ball with his right hand, to help set up a touchdown.
He stayed down for several minutes and gingerly walked off the field. He left Soldier Field in an ambulance, but later posted on Twitter: “Thanks for the Prayers... I’m Good.”
Jay Cutler was 32 of 46 for 341 yards and two touchdowns, but the Bears had trouble sustaining any drives or stopping the Cowboys.
They also did not get much from the run game, although they made a little more of an effort after managing just eight attempts in the loss in Detroit a week earlier.
Matt Forte had 13 carries for 26 yards after tying a career low with five rushes last week.
Cowboys defensive tackle Josh Brent played for the first time this season after serving a 10-game suspension for an intoxication manslaughter conviction.
He had not played since Dec. 2, 2012, six days before the drunken-driving crash that killed teammate Jerry Brown. He was suspended for the first 10 games and was inactive for two more.
The Bears were without kicker Robbie Gould (right thigh) and defensive tackle Jeremiah Ratliff (knee).
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