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Were the Cowboys lucky?

By MIKE BALDWIN

The Daily Oklahoman

IRVING, Texas - The Dallas Cowboys are sometimes labeled one of the luckiest franchises in pro sports.

An unlikely 21-20 win over Philadelphia Monday night at Texas Stadium would be exhibit A. Over the years there have been similar miracles, but Dallas cornerback Kevin Smith offers a rebuttal.

"In the six years I've been here, there have been a lot of times I've left this stadium shaking my head," Smith said. "It's about time we finally got a break, and it's about time the bounces finally go our way."

Finally got a break? Smith could have been referring to Chris Boniol's last-second 57-yard field-goal attempt hitting the crossbar last year against Indianapolis. Or maybe it was last year's loss to the Eagles, when a last-minute interception snuffed out a potential game-winning rally.

There have been other Cowboy heartbreaks at Texas Stadium in recent years. Jay Novacek slipped and fell inches short of the goal line in the waning seconds against Cleveland in 1994. And there's always Leon Lett's gaffe in the Thanksgiving Day "Ice Bowl."

"They got a gift last week and maybe we got one this week," Dallas coach Barry Switzer said. "That's the way things work out. We thought we had it won last year against Philly when we played them here."

In the NFL it doesn't matter how you play the game, it's whether you win or lose. League officials don't award style points. A win - even an ugly win in which the Eagles grabbed defeat from the jaws of victory - carries as much weight for the Cowboys as their season-opening masterpiece. In fact, Monday's win actually carries more weight, since it was an NFC East rival.

Were the Cowboys lucky? You bet. Even Dallas players and coaches admit Freddie Solomon's 46-yard reception should have handed the Cowboys back-to-back losses for just the third time in the Switzer era.

The Cowboys won despite owning the lead for less than one minute. Even when they finally went ahead, it appeared they'd lose. But Eagles holder Tom Hutton fumbled the snap in one of the zaniest finishes in "Monday Night Football" annals.

The priority for the Cowboys is tinkering with an offense that went nearly nine quarters without scoring a touchdown. Ten field goals the past two games is proof the opportunities are there. But Dallas was in an 0-for-9 slump scoring TDs inside the red zone until Anthony Miller hauled in a 14-yard TD catch with 51 seconds left.

"It's just hard to score when you're compressed in there," Switzer said. "I'd sometimes rather have the ball outside the 20-yard line than I would at the 5-yard line. Fifteen clubs didn't score a touchdown last week."

The word is out - blitz the Cowboys. Dallas handled the Steelers blitzes in the opener, but Arizona and Philadelphia have disrupted the offense. The Eagles blitzed less in the second half when cornerback Troy Vincent was sidelined, but two Bobby Taylor sacks of Troy Aikman, both resulting in fumbles, led to 10 points.

"We got that corrected at halftime," Switzer said. "It was a blitz they hadn't shown us. They brought it off the slot."

The running game has sputtered. Emmitt Smith rushed for 91 yards, but averaged only 3.3 yards a carry. The ground attack simply isn't as overpowering as the Super Bowl teams. Unexpectedly, Chad Hennings has more TDs than Smith, who scored 100 career TDs quicker than any other player in NFL history.

"I'm not worried about that," Switzer said. "I'm thrilled to death that we're 2-1. I assure you he'll score a touchdown before the season's over."

(Distributed by Scripps Howard News Service.)