The first 17 minutes of the game were a total nightmare for the Cowboys, but they’ve used the last 13 to draw close enough to the Cowboys to keep hope alive for a comeback.
Tony Romo was able to string together several passes in a row without an interception to set up a Felix Jones touchdown run and then hit Dez Bryant behind the Cowboys defense near the end of the half to put the team in position for a Dan Bailey field goal. That second drive could have led to more, but Romo was sacked by Jason Pierre-Paul before throwing incomplete under pressure on third down. They’re still within two scores at 23-10 and that’s pretty good given how awful things started out.
Romo was picked three times, including one JPP returned for a touchdown, and Bryant fumbled a punt to help the Giants to a 23-0 lead two minutes into the second quarter. The Giants defense has been opportunistic and the pass rush has been heavy since the very start of the game, contributing to Romo’s poor half and putting the Giants in front.
The game would be out of reach if they had done a bit more with the opportunities. The Giants play calling has been a bit conservative given the weapons at their disposal, there have been a few drops that kept the offense from putting up more points and Ahmad Bradshaw fumbled to kill another drive. Eli Manning is just 8-of-18 for 106 yards, a sign of how good the Cowboys defense has done given the tough circumstances they keep finding themselves in thanks to the offense.
It’s still a game thanks to that defense, although it is one the Giants could put out of reach by getting their offense in gear.