National Football League Capsules for Thursday.
DALLAS 34, SEATTLE 9

IRVING, Texas The Dallas Cowboys have officially climbed back into the playoff discussion.

Tony Romo remained undefeated since returning from a broken pinkie, throwing for 331 yards and three touchdowns to lead the Cowboys to a 34-9 rout of the hapless Seattle Seahawks in Dallas annual Thanksgiving Day game.

The Cowboys (8-4) hammered the Seahawks (2-10), sacking Matt Hasselbeck seven times as they jumped out in front early and never looked back. Often known to start slow, the Cowboys bucked the trend, marching down the field and hitting paydirt less than three minutes into the contest.

After hitting Jason Witten for a 36-yard completion to set Dallas up in the red zone, Romo capped the five-play, 71-yard drive with a 16-yard scoring strike to Martellus Bennett. Later in the quarter, the Cowboys took advantage of Julius Jones fumble as Marion Barber extended the lead to 14-0 with a 2-yard touchdown dive.

Romo also connected with Terrell Owens for a TD. After breaking through last week with a 213-yard performance against the 49ers, Owens followed that with five catches and 98 yards. Witten – showing no ill effects from the broken ribs that have hobbled him in recent weeks – was Romos favorite target, hauling in nine passes for 115 yards and a score.

Pro Bowl linebacker DeMarcus Ware took over as the league leader in sacks, bringing Hasselbeck down three times to set a career-high with 15 on the season. However, he hobbled off the field after suffering a sprained right knee late in the third quarter.

The Cowboys also lost Barber in the third, as the Pro Bowl running back left the field with a toe injury and did not return. X-rays were negative, but his status is uncertain.

PHILADELPHIA 48, ARIZONA 20

PHILADELPHIA With the offense producing and the defense swarming, it seemed like old times for the Philadelphia Eagles.

Donovan McNabb completed 27 of 39 passes for 260 yards and four touchdowns, while Brian Westbrook had a career-high four touchdowns as the Eagles scored on their first two possessions and coasted to a 48-20 victory over the Arizona Cardinals.

McNabb was coming off two consecutive dreadful performances – first in a 13-13 tie with the Cincinnati Bengals and then again a week a later, as he was benched at halftime in what became a 36-7 loss to the Baltimore Ravens.

Meanwhile, Westbrook has been hampered by injuries that have limited his effectiveness and practice time. Against Arizona, the running back finished with 22 carries for 110 yards and two touchdowns and also had TD receptions of 5 and 2 yards.

The defense also helped Philadelphia (6-5-1) snap a three-game winless streak with three interceptions against Arizona quarterback Kurt Warner.

The Cardinals (7-5) failed to clinch the NFC West with the loss.

TENNESSEE 47, DETROIT 10

DETROIT Chris Johnson, LenDale White and the Tennessee Titans rebounded from their first loss of the season by carving up the NFLs only winless team.

Johnson and White each ran for two touchdowns Thursday afternoon as the Titans coasted to a 47-10 rout of the Detroit Lions, who moved a step closer toward the first 0-16 season in league history.

Tennessee (11-1) rolled up 292 yards on the ground en route to its highest-scoring output in over four years.

The AFCs leading rookie rusher, Johnson ran for 125 yards on just 16 attempts. The 235-pound White finished with 106 yards on 23 carries.

The Lions annual Thanksgiving contest, which quickly deteriorated into a laugher, came just four days after the Titans suffered their first loss of the season – a humiliating 34-13 defeat to the New York Jets.

But the Titans bounced back at the expense of the pitiful Lions (0-12), who are just four losses away from joining the 1976 Tampa Bay Buccaneers (0-14) as the only winless teams in NFL history.

With the win, Tennessee remained at least two games ahead of the Jets (8-3) and the Pittsburgh Steelers (8-3) for the best record in the AFC. New York hosts Denver while Pittsburgh visits New England on Sunday.

Posted on November 28th, 2008 by admin
Filed under: NFL football news