Tuesday, September 22, 1998

Cowboys defeat Giants

By Kevin Lyons

Knight Ridder Newspapers

(KRT)

EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. - The biggest thing Cowboys coach Chan Gailey feared was an injury to one of his players who had worked at quarterback in place of Troy Aikman last week. And in the first half on Monday night against the New York Giants, the Cowboys' best hope of winning lay flat on his back.

This was Deion Sanders, not Jason Garrett, who needed medical assistance. Sanders was tired, weak and dehydrated after zig-zagging all over Giants Stadium with a 59-yard punt return for a touchdown that broke a scoreless tie in the second quarter.

But Sanders regained his health in the second half and knocked out the Giants. Sanders completed his most dominating performance in a Cowboys uniform, catching a 55-yard pass to set up one touchdown and returning an interception 71 yards for another as the Cowboys dominated the defending NFC East champion Giants, 31-7.

Sanders' performance took the pressure off Garrett, who was making his first start in nearly four years while Aikman sits out with a broken collarbone.

The Cowboys' victory ended a three-game losing streak to the Giants, who suffered their first division loss since 1996. And speaking of the division, the Cowboys (2-1) wake up this morning in first place in the NFC East, sporting a one-game lead over the Giants (1-2) and Arizona Cardinals (1-2).

"To come in here, against the defending champions, and play with the emotion and focus that our team played with - I was very proud of them," Gailey said. "A lot of times there were some adverse situations, and I think we overcame them and made some big plays. We had a lot of things that went well tonight, and I have to give our players a lot of credit for the way they practiced and prepared."

The Cowboys will likely play three more games without Aikman. But Garrett, in Aikman's place, showed last night that he can play to not lose the game. He was not sacked and did not throw an interception.

And, nearly as important, Garrett made the big play when he had to. After Sanders' punt-return touchdown, the Giants tied the score on a 36-yard touchdown pass from Danny Kanell to Amani Toomer. Sensing a change in momentum, the fans at Giants Stadium chanted for defense. But Garrett quieted the crowd with an 80-yard touchdown pass to Billy Davis. The play was made possible when Davis beat Giants cornerback Phillipi Sparks on a slant route, caught Garrett's ball at about the 35, and outran the rest of the defenders the remaining 65 yards for the Cowboys' longest play from scrimmage since 1994.

Garrett was 12 of 28 for 222 yards on the night.

"What we asked Jason to do was make the throws he could make," Gailey said. "I was impressed with the way that he handled the ball. He did not make mistakes with the football or throw into crowds. He threw deep when he had to."

Meanwhile, the Cowboys' defense shackled the Giants, limiting Kanell and company to 252 total yards. The Cowboys' pass rush, a point of contention all summer, came through with four sacks, one each by Randall Godfrey, Omar Stoutmire, Leon Lett and Chad Hennings.

New York was held to 56 yards rushing.

The Giants, the Cowboys kept telling us, were not the Broncos.

"I thought we handled stopping the run very well, especially early in the ball game, and it allowed us to make some plays," Gailey said. "Then we got those turnovers, and, when you get those, you get the chance to put some points on the board."

Sanders did the honors.

For more than three years, since the Cowboys gave him the richest signing bonus in league history, Sanders' dominance had come quietly. On defense, quarterbacks refused to throw to his side of the field. On offense, the Cowboys had given him the occasional long pass. On special teams, he had returned a single punt for a touchdown.

But Sanders' performance was loud last night. The punt return for a touchdown and the interception return - which gave the Cowboys their final margin of victory, were his NFL career-leading 15th and 16th return touchdowns in the regular season.

His long reception set up Sherman Williams' 18-yard touchdown run that gave the Cowboys a 24-7 lead in the third quarter.

"That was an impressive display," Gailey said. "He is really an outstanding athlete, but the one thing that he said when we walked into the dressing room was that this was a team victory."

(c) 1998, Fort Worth Star-Telegram

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