The Dallas Cowboys matched a franchise record Sunday, winning their 10th consecutive regular season game on the road. Starting the season 2-0 with both wins coming against division rivals is obviously a huge accomplishment but it's who they've done it without that has been most impressive.
The 20-10 victory over the Philadelphia Eagles came with a bittersweet twist, as quarterback Tony Romo went down in the middle of the third quarter and will be out for an extended period of time with a left shoulder injury. Already without Dez Bryant, it seems as they'll be without their star quarterback for at least eight weeks.
What may give the Cowboys hope is how well the defense has played early on this season, and Sunday was no exception, with Sean Lee specifically standing out.
Lee was everywhere on the evening, leading the team with 14 tackles and also contributing the most significant takeaway of the afternoon, a he intercepted a Sam Bradford pass in the end zone in the third quarter to extinguish the Eagles' best scoring opportunity up until that point.
The Cowboys special teams also came up huge with a blocked punt return for a touchdown by Kyle Wilber at the 12:45 mark of the third quarter.
While the Eagles offense looked more than just a little out of rhythm, Dallas' defense deserves some credit for making the Eagles one-dimensional and forcing Bradford into some tough throws.
DeMarco Murray carried the ball 13 times for a measly 2 yards and was often tackled before he could even reach the line of scrimmage. Ryan Matthews and Darren Sproles were also non-factors in the running game as the Cowboys' front-7 did a great job at attacking the ball-carrier.
The same could be said for the secondary, who limited any big plays down the field and only yielded a touchdown pass to Jordan Matthews during garbage time at the end of the fourth quarter.
The lone offensive touchdown of the afternoon for Dallas came on a Brandon Weeden to Terrance Williams 42-yard connection with 4:13 remaining in the game to essentially seal the victory for the Cowboys.
This was by far an ugly game by both sides, with 26 combined penalties doled out to the two team. In the end Dallas came up with the big plays when they needed them most.
Now with Dallas 2-0 and the Eagles and New York Giants 0-2 with a Kirk Cousins-led Washington Redskins 1-1 team, there's optimism within the Cowboys organization that they can hold on long enough until Romo and Bryant return from injury to make a strong push for the playoffs. Their defense and offensive line have given them that hope and rightfully so, but it certainly won't be easy by any stretch of the imagination.
It's now the Brandon Weeden show for the next several weeks. The former first-round pick finished 7 of 7 for 73 yards and a TD after coming on for Romo in Philadelphia. Several Cowboys staff members mentioned this offseason how much Weeden has improved since he joined the club in March 2014.
Where does Weeden think he has improved most?
"This is the first time in my life that I've had the same offensive coordinator calling the same plays in back-to-back years," Weeden said last month. "When you have a familiarity with an offense, you can really break down and understand the Xs and Os. It allows you to play faster. I think that's probably the biggest thing. I remember laying in bed with my wife when I was in Cleveland and she would read the plays and I'd repeat them so I could learn them. I don't have to do that as much any more. I know the plays, so I can just focus on football. And being around Tony has probably helped a lot too. I've learned a lot from that guy."
With Greg Hardy, Rolando McClain and Randy Gregory's return on the horizon in the next couple weeks there's certainly reasons to think this Dallas defense can carry this team for the foreseeable future. Their first test will come next week against the also undefeated Atlanta Falcons who have beaten the same foes as Dallas has this season, Philadelphia Eagles and the New York Giants.