Dolphins at Cowboys
THE STORY: Miami Dolphins quarterback Matt Moore never got a chance to make an impact in his brief stint with the Dallas Cowboys. A fellow undrafted free agent by the name of Tony Romo was playing pretty well at the time. Four years later, Moore’s doing his best to secure a permanent starting job – just as Romo did with the Cowboys. Moore will try to lead the resurgent Miami Dolphins to a fourth straight win against Romo and the first-place Cowboys in a Thanksgiving Day matchup that suddenly has much more intrigue. Dallas, which has won three straight for the first time since 2009 to move into a tie for first in the NFC East, is 27-15-1 on Thanksgiving.
TV: CBS, 4:15 p.m. ET. LINE: Cowboys -7, O/U 44.5
ABOUT THE DOLPHINS (3-7): Miami has outscored opponents 86-20 during the team’s first three-game winning streak since 2008. The Dolphins were one of the front-runners in the Andrew Luck sweepstakes before Moore and the defense caught fire. Moore (160 yards, 3 TDs in a 35-8 win over Buffalo) has thrown six touchdowns and just one interception in that span. Meanwhile, the defense hasn’t allowed a touchdown this month. Miami has allowed the second-fewest rushing touchdowns in the NFL (3) and ranks sixth in the league in scoring defense (18.6 ppg). RB Reggie Bush has also come on strong, rushing for 274 yards and four touchdowns in the last four games.
ABOUT THE COWBOYS (6-4): Dallas eked out its third straight win, 27-24 over Washington as rookie Dan Bailey booted a 39-yard field goal in overtime. Romo was at his best, eluding the rush while throwing for 292 yards and three touchdowns. He has thrown for 841 yards with eight touchdowns and, more importantly, zero interceptions in the last three games. Romo is 18-2 in November and 12-0 at home during the month. Dallas needed him more on a day when rookie RB DeMarco Murray was held in check (23 carries, 75 yards) after rushing for 601 yards and four scores in the previous four games. WR Laurent Robinson has been outstanding while filling in for Miles Austin (hamstring), scoring five touchdowns in the last four games.
EXTRA POINTS:
1. Romo has been outstanding on Thanksgiving, completing 69 percent of his attempts (83 of 120) for 1,141 yards with 12 touchdowns and just two interceptions in four starts. He sat out last season’s 30-27 defeat to New Orleans – a loss ended the Cowboys' four-game winning streak on Thanksgiving – with a broken collarbone.
2. Dallas tried to sneak Moore onto its practice squad during the 2007 preseason, but he was claimed by Carolina. He was 15 of 28 for 182 yards with a touchdown and an interception in a 20-13 loss to the Cowboys that season.
3. Bailey has made 24 straight field goals, three shy of the team record set by Chris Boniol in 1996.