IRVING, Texas — Jim Zorn will go down in history as the only Washington Redskins coach never to lose a regular-season game at Texas Stadium.
Better yet, the Redskins (3-1) are going into October as legitimate contenders in the NFC East.
Jason Campbell threw two touchdown passes and Clinton Portis ran for 121 yards, leading Washington to a 26-24 victory Sunday that gave the Dallas Cowboys their first loss and made the toughest division in the NFL even more interesting.
The Redskins came in with consecutive wins after a lousy performance in the opener, but there were still questions about how good they were. For now, at least, Washington has turned the NFC East into a four-team race.
“It feels good watching our players take these strides,” Zorn said. “The football team believes in what we’re doing and that feels good.”
A few weeks ago, there was doubt whether Zorn was the right guy to replace Joe Gibbs. Now, he’s off to a great start, including being 1-0 against Washington’s biggest rival and ending a 1-for-12 stretch at Texas Stadium. With Dallas moving to a new stadium next season, the only way he’ll coach here again is if it’s in the playoffs.
“I’ve always said this is going to be a process,” he said. “We have to maintain our composure after this win, too. We’re not going to the Super Bowl next week.”
The Cowboys, of course, weren’t, either, if they had won, but with a soft October schedule, fans saw this as a gateway to an 8-0 start and an early November showdown with the New York Giants. Now, Dallas has to fix a running game held to 44 yards and a passing game that worked hard to get big plays out of Terrell Owens.
“The reality of it is, you have the opportunity to go 16-0 every year in the regular season, but that’s not realistic,” said quarterback Tony Romo, 1-3 against Washington and 22-6 against everyone else.
Romo was 28-of-47 for 300 yards with three touchdowns but wasn’t able to move Dallas (3-1) as well as the stats suggest. Two of his best drives came in two-minute drills, with the second — an eight-play, 82-yard march that ended with an 11-yard touchdown to Miles Austin — giving the Cowboys a chance for a stirring rally.
A field goal away from the lead, Dallas went for an onside kick with 1:42 left. The ball came up high and catchable for receiver Sam Hurd but he wasn’t able to hold it, losing the ball out of bounds.
“Everybody has to look at the Redskins in a different light now,” running back Ladell Betts said. “We can play with anybody. We proved that right now.”
