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RECAP
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BOX SCORE
IRVING, Texas (AP) -- Looking glum, Troy Aikman sat motionless on
the Dallas bench. His arms were crossed and there was nobody around
him. There was nothing, really, that they could say.
|  | | Cowboys running back Emmitt Smith ran for a season-high 150 yards and surpassed 15,000 career yards, joining Barry Sanders and Walter Payton in that milestone. |
Although the Cowboys pulled off an inspiring 32-13 victory over
the revamped Washington Redskins, Aikman couldn't enjoy it after
suffering a concussion that probably will end his season and possibly
his 12-year career.
"We really will be very measured. It just isn't necessary to
incur any risk at all," said Cowboys owner Jerry Jones, who must
decide by March 8 whether to pay Aikman a $7 million bonus or
release him before then and pay nothing. "Those are going to be
issues we really dwell on and contemplate with the benefit of a lot
of talk with Troy after the season."
With Aikman out, Dallas (5-9) turned to another aging superstar
in Emmitt Smith, and he responded with a season-high 150 yards, a
touchdown and two major milestones.
The Cowboys, who had lost three straight and five of six, also
got touchdowns on end-arounds by receivers Wane McGarity and Jason
Tucker in their most motivated performance of the season.
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TOM DONAHOE'S BREAKDOWN |
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Question on the Redskins: Will Pepper Rodgers' role be increased this
week?
Donahoe: It is confusing to football people why Pepper Rodgers would
have any role at all with the Redskins. This past week Norv Turner became
the first coach in history to be fired with a winning record and his team in
the playoff hunt. We saw the results of that firing -- and some of the other
changes implemented by Daniel Snyder -- today. Pepper Rodgers had never
worked a day in the NFL before being hired by Snyder and seems to be out of
his element. This was by far the Redskins' worst performance of the season
and puts their playoff hopes in the utmost jeopardy.
Question on the Cowboys: What does a Redskins sweep mean to Dave
Campo's job security?
Donahoe: Dallas just seems to have the Redskins' number. Jerry Jones
has said that Campo's job is safe, so the outcome of today's game probably
did not have any influence on the coach's standing. The effort coach Campo
got out of his team today was impressive -- especially Emmitt
Smith, who rushed for 150 yards and was a force for Dallas' offense
after Troy
Aikman was injured. The Cowboys are high on the prospects of Anthony
Wright, the young quarterback from South Carolina, who entered the game
today for the injured Aikman.
Tom Donahoe, ESPN.com's NFL analyst, was formerly the Steelers' director
of football operations.
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"For this team to play with the emotion and heart we played
with today is a sign," said Smith, who went over 1,000 yards for a
record-tying 10th straight season and became the third player in
NFL history with 15,000 career yards.
"It shows what our capabilities are. We've got to remember this
game, because from this day forth this is what's going to be
expected from us. You saw our potential at its best. This is what
we should strive for every week."
The Redskins (7-7) expected to be the ones breaking out after
changing coaches and quarterbacks this week. Instead, they gave up a season-high 242 yards rushing, gained a season-low 270 yards and
even had a tough time covering punts.
"I thought we had an excellent week of work," interim coach
Terry Robiskie said. "For some reason, our excellent work this
week didn't carry over. We didn't have that pride that we needed."
Owner Daniel Snyder's team still has a chance to make the
playoffs, but it's a slim one. An angry Snyder did not comment
after the game.
Dallas beat Washington for the seventh straight time, the most
by either team in their 83-game rivalry. It was the Cowboys' fifth
straight victory at Texas Stadium and might turn out to be among
the most memorable, especially if it was the last of Aikman's
career.
The quarterback suffered his ninth career concussion, second this
season and fourth in two years, midway through the first quarter on
a flying tackle by rookie linebacker LaVar Arrington.
Aikman was rolling right on a third-and-goal from the 1 when
Arrington crashed into him. It happened so fast there was no time
for Aikman to react before smacking onto the artificial turf.
He sat on the bench until halftime, then went to the locker room
and left the stadium.
"You could tell he wasn't right," said Jones, adding that
Aikman was having dizziness and other problems.
Anthony Wright, who completed one of three passes in relief of
Aikman last week, completed his first throw for 46 yards to James
McKnight despite tight coverage from Deion Sanders.
Wright finished 3-of-5 for 73 yards and was sacked three times.
He did not throw any interceptions.
"I didn't want to go in and make a crucial mistake," he said.
"I felt if I could do my best keeping the ball and give us a
chance to win, that's all I needed to do."
Sanders had a rough time in his first game back at Texas Stadium
after five years with the Cowboys. He gave Dallas 28 yards on a
pass interference and, after gaining 11 yards on his only punt
return, was spanked four times by good pal Charlie Williams.
Robiskie, who was Washington's passing-game coordinator, had a
few new wrinkles for the offense, such as throwing to cornerbacks
Sanders and Champ Bailey.
But he didn't use running back Stephen Davis very much, even
though Dallas had the league's worst run defense. Davis, the NFC's
leading rusher, had 57 yards on 16 carries. The Cowboys also sacked
quarterback Jeff George a season-high five times.
"I was surprised a little bit with their defense, but they
played hard and stopped us," said George, who was 19-of-33 for 235
yards with a touchdown and an interception. "I didn't think we
would play that flat. We definitely wanted to win for Terry."
The Redskins simply lacked the Cowboys' passion.
Game notes
While Snyder watched from a luxury suite, Jones was on
the sideline -- and sometimes the field. He twice went in bounds to
talk to officials. ... Alonzo Spellman and Washington's Jay
Leeuwenburg were ejected for a fight that Spellman began. ...
Cowboys OL Erik Williams was carted off the field after being hit
in the head, but only suffered a stinger. ... Washington DE Dana
Stubblefield didn't play because of the flu, then OL Keith Sims
ruptured his left Achilles' tendon on the opening series.
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ALSO SEE
Washington Clubhouse
Dallas Clubhouse
Latest concussion puts Aikman's career in jeopardy
AUDIO/VIDEO
 As head coach, Terry Robiskie took full blame for the Redskins' loss.
wav: 104 k
RealAudio: 14.4 | 28.8 | 56.6
Emmitt Smith reflects on his record-tying 10th straight season rushing for over 1,000 yards.
wav: 129 k
RealAudio: 14.4 | 28.8 | 56.6
Deion Sanders was upset the Redskins could not win Terry Robiskie's coaching debut.
wav: 190 k
RealAudio: 14.4 | 28.8 | 56.6
 FROM
ATHLETESDIRECT
Troy Aikman Official Site
Emmitt Smith Official Site
Brad Johnson Official Site
Bruce Smith Official Site
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