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Cowboys force five turnovers in rout of Dolphins

Sep 17, 2007 - 1:20 AM MIAMI (Ticker) -- The Miami Dolphins were the perfect tonic for the Dallas Cowboys' beleaguered defense.

The Cowboys forced five turnovers Sunday en route to a 37-20 victory over the Dolphins that gave them their first 2-0 start since 1999.

Tony Romo tossed two touchdown passes and Marion Barber rushed for a pair of scores for Dallas, which surrendered 438 yards in last week's 45-35 win over the New York Giants.

"This was a special win for us, a complete win," Cowboys coach Wade Phillips said. "It was a nice win on the road at a tough place, especially at this time of year because they (Dolphins) are very tough in September."

The loss kept the Dolphins (0-2) winless under rookie coach Cam Cameron.

"You can't turn the football over," Cameron said. "We've got some things we've got to clean up. It's all phases that we need to improve in."

Miami quarterback Trent Green passed for 287 yards and two touchdowns but completed only 23-of-40 passes and was intercepted four times.

"It's hard," said Dolophins running back Ronnie Brown, who was held to 33 yards on 11 carries. "You're sitting here 0-2. We've got 14 games left, so we've got to try to turn things around quick."

The Dolphins took the second-half kickoff and marched 73 yards on 10 plays to take a 13-10 lead on Green's 18-yard touchdown pass to Marty Booker.

But the Cowboys took advantage of a long punt return and three turnovers to score the next 20 points as the Dolphins unraveled.

"I thought I managed the game pretty well," said Romo, who completed 14-of-29 passes for 186 yards. "I think I was pretty sharp and did some good things."

Patrick Crayton's 49-yard punt return gave Dallas possession at Miami's 30 and set up Romo's 2-yard TD pass to Tony Curtis with 4:41 left in the third quarter. It was the first career reception for Curtis, a second-year player.

On Miami's next possession, Ken Hamlin returned an interception 35 yards to the Dolphins 15, leading to Folk's 28-yard field goal.

The Dolphins turned the ball over again on their next possession, with Sampson Satele fumbling at midfield. The Cowboys converted the turnover into Folk's 47-yard field goal four minutes into the fourth quarter and a 23-13 lead.

"Our defense was just outstanding," Romo added. "Those turnovers were huge for us and came at very opportune times. It's a great advantage for a quarterback to get the ball in those situations and in good field position."

The Cowboys' 27-punt second-half eruption also included Romo's 34-yard TD pass to Terrell Owens and Barber's 40-yard TD scamper.

"We broke down their coverage and, of course, the five turnovers were huge from a momentum standpoint," Phillips said. "Anytime you have five turnovers in a game, it says something about your defense."

The late surge allowed the Cowboys to score 35 or more points in consecutive games for the first time since 1987.

"He's (Romo) an all-pro quarterback," Dolphins linebacker Channing Crowder said. "We knew he could move. He got some scrambles but that didn't beat us. A lot of big plays - that was the difference in the game."

Barber rushed for 89 yards on 14 carries, scoring his first TD on a one-yard plunge in the second quarter.

"We have an explosive offense," said Owens, who caught five passes for 97 yards. "We can strike at any time. Our biggest thing is that when we get opportunties we have to take advantage of them and we have been doing that."

In the first half, the Dolphins were held to a pair of field goals by Jay Feely and trailed, 10-6, at the intermission.