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Patriots visit Cowboys in battle of unbeatens

Oct 14, 2007 - 10:36 AM New England (5-0) at Dallas (5-0), Sunday 4:15 pm EST

IRVING, Texas (Ticker) - A Super Bowl preview? Maybe. The marquee matchup of the NFL season. No question.

The high-flying New England Patriots put their perfect record on the line when they visit the undefeated Dallas Cowboys on Sunday.

It is only the third time since 1973 - and fifth all-time - that teams have met sporting records of at least 5-0. The last time involved the Patriots, who improved to 6-0 with a 13-7 victory over the visiting New York Jets on October 24, 2004.

New England barely has broken a sweat in storming through its first five opponents, rolling up a league-high 182 points and winning by an average of 23 points per game.

Dallas has not been as dominant, but the Cowboys showed their mettle Monday night by scoring nine points in the final 20 seconds to pin a last-second 25-24 defeat on the Buffalo Bills and remain perfect on the season.

"Let's not make more of it than it is," Patriots cornerback Ellis Hobbs said. "We think of it as a big game because it's the next game. This is not, quote, unquote, a Super Bowl matchup."

Quarterback Tom Brady, with a revamped receiving corps headed by Randy Moss, has thrown at least three touchdown passes in his first five games, tying the NFL record held by Steve Young.

Statistically, Brady had his worst game of the season in last Sunday's 34-17 win over the Cleveland Browns. He completed 22-of-38 passes for 265 yards.

Moss, who became the first player to go over 100 yards in the first four games with his new team, was held to 46 yards on three catches. He had seven TD receptions on the season.

On the season, Brady is hitting on 74 percent of his passes (117-of-158) with a glittering 16 TD passes against just two interceptions.

Tight end Ben Watson was Brady's top target against Cleveland, with six catches for a career-high 107 yards and two touchdowns.

Even without starting running back Laurence Maroney the past two games, the Patriots' running game hasn't missed a beat. Backup Sammy Morris has logged back-to-back 100-yard games, carrying 21 times in each.

Under first-year coach Wade Phillips, the Cowboys are looking to improve to 6-0 for the first time since 1983 and fifth in franchise history.

Tony Romo rebounded from a dismal first half to rally the Cowboys to the dramatic win against the Bills, which was decided by Nick Folk's 53-yard field goal as time expired.

Despite throwing five interceptions - four in the first half - and losing a fumble, Romo finished 29-of-50 for 309 yards and two touchdowns.

It continued a pattern of outstanding second-half play by the Cowboys, who have scored a league-high 122 points after halftime.

Dallas' defense has also made dramatic improvement's since its season-opening 45-35 victory over the New York Giants, allowing just 8.3 points in the last four games.

The Cowboys lead the all-time series, 7-2, but the Patriots have won two in a row, including a 12-0 victory in Foxboro on November 16, 2003.