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Banned
Join Date: Sep 2003
Location: Pittsburg, KS
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Vikes Sink CowboysMinnesota surprises late, win 20-17
Week 1
 | Cowboys (0-1) | 17 |  | Vikings (1-0) | 20 |
Minneapolis, MN (AP) -- The Minnesota Vikings played host to the Dallas Cowboys today at the Metrodome in Minneapolis but the outcome was a little different than the Cowboys had intended. The Vikings talked smack all week long that the Cowboys offseason roster moves couldn't improve the team that much and that they were a team of destiny. They thought the Cowboys were just a roadbump on their way to the Super Bowl. Dallas showed up ready to play, backed by the play of 40-year old QB Vinny Testaverde (324 yards, 2 TDs, 0 INTs).
Lead by QB Daunte Culpepper, the Vikings took the opening possession and moved the ball at will on the Cowboys defense. But with the Vikings facing a 1st down and 10 from the DAL38, Culpepper would go for it all and SRoy Williams would pickoff the pass at the DAL02 to end the scoring threat. After Dallas went three and out, the Vikings got the ball back and Culpepper drove them into FG range where K Morten Andersen would give them a 3-0 lead with a 51-yd FG. After Dallas picked up a couple consecutive penalties, including an UNSPORTSMANLIKE CONDUCT penalty, the faced a 3rd down and 26. Testaverde would find rookie WR Winston Loftus (3 rec., 62 yds) for a 35-yd catch and a 1st down. Testaverde's next pass would sail over the head of Minnesota CB Antoine Winfield and into the hands of WR Terry Glenn (7 rec., 154 yds, 2 TDs) for a 56-yd TD strike. Dallas' defense would clamp down and the Vikings would be shut out the rest of the half. The Cowboys would put together an impressive drive that included a 24-yd run from rookie RB Julius Jones (21 car., 87 yds) to setup K Billy Sutton's 41-yd FG to give Dallas a 10-7 halftime advantage.
 During halftime, Dallas headcoach Randall Groh had this to say,"I basically told the guys that we had them on their heals and that if the defense continued to play like they did in that 2nd quarter, we were going to win this game." Dallas' offensive attack looked to be off to a great start to begin the 2nd half and after it looked like they had taken a 17-3 lead on a Jones 40-yd run, a flag flew and it was called back for OFFENSIVE HOLDING. The Cowboys responded on their next possession with Testaverde capping the drive with an 11-yd TD to Glenn. The defense responded in a big way, holding Minnesota to three possessions in the 3rd quarter. Two resulted in punts with the offense only moving the ball a total of 7-yds and the other lead to a 49-yd FG from Andersen. "At that point we knew that they couldn't continue to hang with us. The defense had just stopped them on three straight possessions and you could tell that they were demoralized," Testaverde commented.
Minnesota would allow the Cowboys to only get possession of the ball twice in the 4th quarter and neither time could the 'Boys do anything. Andersen missed a FG with 8:36 remaining, that would have pulled the Vikings to within 17-6. Both teams traded punts for much of the 4th until Minnesota got the ball with 2:31 left in the game. After the Cowboys went into their prevent defense, Culpepper managed to get something going with a 60-yd, 7 play drive that resulted in a 24-yd TD pass to WR Marcus Robinson. The Cowboys knew that an onside kick was on the way but LB Dexter Coakley, a force on the hands team, had just been taken to the locker room with a groin injury. Andersen's kick sailed right into the hands of LB E.J. Hendersona, keeping the Vikings hopes alive. Culpepper found a seem on first down and rumbled for 12-yds to the DAL48. FB Jim Kleinsasser then grabbed a big reception for 18-yds, taking Minnesota down to the DAL30. After Culpepper spiked the ball to stop the clock, they faced a 2nd and 10 from the DAL30 with :33 left in the game. "At this point we had them on their heels, they had no idea what was coming," said Culpepper after the game. What came, was a 30-yd TD pass to Robinson and a two point conversion from Culpepper to WR Horace West, making the score 20-17 Minnesota. Dallas got one last chance but there just wasn't enough time left to get into FG range. "It is a frustrating day all around. We did an excellent job through 3 1/2 quarters of play, only to lose by giving up two TDs in a little over two minutes...just goes to show that you must play all 4 quarters if you expect to win," GM Justin Shipman commented in his postgame news conference. Dallas now travels to the Dog Pound to play the Cleveland Browns.
Injuiries
LB Dexter Coakley - Pulled Groin (Questionable, 3 Weeks)
RG Andre Gurode - Pulled Quadriceps Muscle (Probable, 1 Week)
LG Justin Smiley - Deep Thigh Bruise (Probable, 2 Weeks)
RG J.J. Sawyer - Strained Quadriceps Muscle (Probable, 3 Weeks)
DE Marcellus Wiley - Strained Quadriceps Muscle (Probable, 3 Weeks)
Box Score
Attendance: 62,700 (64,100).
Weather: 68 degrees, fair.
1Q: 06:56 MIN - Morten Andersen 51 field goal.
1Q: 05:16 DAL - Terry Glenn 56 pass from Vinny Testaverde.
1Q: 05:16 DAL - Billy Sutton extra point.
2Q: 14:48 DAL - Billy Sutton 41 field goal.
3Q: 07:20 DAL - Terry Glenn 11 pass from Vinny Testaverde.
3Q: 07:20 DAL - Billy Sutton extra point.
3Q: 00:56 MIN - Morten Andersen 49 field goal.
4Q: 01:20 MIN - Marcus Robinson 24 pass from Daunte Culpepper.
4Q: 01:20 MIN - Michael Bennett run for conversion failed.
4Q: 00:21 MIN - Marcus Robinson 30 pass from Daunte Culpepper.
4Q: 00:21 MIN - Daunte Culpepper pass to Horace West for conversion
Game MVP: MIN 11 Daunte Culpepper
Dallas 7 3 7 0 - 17
Minnesota 3 0 3 14 - 20
Team Statistics DAL MIN
First Downs 21 17
Total Rushes 25 20
Rushing Yards 106 76
Yards Per Carry 4.2 3.8
Pass Attempts 33 34
Completions 19 18
Passing Yards 324 272
Yards Per Attempt 9.8 8.0
Sacked 3 4
Yards Lost 27 26
Interceptions 0 1
Fumbles/Lost 2/1 1/0
Total Plays 61 58
Total Yards 403 322
Yards Per Play 6.6 5.5
3rd Down Plays 5/14 2/11
Avg. YTG on 3rd 12.0 12.0
4th Down Plays 0/0 0/0
Penalties 12 9
Penalty Yards 98 65
Avg. Drive Start OWN 30 OWN 28
Time Of Possession 31:15 28:45
Dallas Individual Statistics
Rushing Att Yards Avg Long TD
21 Jones 21 87 4.1 24 0
16 Testaverde 2 14 7.0 10 0
83 Glenn 1 4 4.0 4 0
36 Barnes 1 1 1.0 1 0
Passing Att Comp Yards Yd/Att Long TD Int Sckd
16 Testaverde 33 19 324 9.8 56 2 0 3
Receiving Catch Yards Avg YAC Long TD
83 Glenn 7 154 22.0 31 56 2
82 Witten 4 49 12.2 16 17 0
81 Morgan 3 48 16.0 3 17 0
87 Loftus 3 62 20.6 2 35 0
23 Kreider 2 11 5.5 10 8 0
Punt Returns Att Yards Avg TD
41 Newman 3 43 14.3 0
Kick Returns Att Yards Avg TD
81 Morgan 1 27 27.0 0
87 Loftus 1 22 22.0 0
Punting Punts Yards Avg Long In20
6 Ellis 6 254 42.3 56 3
Kicking FG FGA Long PAT Att
19 Sutton 1 2 41 2 2
Defense Tackle Assist Sack Int IntYds IntTD
59 Nguyen 7 2 0.0 0 0 0
52 Coakley 5 2 1.0 0 0 0
41 Newman 5 2 0.0 0 0 0
42 Carroll 5 1 0.0 0 0 0
98 Ellis 4 1 1.0 0 0 0
31 Williams 4 1 0.0 1 0 0
73 Tubbs 3 1 1.0 0 0 0
28 Woodson 3 1 0.0 0 0 0
97 Glover 2 0 1.0 0 0 0
92 Watson 1 2 0.0 0 0 0
81 Morgan 1 0 0.0 0 0 0
56 James 1 0 0.0 0 0 0
57 Grove 1 0 0.0 0 0 0
40 Springer 1 0 0.0 0 0 0
89 Sobin 1 0 0.0 0 0 0
Miscellaneous Fumb FForc Recov MiscTD KeyRBlk SckAlwd
67 Smiley 0 0 0 0 2 2
76 Adams 0 0 0 0 0 1
23 Kreider 0 0 1 0 0 0
81 Morgan 1 0 0 0 0 0
82 Witten 0 0 0 0 1 0
21 Jones 1 0 0 0 0 0
79 Rogers 0 0 0 0 1 0
92 Watson 0 1 0 0 0 0
Minnesota Individual Statistics
Rushing Att Yards Avg Long TD
23 Bennett 12 27 2.2 5 0
11 Culpepper 4 33 8.2 12 0
32 Smith 4 16 4.0 11 0
Passing Att Comp Yards Yd/Att Long TD Int Sckd
11 Culpepper 34 18 272 8.0 53 2 1 4
Receiving Catch Yards Avg YAC Long TD
40 Kleinsasser 8 99 12.3 38 20 0
87 Robinson 4 121 30.2 6 53 2
84 Moss 3 21 7.0 9 12 0
23 Bennett 1 12 12.0 3 12 0
45 Fiore 1 10 10.0 0 10 0
80 West 1 9 9.0 3 9 0
Punt Returns Att Yards Avg TD
84 Moss 1 -3 -3.0 0
Kick Returns Att Yards Avg TD
26 Winfield 3 81 27.0 0
87 Robinson 1 18 18.0 0
Punting Punts Yards Avg Long In20
2 Bennett 6 263 43.8 53 2
Kicking FG FGA Long PAT Att
7 Andersen 2 3 51 0 0
Defense Tackle Assist Sack Int IntYds IntTD
55 Claiborne 9 3 0.5 0 0 0
54 Thomas 7 0 0.0 0 0 0
58 Davis 4 2 0.0 0 0 0
99 Hovan 4 0 0.0 0 0 0
95 Udeze 3 1 0.5 0 0 0
21 Chavous 3 2 0.0 0 0 0
26 Winfield 3 2 0.0 0 0 0
24 Offord 2 2 0.0 0 0 0
29 Williams 2 2 0.0 0 0 0
27 Russell 2 1 0.0 0 0 0
79 Mixon 2 0 0.0 0 0 0
80 West 2 0 0.0 0 0 0
51 Johnstone 1 1 1.5 0 0 0
96 Czarniecki 1 0 0.5 0 0 0
40 Kleinsasser 1 0 0.0 0 0 0
23 Bennett 1 0 0.0 0 0 0
74 McKinnie 1 0 0.0 0 0 0
59 Nattiel 1 0 0.0 0 0 0
42 Bock 1 0 0.0 0 0 0
Miscellaneous Fumb FForc Recov MiscTD KeyRBlk SckAlwd
73 Goldberg 0 0 0 0 0 1
74 McKinnie 0 0 0 0 0 2
76 Liwienski 0 0 0 0 3 0
78 Birk 0 0 0 0 0 1
26 Winfield 0 1 0 0 0 0
58 Davis 0 0 1 0 0 0
54 Thomas 0 1 0 0 0 0
45 Fiore 1 0 0 0 0 0
80 West 0 0 1 0 0 0
Dallas Drive Chart
Quar Began Poss From Plays Yards Result
1 12:16 2:03 OWN 2 3 9 Punt
1 6:56 1:40 OWN 20 5 80 Touchdown
1 2:28 2:40 OWN 29 6 47 Field Goal
2 13:12 3:06 OWN 29 6 48 Fumble
2 8:23 1:34 OWN 37 4 22 Punt
2 2:24 2:24 OWN 29 6 6 Punt
3 15:00 3:08 OWN 20 6 30 Punt
3 10:44 3:24 OPP 47 7 47 Touchdown
3 5:12 1:34 OWN 45 4 18 Punt
3 0:56 2:07 OWN 37 3 -10 Punt
4 8:36 6:05 OWN 41 11 26 Missed FG
4 0:21 0:21 OWN 27 1 7 Game
Minnesota Drive Chart
Quar Began Poss From Plays Yards Result
1 15:00 2:44 OWN 29 4 33 Interception
1 10:13 3:17 OWN 46 6 20 Field Goal
1 5:16 2:48 OWN 36 3 -4 Punt
2 14:48 1:36 OWN 36 3 1 Punt
2 10:06 1:43 OWN 23 3 -10 Punt
2 6:49 4:25 OWN 2 8 36 Punt
3 11:52 1:08 OWN 6 3 5 Punt
3 7:20 2:08 OWN 25 3 2 Punt
3 3:38 2:42 OWN 20 5 48 Field Goal
4 13:49 5:13 OWN 35 9 31 Missed FG
4 2:31 1:11 OWN 40 7 60 Touchdown
4 1:12 0:51 OWN 40 5 60 Touchdown
Dallas Red Zone Profile
Visits TDs FGs
2 1 0
Minnesota Red Zone Profile
Visits TDs FGs
0 0 0
Dallas Rushing Breakdown
Direction Rush Yards Ave
Left 5 24 4.8
Middle 16 47 2.9
Right 4 35 8.7
None 0 0 0.0
Run Blocking KeyBlks BlkOpps RunPlays
67 Smiley 2 3 25
79 Rogers 1 2 25
82 Witten 1 2 23
76 Adams 0 6 25
57 Grove 0 4 25
66 Sawyer 0 4 25
23 Kreider 0 2 19
89 Sobin 0 0 2
36 Barnes 0 0 1
85 Fair 0 0 1
Dallas Passing Breakdown
Distance Pass Comp Yards Ave
Screen 2 2 14 7.0
Short (0-8 Yds) 3 1 3 1.0
Medium (9-18 Yds) 18 12 171 9.5
Long (19+ Yds) 10 4 136 13.6
Passing Attempt Comp BdThrw Dropd Defnsd Blockd Hurried Intrcpt
16 Testaverde 33 19 1 6 4 0 3 0
Receiving Target Caught Dropd Yards PassPlay
83 Glenn 12 7 3 154 36
81 Morgan 10 3 2 48 33
82 Witten 5 4 0 49 30
87 Loftus 3 3 0 62 15
23 Kreider 2 2 0 11 29
36 Barnes 1 0 1 0 3
Pass Block SckAlwd PassPlay
76 Adams 1 36
57 Grove 0 36
67 Smiley 2 36
79 Rogers 0 36
66 Sawyer 0 36
23 Kreider 0 29
36 Barnes 0 3
Pass Rush Sacks PsBlks Hurries PassPlay
98 Ellis 1.0 0 3 38
97 Glover 1.0 0 2 38
73 Tubbs 1.0 0 0 38
52 Coakley 1.0 0 0 29
75 Wiley 0.0 0 1 38
92 Watson 0.0 0 1 38
28 Woodson 0.0 0 0 38
31 Williams 0.0 0 0 38
41 Newman 0.0 0 0 38
42 Carroll 0.0 0 0 38
59 Nguyen 0.0 0 0 37
40 Springer 0.0 0 0 9
34 Feeley 0.0 0 0 1
Pass Defense Caught Defnsd Intrcpt PassPlay
59 Nguyen 6 0 0 37
42 Carroll 3 1 0 38
52 Coakley 3 1 0 29
31 Williams 2 1 1 38
41 Newman 2 0 0 38
28 Woodson 1 0 0 38
92 Watson 1 0 0 38
97 Glover 0 0 0 38
75 Wiley 0 0 0 38
98 Ellis 0 0 0 38
73 Tubbs 0 0 0 38
40 Springer 0 0 0 9
34 Feeley 0 0 0 1
Defense Tackles Assists RunPlay PassPlay
59 Nguyen 7 2 20 37
41 Newman 5 2 20 38
52 Coakley 5 2 16 29
42 Carroll 5 1 20 38
98 Ellis 4 1 20 38
31 Williams 4 1 20 38
28 Woodson 3 1 20 38
73 Tubbs 3 1 20 38
97 Glover 2 0 20 38
92 Watson 1 2 20 38
40 Springer 1 0 4 9
56 James 1 0 0 0
75 Wiley 0 0 20 38
34 Feeley 0 0 0 1
Minnesota Rushing Breakdown
Direction Rush Yards Ave
Left 3 8 2.6
Middle 13 56 4.3
Right 4 12 3.0
None 0 0 0.0
Run Blocking KeyBlks BlkOpps RunPlays
76 Liwienski 3 7 19
74 McKinnie 0 3 20
78 Birk 0 2 20
37 Duffy 0 2 12
71 Dixon 0 1 19
40 Kleinsasser 0 1 19
75 Rosenthal 0 0 18
85 Wiggins 0 0 4
45 Fiore 0 0 4
65 Dorsey 0 0 2
46 Loeffler 0 0 1
73 Goldberg 0 0 1
Minnesota Passing Breakdown
Distance Pass Comp Yards Ave
Screen 4 2 10 2.5
Short (0-8 Yds) 10 6 47 4.7
Medium (9-18 Yds) 12 7 108 9.0
Long (19+ Yds) 7 3 107 15.2
Passing Attempt Comp BdThrw Dropd Defnsd Blockd Hurried Intrcpt
11 Culpepper 34 18 2 2 3 0 7 1
Receiving Target Caught Dropd Yards PassPlay
40 Kleinsasser 12 8 1 99 33
84 Moss 9 3 1 21 37
87 Robinson 4 4 0 121 18
23 Bennett 3 1 0 12 28
80 West 3 1 0 9 26
81 Burleson 1 0 0 0 12
45 Fiore 1 1 0 10 7
Pass Block SckAlwd PassPlay
78 Birk 1 38
74 McKinnie 2 38
75 Rosenthal 0 35
76 Liwienski 0 32
71 Dixon 0 30
37 Duffy 0 17
46 Loeffler 0 8
45 Fiore 0 7
73 Goldberg 1 6
65 Dorsey 0 3
Pass Rush Sacks PsBlks Hurries PassPlay
51 Johnstone 1.5 0 2 23
95 Udeze 0.5 0 0 36
55 Claiborne 0.5 0 0 34
96 Czarniecki 0.5 0 0 8
99 Hovan 0.0 0 1 36
21 Chavous 0.0 0 0 36
26 Winfield 0.0 0 0 36
29 Williams 0.0 0 0 34
27 Russell 0.0 0 0 29
58 Davis 0.0 0 0 29
93 Williams 0.0 0 0 28
54 Thomas 0.0 0 0 16
42 Bock 0.0 0 0 15
24 Offord 0.0 0 0 14
79 Mixon 0.0 0 0 13
59 Nattiel 0.0 0 0 7
52 Newman 0.0 0 0 2
Pass Defense Caught Defnsd Intrcpt PassPlay
26 Winfield 4 0 0 36
55 Claiborne 3 2 0 34
29 Williams 3 0 0 34
58 Davis 3 0 0 29
27 Russell 2 0 0 29
54 Thomas 2 0 0 16
21 Chavous 1 2 0 36
42 Bock 1 0 0 15
99 Hovan 0 0 0 36
95 Udeze 0 0 0 36
93 Williams 0 0 0 28
51 Johnstone 0 0 0 23
24 Offord 0 0 0 14
79 Mixon 0 0 0 13
96 Czarniecki 0 0 0 8
59 Nattiel 0 0 0 7
52 Newman 0 0 0 2
Defense Tackles Assists RunPlay PassPlay
55 Claiborne 9 3 22 34
54 Thomas 7 0 13 16
58 Davis 4 2 23 29
99 Hovan 4 0 25 36
21 Chavous 3 2 25 36
26 Winfield 3 2 25 36
95 Udeze 3 1 25 36
29 Williams 2 2 22 34
24 Offord 2 2 12 14
27 Russell 2 1 15 29
79 Mixon 2 0 21 13
51 Johnstone 1 1 4 23
42 Bock 1 0 11 15
59 Nattiel 1 0 4 7
96 Czarniecki 1 0 2 8
93 Williams 0 0 23 28
52 Newman 0 0 3 2
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