New York occasionally employed a stand-up defense—with no player set before the play—to try to confuse the Cowboys' offense.
The win pulled the Cowboys even with the Packers at 10-1, setting up the NFC game of the year next Thursday.
Whether that game will measure up to the New England vs. Indianapolis tilt earlier this season remains to be seen.
Colts 31, Falcons 13
In the last game on the day, Indianapolis bounced back from an early 10-0 deficit to top Atlanta 31-13.
Peyton Manning tossed three touchdowns and surpassed 40,000 yards passing for his career despite protection problems on the offensive line.
Manning was sacked four times.
Wide receiver Anthony Gonzalez had his best game yet in place of the injured Marvin Harrison, reeling in six catches for 105 yards. Reggie Wayne added five catches for 66 yards and a touchdown, but dropped two passes that could have gone for big gains.
Manning picked on Atlanta rookie cornerback Chris Houston all night, consistently completing passes in his direction. A third-down pass interference call on Houston allowed the Colts to continue a drive and score a touchdown.
Just one time did Manning throw in DeAngelo Hall's direction—and he was intercepted.
The Falcons came out strong with an eight-minute, 19-play opening drive—the most plays on any NFL drive this season. However, QB Joey Harrington misfired on two passes in the red zone, and Atlanta had to settle for a field goal and a 3-0 lead.
After the Atlanta D forced the Colts to go three and out, the Falcons' next drive was kept alive by an Indy offsides penalty on third down. Harrington took advantage on the next play, hitting Roddy White on a 48-yard touchdown strike for a 10-0 advantage.
Harrington played decently, but had a number of first-down passes dropped by White and Alge Crumpler.
The Colts bounced back two drives later. After a Dallas Clark touchdown was nullified by a 15-yard facemask penalty, Manning threw a 23-yard laser to Wayne to pull Indy within three points.
Later in the second quarter, a questionable roughing the kicker call on an Indianapolis punt gave the Colts new life. The offense marched down the field and eventually took a 14-13 lead on a Clark touchdown catch.
After a Kelvin Hayden interception, Indianapolis went 48 yards in four plays for a 21-13 lead. Manning's scoring toss to Ben Utecht was his third of the quarter and seized the momentum for the Colts heading into halftime.
The Colts scored 10 more points in the third quarter—on a Joseph Addai run and an Adam Vinatieri field goal—while shutting out the Falcons.
After the first quarter, Indianapolis outscored Atlanta 31-3.
The bright spot for the Falcons was running back Warrick Dunn's cracking the 10,000-yard mark for his career.
The Colts improved their record to 9-2 and have 10 days to recuperate before a divisional showdown against Jacksonville.
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