2009 Dallas Cowboys season The 2009 Dallas Cowboys season is the 50th season for the team in the National Football League . It is the team ' s first season playing at Cowboys Stadium . Their victory over the Oakland Raiders on November 26 extended their Thanksgiving winning streak to four in a row and also ended a three game losing streak to the Raiders . They also ended the Saints ' bid for a perfect season after a 13 – 0 start with a 24 – 17 victory on December 19 , 2009 . The Cowboys punched their ticket to the playoffs on December 27 beating the Washington Redskins 17 – 0 . On January 3 , 2010 , the Cowboys clinched their division with a win over the Philadelphia Eagles , 24 – 0 . In the wild - card opening round of the playoffs , the Dallas Cowboys , once again , beat the Eagles , 34 – 14 , to score their first playoff win since 1996 and sweep all three games played against Philadelphia this season . They lost to the Minnesota Vikings in the divisional round of the playoffs , 34 – 3 . Regular season results . Week 1 : at Tampa Bay Buccaneers . The Cowboys began their season at Raymond James Stadium for a Week 1 duel with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers . In the first quarter , Dallas shot first as kicker Nick Folk got a 51 - yard and a 22 - yard field goal . The Buccaneers responded in the second quarter as running back Carnell " Cadillac " Williams got a 1 - yard touchdown run . The Cowboys regained the lead as quarterback Tony Romo completed a 42 - yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Miles Austin . Dallas increased their lead in the third quarter as Romo completed a 66 - yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Roy Williams . In the fourth quarter , Tampa Bay answered with running back Derrick Ward getting a 1 - yard touchdown run , yet the Cowboys struck right back with Romo completing an 80 - yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Patrick Crayton , along with running back Marion Barber getting a 6 - yard touchdown run . Afterwards , Tampa Bay ' s rally only produced a 2 - yard touchdown pass from quarterback Byron Leftwich to tight end Kellen Winslow . With the win , Dallas began its season at 1 – 0 . Week 2 : vs . New York Giants . Coming off their road win over the Buccaneers , the Cowboys would play their very first regular season home game at the new Cowboys Stadium . With an NFL - record regular season crowd on hand , Dallas would play a Sunday night game against their NFC East rival , the New York Giants . In the first quarter , Dallas trailed early as Giants kicker Lawrence Tynes got a 30 - yard field goal . Dallas responded with running back Marion Barber getting a 2 - yard touchdown run , but New York retook the lead as cornerback Bruce Johnson returned an interception 34 yards for a touchdown . In the second quarter , the Giants added a Tynes 28 - yard field goal to make the score 13 – 7 . The Cowboys responded with a 1 - yard Tony Romo touchdown pass to tight end Jason Witten , yet New York went back on top as quarterback Eli Manning complted a 22 - yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Mario Manningham , this pass however was juggled but still ruled as a touchdown . Dallas closed out the half as kicker Nick Folk made a 47 - yard field goal . The Cowboys would regain the lead in the third quarter as Romo ran for a 3 - yard touchdown . However , in the fourth quarter , the Giants again got the lead as Manning completed a 22 - yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Steve Smith , followed by Tynes kicking a 36 - yard field goal . Dallas responded with a 7 - yard touchdown run from running back Felix Jones . With minutes remaining New York drove the length of the field and Tynes kicked the game - winning 37 - yard field goal as time expired . With the loss , the Cowboys fell to 1 – 1 . Week 3 : vs . Carolina Panthers . Hoping to rebound from their tough divisional loss to the Giants , the Cowboys stayed at home for a Week 3 Monday night duel with the Carolina Panthers . After a scoreless first quarter , Dallas trailed in the second quarter as Panthers quarterback Jake Delhomme completed a 25 - yard touchdown pass to tight end Dante Rosario . The Cowboys took control in the third quarter as kicker Nick Folk nailed a 24 - yard field goal , followed by running back Tashard Choice getting a 5 - yard touchdown run . Dallas pulled away with Folk ' s 19 - yard field goal and cornerback Terence Newman returning an interception 27 yards for a touchdown ( with Choice getting the 2 - point conversion run ) . With the win , the Cowboys improved to 2 – 1 . Week 4 : at Denver Broncos . Coming off their Monday night home win over the Panthers , the Cowboys flew to Invesco Field at Mile High for a Week 4 interconference duel with the Denver Broncos . Dallas would deliver the opening shots in the first quarter with kicker Nick Folk making a 49 - yard field goal , followed by running back Marion Barber ' s 1 - yard touchdown run . The Broncos would answer in the second quarter with quarterback Kyle Orton completing a 9 - yard touchdown pass to running back Knowshon Moreno . After a scoreless third quarter , Denver would take control in the fourth . The Broncos would tie the game with a 28 - yard field goal from kicker Matt Prater , and then they would take the lead with Orton ' s 51 - yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Brandon Marshall . The ' Boys would get a late game drive all the way down to Denver ' s 1 - yard line , but the Broncos ' defense would hold on the for the win . With the loss , the Cowboys fell to 2 – 2 . Week 5 : at Kansas City Chiefs . Hoping to rebound from their tough road loss to the Broncos , the Cowboys flew to Arrowhead Stadium , donned their throwback uniforms , and played a Week 5 interconference duel with the Kansas City Chiefs . After a scoreless first quarter , Dallas would trail in the second quarter as Chiefs kicker Ryan Succop booted a 47 - yard field goal and quarterback Matt Cassel hooking up with linebacker Mike Vrabel on a 1 - yard touchdown pass . The Cowboys would close out the half with a 22 - yard field goal by kicker Nick Folk . Kansas City came out in the third quarter with Succop ' s 38 - yard field goal , yet the Cowboys began to take control as running back Tashard Choice got a 36 - yard touchdown run . In the fourth quarter , Dallas took the lead as Folk nailed a 28 - yard field goal , followed by quarterback Tony Romo completing a 59 - yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Miles Austin . However , the Chiefs would tie the game with Cassel ' s 16 - yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Dwayne Bowe . In overtime , the ' Boys came out on top as Romo hooked up with Austin again on a game - winning 60 - yard touchdown pass . With the win , the Cowboys went into their bye week at 3 – 2 . Week 7 : vs . Atlanta Falcons . Coming off their bye week , the Cowboys went home for a Week 7 duel with the Atlanta Falcons . Dallas would trail in the first quarter as Falcons quarterback Matt Ryan found wide receiver Roddy White on a 4 - yard touchdown pass . In the second quarter , the Cowboys came out shooting as kicker Nick Folk made a 38 - yard field goal , followed by quarterback Tony Romo completing a 59 - yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Miles Austin and a 5 - yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Patrick Crayton . Atlanta tried to catch up in the third quarter with running back Michael Turner ' s 2 - yard touchdown run , yet Dallas answered with Romo finding Austin again on a 22 - yard touchdown pass . The Cowboys would increase their lead in the fourth quarter with Folk nailing a 46 - yard field goal and Crayton returning a punt 73 yards for a touchdown . The Falcons tried to come back with Ryan ' s 30 - yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Eric Weems , yet Dallas closed out the game with Folk ' s 34 - yard field goal . With the win , the Cowboys improved to 4 – 2 . Week 8 : vs . Seattle Seahawks . Coming off their win over the Falcons , the Cowboys stayed at home for a Week 8 duel with the Seattle Seahawks . Dallas would trail early in the first quarter as Seahawks kicker Olindo Mare nailed a 43 - yard field goal , yet the Cowboys answered with quarterback Tony Romo completing a 36 - yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Sam Hurd . In the second quarter , Dallas increased their lead as running back Marion Barber got a 2 - yard touchdown run . The Seahawks would reply with quarterback Matt Hasselbeck ' s 23 - yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Deion Branch , yet the Cowboys came right back with Romo ' s 7 - yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Roy Williams . Dallas would greatly increase their lead in the third quarter with Romo hooking up with wide receiver Miles Austin on a 3 - yard touchdown pass , followed by wide receiver Patrick Crayton returning a punt 82 yards for a touchdown . In the fourth quarter , the Cowboys solidified their win with kicker Nick Folk nailing a 40 - yard field goal . Seattle would close out the game ' s scoring with Hasselbeck ' s 4 - yard touchdown pass to fullback Justin Griffith . With the win , Dallas improved to 5 – 2 . Crayton would join " Bullet Bob " Hayes as the only Cowboys to have back - to - back games with a punt return for a touchdown . Week 9 : at Philadelphia Eagles . Coming off their home win over the Seahawks , the Cowboys flew to Lincoln Financial Field for a Week 9 NFC East duel with the Philadelphia Eagles with both teams fighting for the division lead . Dallas would deliver the opening shot in the first quarter as running back Tashard Choice got a 2 - yard touchdown run . The Eagles would answer in the second quarter as kicker David Akers made a 45 - yard and a 48 - yard field goal , yet the Cowboys came right back with a 22 - yard field goal from kicker Nick Folk . Philadelphia would take the lead in the third quarter as quarterback Donovan McNabb completed an 11 - yard touchdown pass to tight end Brent Celek . Afterwards , Dallas would regain the lead in the fourth quarter as Folk booted a 33 - yard field goal , followed by quarterback Tony Romo hooking up with wide receiver Miles Austin on a 49 - yard touchdown pass . The Eagles tried to rally as Akers nailed a 52 - yard field goal , yet the ' Boys would run out the clock and grab the lead in the NFC East . With the win , the Cowboys improved to 6 – 2 . Week 10 : at Green Bay Packers . Coming off a huge divisional win over the Eagles , the Cowboys flew to Lambeau Field for a Week 10 duel with the Green Bay Packers . After a scoreless first quarter , the Packers would acquire the only points of the opening half as kicker Mason Crosby booted a 48 - yard field goal . After a scoreless third quarter , Green Bay would extend their lead in the fourth quarter as quarterback Aaron Rodgers got a 1 - yard touchdown run and threw a 2 - yard touchdown pass to tight end Spencer Havner . Dallas tried to rally as quarterback Tony Romo hooked up with wide receiver Roy Williams on a 9 - yard touchdown pass , but the Packers ' defense would shut down any further attempt . In this game , the Cowboys avoided a shutout in the final minutes . Their previous shutout was in 2003 against the New England Patriots in which they lost 0 – 12 . With the loss , the Cowboys fell to 6 – 3 . Week 11 : vs . Washington Redskins . Hoping to rebound from their frustrating loss to the Packers , the Cowboys returned home for their Week 11 NFC East rivalry match against the Washington Redskins . After a scoreless first quarter , Dallas trailed early after Redskins kicker Shaun Suisham nailed a 45 - yard field goal . In the third quarter , Suisham booted a 31 - yard field goal to keep the Redskins in front , yet in the fourth quarter , Dallas took the lead with quarterback Tony Romo completing a 10 - yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Patrick Crayton . With the close win , the Cowboys improved to 7 – 3 . Week 12 : vs . Oakland Raiders . Coming off their win over the Redskins , the Cowboys stayed at home for a Week 12 Thanksgiving duel with the Oakland Raiders . In the first quarter , Dallas began their dominating day with kicker Nick Folk booting a 36 - yard field goal . The Cowboys would add onto their lead in the second quarter as running back Felix Jones got a 46 - yard touchdown , followed by quarterback Tony Romo finding wide receiver Miles Austin on a 9 - yard touchdown pass . The Raiders would try to rally in the third quarter as quarterback Bruce Gradkowski completed a 4 - yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Darrius Heyward - Bey , yet Dallas would pull away in the fourth quarter as Romo hooked up with wide receiver Roy Williams . With the win , the Cowboys improved to 8 – 3 . Romo ( 18 / 29 , 309 yards , 2 TDs ) , Austin ( 7 receptions , 145 yards , 1 TD ) , & tight end Jason Witten ( 5 receptions , 107 yards ) were named CBS ' s All - Iron Award winners . Week 13 : at New York Giants . Coming off their Thanksgiving win over the Raiders , the Cowboys went to Giants Stadium for the final time to face off against their NFC East rival the New York Giants . With a scoreless first quarter the Cowboys scored a field goal and touchdown by Tony Romo to Roy Williams . However the Giants countered by scoring two touchdowns in the second quarter . Nick Folk missed a 57 yard field goal just before halftime . In the third quarter , both teams scored touchdowns and Nick Folk missed a 42 yard field goal which would have put the Cowboys in front . In the fourth quarter the Giants scored two touchdowns , one being a 79 yard punt return by Domenik Hixon . Dallas would score a late touchdown from Romo to Miles Austin but the game ended with the Giants sweeping the series . Dallas fell to 8 – 4 with the loss . Week 15 : at New Orleans Saints . Hoping to end the two - game skid from their tough losses to the New York Giants and San Diego Chargers , the Cowboys went to the Superdome to take on the undefeated New Orleans Saints . The Cowboys took the lead in the first half by scoring two touchdowns with a 49 - yard pass from Tony Romo to Miles Austin and a 3 - yard touchdown run by Marion Barber . Outside linebacker DeMarcus Ware made a big play as he sacked Saints quarterback Drew Brees and caused the ball to be fumbled . Anthony Spencer recovered the ball to put it in Dallas ' hands . The Saints only points of the half were from a 43 - yard field goal by Garrett Hartley . In the second half , the Cowboys scored their only touchdown in the third quarter with a two yard touchdown run by Marion Barber . Finally in the fourth quarter New Orleans got a touchdown when running back Mike Bell scored from one yard out to make a 24 – 10 Dallas lead . Drew Brees also made a 7 - yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Lance Moore . After that , Nick Folk attempted a 24 - yard field goal , but the kick was no good . With a big advantage to take the lead as the clock was expiring , the Saints were driving for the game - tying score , but DeMarcus Ware made his second sack on Drew Brees , which again caused the ball to be fumbled . This time the ball was recovered by nose guard Jay Ratliff . With the ball in possession , Dallas took a knee to conclude the game . With a huge win over the once - undefeated Saints , the Cowboys extended their chances to make the playoffs and ended a two - game losing streak . They improved their record to 9 – 5 . Week 16 : at Washington Redskins . Coming off a huge win over the New Orleans Saints , the Cowboys went to FedEx Field to take on the Washington Redskins . In the first quarter , Tony Romo made a 4 - yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Roy Williams . In the second quarter , Marion Barber made a 3 - yard touchdown run . The Cowboys ended the first half of the game holding Washington to no points . The Cowboys got a 23 - yard field goal in the second half by their new kicker Shaun Suisham who had played for the Redskins prior to the game . The Redskins continued to be scoreless and ended the game being shutout . This was the first shutout victory over the Redskins since the Cowboys beat them 27 – 0 on December 14 , 2003 and the first time they swept the Redskins since the 2004 season . With the victory , the Cowboys would clinch a spot in the playoffs and improved from their final 9 – 7 record from the previous season . The win also closed the doors on the 8 – 7 New York Giants , who had a 41 – 9 loss to the Carolina Panthers earlier that day . With the win , the Cowboys improved to 10 – 5 . Week 17 : vs . Philadelphia Eagles . Coming off their shutout victory against Washington , the Cowboys stayed home for their regular season finale against the Philadelphia Eagles in a regular season - sealing claim for the NFC East crown . The Cowboys scored their first touchdown of the game when Tony Romo completed a 10 - yard touchdown pass to tight end Jason Witten in the first quarter . In the second quarter , wide receiver Patrick Crayton completed a 14 - yard touchdown pass from Tony Romo . Shaun Suisham also nailed a 44 - yard field goal . The Cowboys scored their final touchdown of the game when running back Felix Jones ran a 49 - yard touchdown . The Eagles could not score the entire game with quarterback Donovan McNabb getting sacked four times . With the victory , the Cowboys would once again , reclaim first place in their division and improve to 11 – 5 to top off their regular season . This is the first time the Cowboys have swept the series since 2005 , and also to snap Dallas ' s 9 - regular season finale losing streak , as well as being the first time the Cowboys won a January game since 2000 . The Cowboys would face off with the Eagles again in their first game of the playoffs the next week . This is also the first time Dallas posted back to back shutouts and Tony Romo broke his old team record for single season passing . They finished the regular season with an 11 – 5 record . Post - season results . NFC Wild - Card Game : vs . Philadelphia Eagles . Entering the playoffs as the NFC ' s No . 3 seed , the Cowboys began their postseason run at home in " Round 3 " against their rival , the No . 6 Philadelphia Eagles , in a rematch of their week 17 victory . After a scoreless first quarter , Dallas delivered the opening shot in the second quarter with quarterback Tony Romo completing a 1 - yard touchdown pass to tight end John Phillips . The Eagles responded with quarterback Michael Vick ' s 76 - yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Jeremy Maclin when cornerback Mike Jenkins fell on the route . Then the Cowboys exploded with points , starting with a 1 - yard touchdown run from running back Tashard Choice , a 25 - yard field goal from kicker Shaun Suisham , Romo ' s 6 - yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Miles Austin and Suisham ' s second field goal of the quarter , from 48 yards . Dallas went back to work in the third quarter with running back Felix Jones ' 76 - yard touchdown run . Philadelphia tried to rally in the fourth quarter as quarterback Donovan McNabb completed a 4 - yard touchdown pass to wide receiver DeSean Jackson , but the ' Boys would drain every last bit of hope needed for a comeback . The Cowboys and Eagles combined to set an NFL record for the most penalty yards in a playoff game , ever . The two teams were penalized 23 times for 228 yards . With the win , not only did the Cowboys improve to 12 – 5 , they finally won their first postseason game since 1996 , and head coach Wade Phillips finally got his first postseason win . NFC Divisional : vs . Minnesota Vikings . Coming off their three - game sweep over the Eagles , the Cowboys flew to the Hubert H . Humphrey Metrodome for the NFC Divisional Round against the No . 2 Minnesota Vikings . Dallas would trail in the first quarter as Vikings quarterback Brett Favre completed a 47 - yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Sidney Rice . The Cowboys would respond in the second quarter with kicker Shaun Suisham making a 33 - yard field goal , but Minnesota struck again as Favre found Rice again on a 16 - yard touchdown pass , followed by kicker Ryan Longwell getting a 23 - yard field goal . After a scoreless third quarter , the Vikings pulled away in the fourth quarter with Longwell booting a 28 - yard field goal , followed by Favre ' 45 - yard touchdown pass to Rice and an 11 - yard touchdown pass to tight end Visanthe Shiancoe . With the loss , the Cowboys ' season ended with an overall record of 12 – 6 and their first playoff win since 1996 . Players . Movement . After news reports about a 2007 shooting allegation surfaced , the Cowboys released talented but controversial cornerback Adam Jones on February 9 , 2009 . Their next move was to release backup quarterback Brad Johnson on February 26 , 2009 and to not re - sign QB Brooks Bollinger . The Cowboys had been 1 – 3 when Johnson started in 2008 . Two days later , the Cowboys traded starting cornerback Anthony Henry , age 32 , to the Detroit Lions in exchange for quarterback Jon Kitna to back up starting quarterback Tony Romo . The same day the team signed five - time Pro Bowl , two - time second - team All - Pro linebacker Keith Brooking away from the Atlanta Falcons . The 33 - year - old Brooking had led the Falcons in tackles the previous eight seasons , and he signed a three - year deal worth $ 7 . 8 million and includes $ 2 . 5 million guaranteed . The team lost starting defensive end Chris Canty to the New York Giants on March 1 , 2009 . To fill the need left by Canty ' s departure , the team signed former Chargers defensive end Igor Olshansky to a four - year , $ 18 million contract , with $ 8 million guaranteed on March 6 , 2009 . Linebacker Matt Stewart , who played for Wade Phillips in Atlanta , and had 108 tackles in 2003 , signed a one - year contract on March 3 , 2009 . Stewart helped replace free - agent linebacker Kevin Burnett , who signed a two - year contract worth $ 5 . 5 million with a $ 2 million signing bonus to play for the San Diego Chargers . On March 4 , 2009 , the Cowboys cut Terrell Owens , a five - time All - Pro wide receiver who ranks second in NFL history in career touchdowns . The next morning , the team also released five - time Pro Bowl strong safety Roy Williams . Williams had struggled to excel in the 3 – 4 defense Phillips installed when he became head coach . The Cowboys bolstered its secondary in the wake of Williams ' departure by signing strong safety Gerald Sensabaugh , who started 13 games in 2008 for the Jacksonville Jaguars , to a one - year , $ 1 . 75 million deal . In April , the Cowboys addressed their restricted free agents , whose signing period ran through April 17 , 2009 . Offensive lineman Cory Procter signed a one - year tender offer on April 4 , 2009 . Defensive end Stephen Bowen also signed a tender offer two days later . Wide receiver Sam Hurd signed a one - year offer worth $ 1 . 545 million on April 20 , 2009 . The team signed their final restricted free agent , wide receiver Miles Austin , and both exclusive - rights free agents , running back Alonzo Coleman and tight end Rodney Hannah , to one - year contracts worth $ 1 . 54 million , $ 385 , 000 , and $ 310 , 000 respectively on April 23 , 2009 . The team released thirty - four year - old , Pro - Bowl defensive end Greg Ellis on June 2 , 2009 . The move saved the Cowboys $ 4 . 15 million . Free agents in 2009 . " RFA " : Restricted free - agent , " UFA " : Unrestricted free - agent , " ERFA " : Exclusive rights free agent