NFL Chatter

An eight-man blitz left Cowboys quarterback Tony Romo on the turf for an extended period before he walked gingerly to the sideline with eight minutes left in the third quarter of Monday night's 20-17 overtime loss to the Redskins.

Perhaps the athletic trainers kept Romo down longer than normal as a precaution. Or maybe a 34-year-old quarterback needs extra time to digest the seriousness of a direct knee shot to a surgically-repaired back.

But even if the injury wasn't serious, it still seemed odd in today's NFL that Romo returned to the game after sitting out more than 20 minutes of game time.

When Romo left, the Cowboys trailed 10-7. Backup Brandon Weeden put up 10 points in two possessions, completing 4 of 6 with a touchdown and a 145.1 passer rating before Romo returned with the score tied late in the fourth quarter.

Romo had already been sacked four times. He was sacked a fifth time on his first pass attempt after returning.Redskins linebacker Ryan Kerrigan was asked if he was surprised to see Romo return.

"Not really," he said. "I wasn't sure what the injury was. It looked bad because he was down on the field for so long. But I wasn't sure what exactly he got hurt. So not knowing what was injured, I really wasn't surprised."

If Romo plays Sunday, the Cowboys could make an argument that we've all overreacted. But given Romo's age, injury history, the Redskins' pass rush and Weeden's success, the risk still seemed to outweigh the reward.

• You can rush eight defenders in a cover-zero look when you're Redskins defensive coordinator Jim Haslett and your corners cover like Breeland did on Monday.

• Cowboys running back Demarco Murray is on pace for 2,108 yards rushing. The record is 2,105 yards.

• Murray will break the rushing record.

• The Patriots have won four in a row, six of seven and are at home. Seems odd picking them to "upset" the Broncos. But they will.