Jerry Jones: Give 4-0 Broncos Credit, Rather Than Bash 2-2 Cowboys

DENVER -- Cowboys owner Jerry Jones tried to drown his sorrows in orange slices Sunday, grabbing them for sustenance in a stunned Dallas locker room as he contemplated his team's 17-10 loss to the undefeated Denver Broncos.

The NFL's top-ranked defense had harassed quarterback Tony Romo all afternoon at Invesco Field, stuffed Dallas' rushing attack and openly challenged cover cornerback Champ Bailey time after time. That proved to be the Cowboys' biggest mistake in a game filled with them.

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With one second remaining, Bailey swatted down what might have been a game-tying Romo touchdown pass to Sam Hurd at fourth-and-goal from the 2-yard line, sending the crowd of 76,440 into a frenzy over their 4-0 team in Denver.

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And Jones -- who could not have imagined his franchise could be 2-2 at this point -- tried to deflect what will be a difficult week of scrutiny for Cowboys coach Wade Phillips, offensive coordinator Jason Garrett and Romo, who missed receivers badly, threw an interception, lost a fumble and was sacked five times.

"We're 2-2 and I'm not going to sit here and look like we've lost the Super Bowl," Jones said. "That's just not called for here. It's not in me. I'm going to give Denver a lot of credit. There is a reason they are 4-0. They hung in there. Stayed with it."

Dallas, despite rushing 25 times for only 74 yards and getting a 1-yard touchdown run from gimpy running back Marion Barber (11 attempts, 41 yards) maintained a 10-7 advantage until 5:58 of the fourth quarter.

The Broncos tied the game on a 28-yard Matt Prater field goal, then jumped ahead on Brandon Marshall's eye-popping 51-yard touchdown catch from Kyle Orton with 1:46 remaining.

"We could possibly have gotten up another score while we had that lead, and didn't. Give (the Broncos) some credit," a red-faced Jones said in a staggered Dallas locker room. "We knew before we played them that they were going to be tough to move the ball on. Whatever the reason, we didn't run the ball well – obviously I don't need to tell you that – in the second half."

Barber, who is nursing a thigh injury, had only one touch in the second half. Jones said he didn't know if anything was wrong with his top running back.

"Not that I'm aware of," said Jones, who conceded he was surprised by that because Barber had played well in the opening quarter. "I haven't had time to be surprised; I know of nothing (wrong with Barber) and I usually know. I didn't hear anything that I needed to know about Marion."