Near the beginning of the second quarter, Manning started to click with receiver Pierre Garcon and went ten for ten on the scoring drive to bring Indianapolis within ten.

The Cowboys had a chance to go into the half with a 20-7 lead, but kicker David Buehler pushed a 48-yard field goal attempt wide right with two seconds remaining. Dallas has looked good in the first half and needs to keep up the balance on offense to take down the Colts in what is a very crucial game for Indianapolis.

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Both Cowboys touchdowns have come on receptions by the often criticized Roy E. Williams. Williams is proving his worth and has really turned it on this season. It seems that drafting Dez Bryant has given Williams a new fire and he is now producing at a great rate. He has 5 touchdowns in four and a half games.

The Cowboys offense put together a 14 play drive that took over seven minutes off the clock at the end of the first half, which gave the Dallas defense a much needed rest.

Dallas’ defense has been putting the pressure on Brett Favre through the first two quarters resulting in three sacks. The Dallas D has also recovered a fumble. Unfortunately, Tony Romo also threw a pick.

This is the same old story for Dallas. Penalties have held the team back — even taking a Miles Austin touchdown off the board. Discipline continues to lack, but the team is overcoming the early adversity.

Perhaps the secret key to success in this game has been the Cowboys dedication to the run game. Jason Garrett has dialed up more running plays than pass plays in the first half; keeping the Minnesota pass rush off balance. This may be the first time you’ve heard me say it, but Garrett is calling an excellent game thus far.

Let’s hope the defense can keep up their play and the offense keeps putting up more points. Of course, that means buckling down and not giving the refs a reason to throw their laundry all over the field in the last thirty minutes.

Dallas defenders try to contain Titans RB Chris Johnson in the first half. (Photo by NFL.com)

The Cowboys get behind the eight ball early as the Titans stormed off to a lead. There were two big pass interference calls that went against Mike Jenkins and as Cowboys fans are used to the flags kept coming.

Offensive line play was attracious, which resulted in five sacks for Tennessee. Line play was so bad, in fact, that starting guard Leonard Davis was benched for his poor play in favor of Montrae Holland.

Kicker David Buehler gained some confidence from Dallas fans when he split the uprights on a 51-yard field goal with room to spare.

Dallas put together a solid drive — 8 plays, 75 yards — with their last possession of the first half. The end result for the ‘Boys was a 6-yard touchdown pass from Tony Romo to Roy Williams. Williams is finally giving the Cowboys fans a glimpse of what they were hoping to get when he was acquired two-years ago. Unfortunately for Dallas, Dez Bryant limped off the field during the scoring drive when his ankle was twisted awkwardly on a tackle. There is no word on his return.

Tennessee leads going into the half, 17-10. Not a bad end to the half for Dallas, who appeared poised to be on the wrong end of a route.

Let’s hope that the Cowboys can regroup during halftime and do something about the open spaces in their weak zones that Vince Young exploited early. Let’s also pray to the football gods that the offensive line can get it together and keep Tony Romo’s jersey clean for the last thirty minutes.

DEZ BRYANT UPDATE: Bryant returned to action in the second half.