Cowboys, WR Ogletree punish Giants
The Dallas Cowboys waited all year for another shot at the New York Giants. When they got it in the 2012 season opener, they were ready.
So were the replacement officials, who barely were a story with Dallas dominating the Super Bowl champions for much of a 24-17 victory Wednesday night in East Rutherford, N.J., that wasn’t nearly so close.
It won’t make up for the New Year’s Day loss that cost the Cowboys the NFC East title and sent the Giants on their way to the NFL championship. It sure could provide impetus for this season, though, particularly with the discovery of a new gamebreaker, Kevin Ogletree.
Tony Romo threw for 307 yards and three touchdowns, DeMarco Murray had 129 yards rushing and Ogletree scored two touchdowns.
“A huge emphasis for us was big plays,” Ogletree said. ‘‘I don’t want the focus to be on me too much, but I am very, very humbled and appreciative of how we played.”
Dallas’ defense frustrated Eli Manning with three sacks and a half-dozen pressures, all before the largest crowd (82,287) at MetLife Stadium for a Giants game.
When the Cowboys were threatened late, Romo hit Ogletree for 15 yards on third down to clinch it. That gave Ogletree 114 yards on eight catches; he had 25 receptions for 294 yards and no scores
entering the game.
Brain diseases afflict players
A study of former NFL players finds they were unusually prone to dying from degenerative brain disease, the latest indication that repeated blows to the head may cause serious trouble later on.
The death rate from Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s and Lou Gehrig’s disease combined was about three times what one would predict from the general population, researchers reported.
Bills owner returns home
Buffalo Bills owner Ralph Wilson is back home and doing well after being released from the hospital. The 93-year-old Hall of Famer was hospitalized last week and had been listed in good condition. The team has not revealed why Wilson was hospitalized.