The Arizona Cardinals and Dallas Cowboys kicked things off on Sunday with very little offense in the opening quarter. The Cardinals enter the second quarter with possession and a 3-0 lead.
The Cowboys received the game's opening kickoff and managed to drive 38 yards down the field before punting. Quarterback Tony Romo looked deep for receiver Dez Bryant a couple of times but only managed to connect with his speedy wideout once for a 24-yard gain.
The Cardinals went three-and-out and gave the ball right back to the Cowboys. Dallas, faced with a 4th-and-2 at the Arizona 36-yard line, initially decided to go for it before calling a timeout and opting for a field goal instead. Kicker Dan Bailey, who had made 26 consecutive field goal attempts, missed a 51-yard attempt that would have given the Cowboys an early lead.
Quarterback Kevin Kolb, who is making his first start in five games, led the Cardinals down the field but missed an open receiver in the redzone to give Arizona the game's first touchdown. Cardinals kicker Jay Feely capitalized on a 48-yard field goal to give the Cardinals a 3-0 lead.
Felix Jones returned the ensuing kickoff 69 yard to give Dallas great position in Cardinal territory, but the Arizona defense came alive to prevent any Cowboys offense. The Cardinals regained possession following a punt and will start the second quarter with possession.
The Cardinals have to be happy with the way the first quarter went and will need to build on their lead in the second quarter. Kolb has made several good throws but needs to settle into a rhythm more to engineer Arizona's pass attack to victory.