Crazy ending is a kick, or three

Joe Gibbs watched his Washington Redskins go from blowing a chance for a last-minute victory over the Dallas Cowboys to preventing a last-minute loss to, somehow, pulling out a win with no time left on the clock.

“Gosh,” the Hall of Fame coach said, “I don’t know if I’ve experienced anything like that.”

In a finish as crazy as they come, Washington’s Nick Novak got two chances to try a winning field goal, missing the first from 49 yards with 31 seconds to go before barely making the second, a 47-yard kick after time expired that lifted the Redskins over the Cowboys, 22-19, Sunday.

“It’s a short walk from the outhouse to the penthouse,” Novak said. “This is what a kicker dreams about. There are ups and downs, and this was the up.”

Between Novak’s low and high, Mike Vanderjagt’s chance to win it for Dallas -- a 35-yard try with six seconds left -- was blocked by Troy Vincent. The ball bounced around until Sean Taylor picked it up and made a weaving, tackle-busting return into Dallas territory as time expired. Kyle Kosier was flagged for a face-mask penalty on the return, tacking on another 15 yards -- and meaning regulation would continue for one more play.

Novak came through this time, sneaking the ball inside the right upright. With his arms up, Novak ran about 50 yards downfield, and several of his teammates piled on top of him, led by Vincent.

A five-time Pro Bowl defensive back in his 15th year in the league, Vincent was signed last month after the Buffalo Bills released him from their injured reserve list. He’d never blocked a kick, he said, and wasn’t told until Saturday night that he’d be on field-goal duty.

“A win is a win,” Vincent said, “and it’s good to get back in the win column.”

The Redskins (3-5) ended a three-game losing streak and dropped Dallas (4-4) into a second-place tie in the NFC East with idle Philadelphia.

In many ways, the Cowboys could only blame themselves, with all kinds of miscues and, perhaps, errors in judgment -- a safety on their first possession; a failed two-point conversion early in the second quarter, and other errors that wasted another fine performance by quarterback Tony Romo in his second NFL start.

Romo completed 24 of 36 passes for 284 yards and two touchdowns.