Garrett: Murray played best game of 2014 in injured effort against Colts
The statline for DeMarco Murray on Sunday night was far from impressive.
Playing with a broken left hand, the NFL's rushing leader carried the rock 22 times for 58 yards and a touchdown in the Cowboys' 42-7 win over the Colts. It was by far his lowest rushing total of the season, and it tied for his worst yards per carry average, as well.
Cowboys coach Jason Garrett's commentary on that statline, however, was decidedly different. Having digested the tape from the division-clinching win, Garrett took his admiration for Murray's performance a step beyond typical praise.
"DeMarco's performance in yesterday's game by far was his best performance of the year in my mind," he said.
Murray is going above and beyond a typical career year with his 1,745 yards and 12 touchdowns. This is a back who set an NFL record by rushing for 100-plus yards in each of his first eight games, and who has topped 100 yards in 11 of 15 games, including a 167-yard day against Tennessee and a 179-yard effort against Chicago.
"He's had other games where the numbers are a little bit gaudier, more impressive, but just his mindset and his demeanor all week long and what that meant to our football team was really, really significant," Garrett said.
That goes back to the issue of the broken hand, which Murray suffered with just a few minutes to play Dec. 14 against Philadelphia. Despite plenty of speculation that he'd sit out against Indianapolis, Murray practiced all week and left no doubt about who would carry the ball for the Cowboys.
"He was amazing. He ran the ball in this game. He ran it tough. He ran it hard. He blocked in this game," Garrett said. "They're bringing safeties, he's turning around and picking them up. I just thought he was fantastic and I can't tell you how meaningful that was to everybody else for him to have the mindset that he had."
Murray said after the game the he decided to play against the Colts last Tuesday, less than 24 hours removed from surgery on that injured hand. Even with him having his most pedestrian stats to date, he helped the Cowboys to a near-flawless performance.
When he suits up Sunday against Washington, he'll be a mere 29 yards away from breaking Emmitt Smith's franchise record for rushing yards in a single season -- a testament to the toughness and durability he displayed against the Colts.
