Cowboys vs. Eagles 2012: DeMarco Murray impresses in first game back

After missing nearly two months of action with a foot injury, Dallas Cowboys tailback DeMarco Murray made his triumphant return to the field on Sunday evening with rather impressive results.

Murray appeared only slightly limited from an explosiveness perspective in his first live action since going down against Baltimore on Nov. 14, but hardly allowed it to stop him from making a sizable impact on the game's outcome. In addition to scoring a second-quarter touchdown to put the Cowboys ahead on the scoreboard, Murray picked up a season-high 23 carries and added four receptions in the passing game. And while he ended up being fully capable of handling his usual workhorse role in the offense, the talented runner still told Rainer Sabin of The Dallas Morning News that he was a tad surprised by how often he received the ball.

"I wasn’t expecting to get that much work," Murray said after the game. "I was telling coach I may be coming out a little bit just to make sure my foot is ready. Once I got out, the adrenaline started rushing, and I felt good."

Murray was grossly underutilized by the Cowboys before succumbing to injury, and it's hard to imagine the speedy playmaker won't be used a bit more like he was in Week 13 going forward. With the Cowboys struggling to protect quarterback Tony Romo on a consistent basis, Murray's return appears to have arrived at the ideal time for a Dallas team that now sits at 6-6 overall and firmly in the playoff race. The Cowboys face a stout test with a road game against Cincinnati scheduled for this weekend, but fans have every reason to be optimistic with Murray now back in the fold.