No one is doubting Tony Romo now.

After a stunningly successful debut as the Dallas Cowboys' starting quarterback, Romo looks to build on his performance when Dallas (4-3) visits the NFC East rival Washington Redskins (2-5) on Sunday.

Romo and coach Bill Parcells endured a week of questions after Parcells decided to stay with Romo, an undrafted free agent from Eastern Illinois, after benching 14-year veteran Drew Bledsoe during an Oct. 23 loss to the New York Giants.

Romo rewarded his coach's faith last week, helping Dallas score a franchise-record 25 points in the fourth quarter of a 35-14 road win over Carolina on Sunday night.

"It's been tough, you never know, the change that we made at quarterback," said Romo, who went 24-for-36 for 270 yards, one touchdown and one interception in his first NFL start. "You never know what you're going to get ... with a new starter who is untested. I was anxious just like Bill was to see what we were going to do out there tonight."

Romo was sacked twice, but led the Cowboys back from a 14-point first-quarter deficit by completing passes to six receivers. He also got the most out of Terrell Owens, who had nine catches for a season-high 107 yards and caught a two-point conversion.

"He can play," said Owens, who has struggled to develop chemistry with Bledsoe. "You saw Tony scanning the field, scanning the defense and putting the ball in the right place at the right time."

The mobile Romo also ran four times for 18 yards, adding to a rushing attack that gained 156 yards on the ground. Dallas, held to a season-low 69 rushing yards by the Giants, ran for three touchdowns in the fourth quarter.

The Cowboys clearly were sparked by Romo's energy, amassing a season-high 414 total yards.

"He's a guy who's been miserable all week," Owens said. "I asked him coming off the field on Friday, I asked him how it was going, and he said he doesn't like to get his butt kicked. As a team, we're tired of losing, we know we have a decent team. We just have to go out and play like it."

By doing that last week, the Cowboys earned a key win in the NFC East race. Dallas stayed one game behind the first-place Giants and a half-game ahead of Philadelphia.

The Cowboys also got a bounce-back performance out of their defense, as they forced three turnovers and limited the Panthers to a season-low 204 yards. The Giants gained 328 yards against the Cowboys in last Monday's win.

Dallas will look to gain momentum when they take on the struggling Redskins, losers of three in a row. Washington limped into its bye week following a 36-22 loss to Indianapolis on Oct. 22.

Making matters worse for the Redskins, they could be without starting quarterback Mark Brunell (strained rib muscle), running back Clinton Portis (severe ankle sprain), and receiver Santana Moss (hamstring), all of whom were injured against the Colts. Their status for Sunday is uncertain, although Brunell said he expected to be "back to normal" by Wednesday.

"We're going to come out and see if we can go," said Portis, who missed the season's first meeting against Dallas - a 27-10 loss at Texas Stadium on Sept. 17 - due to a collarbone injury.

Portis rushed for 43 yards on 12 carries in the Indianapolis defeat, and Brunell was 27-for-37 for 226 yards and two touchdowns for the Redskins, who led 14-13 at halftime. After the break, though, Washington could manage only a touchdown and two-point conversion with 18 seconds remaining in the game.

"I don't know what it's a result of," tight end Chris Cooley said. "We're going to have to come out and establish momentum when we start the second half, because that's really what's killed us the last couple of weeks."

Washington has scored 16 total points after halftime during the three-game skid.

Penalties are also hurting the Redskins. Washington, which has the second-most infractions in the league with 55, was flagged 10 times for 91 yards against the Colts.

"This losing thing is taking its toll," offensive lineman Randy Thomas said. "We've got to come up with some kind of plan to get this thing rolling."

Part of that plan needs to be containing the resurgent Cowboys running game. Julius Jones ran for 92 yards and a touchdown last week, and Marion Barber III had 49 yards on just nine carries and two TD runs.

Dallas, which gained 156 yards on the ground against Carolina, will be facing a defense that is giving up 110.7 rushing yards per contest. The Cowboys ran effectively in the teams' Week 2 meeting, picking up 138 yards on the ground as Jones ran for 94 and Barber had 39 on eight carries.

The biggest key for Washington, though, will be limiting the effectiveness of Romo after his breakout game.

"I was anxious, just like Bill was, to see what we were going to do (against Carolina)," Romo said. "I think getting the win was very important for this franchise and organization. Hopefully, we can put together a little streak here."

The Cowboys have won 10 of the last 13 meetings with their longtime rival and lead the series 54-34-2.