ARLINGTON, Texas _ The Dallas Cowboys' defense was up to the challenge.
The Cowboys held the NFL's highest-scoring offense to a season-low 176 yards and held on for a 13-10 season-defining win over the New Orleans Saints at AT&T Stadium.
It's the Cowboys' fourth consecutive win, which also snapped the Saints' 10-game win streak.
And most of the credit goes to the Cowboys' defense.
But in the second half, the defense, specifically defensive tackle Randy Gregory, nearly torpedoed the Cowboys' chances.
Gregory was called for two crucial penalties in the second half. Both times, instead of the Cowboys claiming possession, the Saints kept control.
A roughing the kicker penalty on Gregory reversed a punt and Cowboys' possession and put the Saints on the Dallas' 33-yard line. Gregory ran into the legs of punter Thomas Morstead after losing his balance.
Instead, the Saints retained possession and three plays later cut their deficit to three points with a 30-yard touchdown pass to Keith Kirkwood in the second half.
The Saints' touchdown pulled them to within three points with just over a minute left in the third quarter.
It was one of six penalties for the Cowboys. The same New Orleans' drive included three other penalties, including two by cornerback Byron Jones. But Dallas had made the stop on 3rd and 2 when Leighton Vander Esch met running back Mark Ingram at the line of scrimmage and knocked him for a one-yard loss to force the punt.
On Kirkwood's touchdown, it appeared he pushed off of defensive back Anthony Brown, who fell down on the play. But nothing was called and the scored stood.
The Cowboys held the Saints scoreless in the first half, the first time since Week 4 in 2014 against the Cowboys, a span of 71 games. New Orleans entered the game with a league-high 409 points.
Dallas held New Orleans to 59 yards and three first downs. Drew Brees started the game 0 for 4 for the first time in his career and is 7 of 13 for 39 yards. That's the fewest yards passing for Brees in the first half since 2004.
Gregory was called for off sides on the Saints' next possession on a play where DeMarcus Lawrence had a strip sack and Tyrone Crawford recovered. But the play and the fumble was all negated by the pre-snap penalty.
Jourdan Lewis' interception in the final two minutes sealed the win for the Cowboys. It's only the third interception thrown by Brees this season. He was held to 18 of 28 passing for 127 yards, his second fewest yards in 2018.
The Cowboys scored all 13 of their points in the first half. Their first drive led to a field goal, while Ezekiel Elliott had the only Cowboys touchdown of the game in the first quarter. The scored their final field goal with less than a minute left in the first half.
