by Tom Orsborn, STAFF , San Antonio Express-News

The much-maligned nickel linebacker sacked Seattle's Matt Hasselbeck for a 6-yard loss on a key third down in the Cowboys' 38-17 win.

"It's been 37 games since my last sack, so I was pretty excited," Carpenter said. "Hopefully, there will be more."

Dallas finished with three sacks. The Cowboys have 17 sacks in their last 18 quarters after having none the first 10 quarters.

Brooking and outside linebacker DeMarcus Ware contributed the other sacks Sunday. Ware, who received a six-year, $78 million contract extension, has a team-high five sacks.

But only Carpenter got to Hasselbeck when it was still a game. The Ohio State alum dropped Hasselbeck on third-and-five from the Seattle 43 with Dallas ahead 14-10 before the half.

It was one of Carpenter's few highlights since the Cowboys drafted him 18th overall in 2006.

"I've been saving them up," joked Carpenter, whose last sack before Sunday came on Dec. 16, 2006, when he dropped Michael Vick 1 1/2 times in a win over the Falcons in Atlanta. "When you've got a team that can bring pressure from all angles, it makes it easy for guys to get sacks because they can't afford to double-team guys."

While Dallas celebrated having at least three sacks in each of its last five games, the Cowboys weren't happy about giving up points on their opponents' opening drive a second straight game.

"We performed well, but at the same time, we can't start off slow like this every Sunday," said Jay Ratliff, who had three tackles after being listed as questionable Friday with a knee injury. "We have to come out fired up and remain that way until the end."

The Cowboys found their groove defensively in the first quarter when Terence Newman forced a fumble that Orlando Scandrick recovered and returned to the Seattle 30. Six plays later, Marion Barber's 2-yard run gave Dallas a 14-3 lead.

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