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IRVING – After he scored a critical touchdown in the fourth quarter that pushed his team to an eight-point lead, Terrell Owens did what any good wide receiver from the hip-hop generation would:

He cried.

Yes, the Cowboys receiver is an emotional player. Last season, he cried after the playoff loss to the Giants, when he defended quarterback Tony Romo.

And he cried again on the sideline Sunday at Texas Stadium as the Cowboys knocked off the charging Bengals.

Owens didn't answer questions regarding his tears.

He stood at the podium with a piece of paper from a hotel notepad in front of him, talking about his faith and the criticism he's faced this week.

"It was frustrating out there, but I kept with it; my teammates stuck with it," Owens said. "I'm more [than] being a number 81. I'm more about ... it's more than about a star being on my helmet."

While Owens wouldn't go into details about his emotions, Bengals wide receiver Chad Johnson offered some insight.

Johnson, who finished with three catches for 43 yards, can be described as colorful, emotional and petulant, among other things.

Sounds like Owens.

"I know where he's coming from," Johnson said. "I feel him 100 percent. Nobody will understand us like us. I'm talking about us as receivers. Ain't nobody going to understand us. They don't understand why we vent, why we fuss."

After last week's loss to Washington, Owens said he wanted the ball more. He was targeted 18 times in that game, yet vented to Romo in the locker room afterward, sources said. Owens, who later denied the conversation with Romo, was criticized locally and nationally for being selfish.

Owens said to look at the videotape. Watch the routes, the coverages and the throws, he said.

On Sunday, Owens was targeted three times, with one of the throws at his ankles. He made the other two catches. But we don't know how many times he was the primary receiver when Romo threw elsewhere. It's difficult to determine if Owens was open on some plays and Romo missed him.

At one point in the third quarter, Owens sat on the bench alone, wearing a blank stare. Jerry Jones walked over and encouraged his wide receiver to keep fighting.

When the afternoon ended, Owens had a touchdown catch. He caught a pass on a crossing route early in the fourth quarter and ran away from two defenders for a 57-yard score.

Owens raised one arm to the sky, hugged his teammates and while clutching the ball, jogged to the sidelines.

He put a towel over his head and wept.

Maybe Owens was emotional about becoming the eighth man in NFL history with at least 900 receptions. Or maybe he was emotional for another reason.

We might never know.

"He's an emotional player," receiver Patrick Crayton said. "He knows he wears his heart on his sleeve. You will get that stuff. I love it, dude. He wants to win."