NFL.com
The Cowboys are doing it again, failing in the part of the season when they need to be clutch. Embarrassing loss to the Giants and missed opportunities against the Chargers.
Now they go into a ruckus New Orleans Superdome where the Saints are now 13-0.
I am not so far annoyed where I have no confidence at all that the Cowboys can get a win, but they have once again proven to their fans and organization that they cannot be trusted when the season ends and they need to pick up some wins.
The Cowboys did take down the undefeated Colts in the 2006 season, but that was in November at home, not away in December.
The Saints have been creeping around losing for the past couple of weeks. If not for a missed Redskins field goal, the Saints would be coming into this game with a loss and they almost lost to the Falcons without their starting quarterback and running back in Matt Ryan and Michael Turner.
There have been a few games this season where the Saints probably should have lost, but the other teams were unable to finish drives and get some points on the board. That, along with the fact that the Saints are thrashing teams in the fourth quarter.
If the Cowboys feel like winning this game, they need to score early and often and keep their foot down and continue to score. You can move the ball on the Saints’ defense, but the Cowboys have problems finishing their drives with touchdowns and you cannot rely on the kicking game. The key on offense is not turning the ball over. The Saints are the top team in forcing turnovers, but as I said, if you do not turn the ball over, you can move the ball on them.
The main issue is containing the Saints’ offensive attack, which will be quite difficult. Drew Brees can carve a defense up, as he did to this defense in 2006 when he threw 5 touchdowns against the Cowboys at Texas Stadium.
The Cowboys can stop the run, but even when you know the Saints are passing, it is difficult to stop them. A key to stopping them is pressure, but the Cowboys also struggle in pressuring the quarterback. DeMarcus Ware is probably required to play in order for the Cowboys to get pressure. I hope that he plays, but as of right now, he is considered questionable and it will be a game time decision for him to play.
The Cowboys need to be on fire the entire game. If there is a lull in their play, you can expect the worst. It is easy to see when the passion is lost on this team when things do not go well.
The shame of it all is that the Cowboys have shown that they can be a great team, but they are too inconsistent.
Two close games in a row when they left plays on the field that would have likely given them two wins. 10 points were left on the field in the Chargers game, 7 at the very least, which would have won you the game along with some idiotic play calling. Freak plays against the Giants and an untimely turnover likely caused a loss.
For fans, this is surely time to panic. I came into this month, definitely expecting one win by now and we are staring three straight losses in a row right in the face.
At this point, if they lose this game, I am not sure that they win a game the rest of this season. The Redskins are playing much better and the Eagles are one of the best finishing teams in the league.
You need at least 10 wins to get into the playoffs in the NFC, which the Cowboys are two wins away from. But again, the Cowboys do this to us every single season. They are simply unable to finish out a season strong and go into the playoffs with some momentum.
In 2006, they coasted into the playoffs with 9 wins, not really needing to finish strong, already clinching a playoff spot with about three weeks left. They should have won that playoff game, but they indeed lost.
In 2007, they had already smoked through the season into December, not needing to play for much at the end of the season and they were buried in the first round of the playoffs.
For right now, you cannot blame Tony Romo for their struggles. A career game in New York was forgotten because of a few failures on the defense and special teams. He did miss a few throws that could have been huge, but if the aforementioned two units did not already give up plays, he would not have been in that situation.
He had another solid game against the Chargers, but some poor play calling at the goal line really hurt the team.
Us fans are very frustrated and there are really no answers for us. Maybe the Cowboys are not good enough. I tend to disagree with that assumption. Their problem is finishing whether that is finishing a season, finishing an offensive drive with a touchdown or stopping a team on third down.
And going into New Orleans, the Cowboys might need a prayer to take down the Saints.
