28-year old WR Roy Williams needs to step up or teams are going to start double teaming Miles Austin more often.  Williams has caught 38 passes for 596 yards (15.7 avg) with 7 TD this season.  Those numbers aren’t terrible but Williams has still been a disappointment this season especially when you consider all of the draft picks the Cowboys traded the Lions to acquire him last season.  In his two years with the Cowboys, Williams has played in 24 games in which he has caught 57 passes for 794 yards (13.9 avg) with 8 TD grabs.  The Cowboys need Williams to start playing up to his ability as his poor year will be forgiven if he steps up the rest of the way with the games getting bigger.

The Cowboys played a solid game last night securing a spot in the playoffs.  Tony Romo completed 25 of 38 passes for 286 yards with 1 TD pass and 1 INT in this game.  Marion Barber was tough for the Cowboys carrying the ball 17 times for 63 yards (3.7 ypc) with 1 TD run and he also caught 4 passes for 30 yards (7.5 avg).  Felix Jones also had a solid game running the ball 10 times for 58 yards (5.8 ypc) and he also caught 4 passes for 27 yards (6.8 avg).  Jason Witten led the way in the passing game for the Cowboys with 6 grabs for 117 yards (19.5 avg).  Miles Austin also had a solid game with 9 catches for 92 yards (10.2 avg) yesterday.  The Cowboys finished up with 393 total yards (108 rushing, 285 passing) as they had possession of the ball for 35:02.

Linebackers Bradie James (12 tackles, pass defensed) and Keith Brooking (6 tackles, 3 passes defensed) led the Cowboys’ D which was very impressive last night.  The Redskins finished up with only 218 total yards on offense (43 rushing, 175 passing) in this game.  The Cowboys are now 10-5 on the year.

The Cowboys have signed 27-year old kicker Shaun Suisham to replace Nick Folk.  Suisham played 2 years for the Cowboys when his career was just starting and he played in 6 games in which he was 4 for 6 on field goals (66.7%) and 10 for 10 on extra points good for 22 points.  Suisham played in 12 games for the Redskins this season before getting cut by them and he connected on 18 of 21 field goals (85.7%) and 20 of 21 extra points good for 74 points.  He has now played in 55 games in his NFL career and he has connected on 85 of 107 field goals (79.4%) and 96 of 98 extra points good for 351 points.  I like this move for the Cowboys especially with him kicking against his old team this week.

The Cowboys rushed out to a 24-3 lead after the first three quarters before hanging on in the 4th quarter to give the Saints their first loss of the year.  Tony Romo was excellent last night as he completed 22 of 34 passes for 312 yards with 1 TD pass and 0 INTs.  He also carried the ball 4 times for 21 yards (5.3 ypc) last night.  Marion Barber did the heavy lifting in the running game for the Cowboys last night with 17 carries for 62 yards (3.6 ypc) with 2 TD carries.  Felix Jones pitched in with 58 yards rushing on 14 carries (4.1 ypc).  Miles Austin had a huge game for the Cowboys last night with 7 grabs for 139 yards (19.9 avg) with 1 TD grab.  TE Jason Witten pitched in with 5 grabs for 44 yards (8.8 avg) last night.  The Cowboys finished up with 439 total yards on offense (145 rushing, 294 passing) as they hogged the ball for 36:26 last night.

OLB DeMarcus Ware decided to play last night and he was awesome with 2 tackles, 2 forced fumbles, 2 sacks and 2 QB hits.  Fellow linebacker Anthony Spencer also had a great game for the Cowboys last night with 6 tackles, 2 tackles for a loss, 2 sacks and 3 QB hits.  CB Michael Jenkins pitched  in with 4 tackles, 3 passes defensed and 1 interception.  The Saints finished up with 336 total yards on offense (65 rushing, 271 passing) in this game.  The Cowboys saved their season last night improving to 9-5 on the year.

These two teams are a lot alike despite the Saints winning five more games than the Cowboys.  The Cowboys would be smart to come out running the ball with Marion Barber, Felix Jones and Tashard Choice against a Saints’ D that is allowing 112.0 yards rushing per game and 4.4 yards per carry.  That will help them control the clock and keep the Saints’ offense off the field.  The Cowboys must keep the Saints’ D (27 sacks) away from Tony Romo so that he has time to throw the ball.  If he does he should be effective against a Saints’ D that is allowing 235.6 yards passing per game.  But, Romo will have to be careful as the Saints have 24 interceptions this season.

The Cowboys have their fingers crossed hoping that DeMarcus Ware can play tomorrow night against the Saints.  If he can’t go the Cowboys will have a hard time getting much of a pass rush on Drew Brees and that could be big trouble.  The Saints prefer to throw the ball down the field but they can also keep the passing game short and quick to the TEs and Reggie Bush.  That makes them very hard to defend.  The Cowboys could also have some problems stopping the Saints’ running game as Pierre Thomas, Mike Bell and Reggie Bush are all running the ball well.

PREDICTION:  SAINTS 33, COWBOYS 30

Despite his struggles the Cowboys are going to stick with Nick Folk as the starting kicker.  Folk has played in all 13 games for the Cowboys this season and he has connected on 17 of 26 field goals (65.4%) and all 33 of his extra points good for 84 points.  The Cowboys don’t really want to give up on Folk because he was outstanding in his first two years in the league.  In Folk’s first two seasons with the Cowboys he made 46 of 53 field goals (87%) and he also made all 95 of his extra points good for 233 points.  The Cowboys hope that standing by Folk doesn’t cost them a game that they can’t afford to lose.

UPDATE:  The Cowboys have cut Nick Folk after he missed a chip shot that would have sealed the win last Saturday. 

Tony Romo has been outstanding all season long and he is playing well in December.  In his two games in December, Romo has completed 60 of 85 passes (70.6%) for 641 yards with 5 TD passes and 0 INTs.  Romo has now played in 13 games this season and he has completed 276 of 444 passes (62.2%) for 3,574 yards with 22 TD passes and 7 INTs (97.4 QB Rating).  Romo has also carried the ball 27 times for 88 yards (3.3 ypc) with 1 TD run this season.  The Cowboys will need Romo to be at his best this weekend if they are going to beat the Saints in New Orleans.

OLB DeMarcus Ware has a sprained neck which will likely cause him to miss at least this weekend’s game with the Saints.  Ware has played in 13 games this season and he has made 51 tackles, 2 tackles for a loss, 3 forced fumbles, 6 passes defensed and 9 sacks.  Ware’s injury will really hurt the Cowboys’ D if he’s not able to play this weekend.

The Dallas Cowboys (8-5) lost a defensive battle against the San Diego Chargers (10-3) on Sunday, and they also lost their star defender DeMarcus Ware who was carted off the field in the fourth quarter with a neck injury.  Good news was that it was only strained, but he may be out next game as well.  Tony Romo played well, throwing for 249 yards and 2 touchdowns on 19/30 passes.  He didn’t do enough though, and his kicker didn’t help either as Nick Folk missed a field goal for the fifth straight game.  His job may now be in jeopardy.  The Cowboys got nothing in the 4th quarter until seconds left when the game was already decided.

The defense did a pretty solid job, considering the held the talented Chargers’ offense to a season-low 20 points.  They didn’t do enough though, and let the Chargers score 10 points in the fourth quarter.  That included a drive that ate up over 7 minutes, leaving the Cowboys little time to comeback from a 10 point deficit.  Philip Rivers passed for 272 yards, 1 touchdown and 1 interception on 21/32 passes.  The December woes continue for the Cowboys.

The Dallas Cowboys (8-4) are hosting one of the hottest teams in the league, the San Diego Chargers (9-3).  The Chargers have won seven games in a row and have a dynamic offense.  Philip Rivers leads the way at quarterback and the Chargers can win games with his arm alone.  He has a solid running game to go to though, with LaDainian Tomlinson running the ball very well the last few weeks.  If the Cowboys want to win this, they will need to slow down the running game and try and force Rivers into some mistakes.

The Cowboys offense has the ability to keep up with the Chargers, but if they don’t get some help from the defense it will be a tough task.  Tony Romo is coming off one of his best games, even though the Cowboys lost.  Romo usually has a fall-off this time of year, but it hasn’t happened yet.  If Romo can have another big day this will be a very close and exciting game to watch.  If Romo falters, the Cowboys won’t have much of a chance.

FINAL SCORE PREDICTION:  San Diego Chargers 34, Dallas Cowboys 28