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