When It Rains, It Pours

The Cowboys may have not lost 91-0, but a loss is still a loss.
Besides the heartbreaking loss, players attitudes were at an all time low as well. The Cowboys now realize that they are going to have to work for every win, and any team can beat them if they do not want it more then their opponents. What the players probably did not know was that things were about to get a lot worse.
However, like the saying goes...when it rains, it pours.

Tony Romo was shaken up after the game, and when the media asked him how his finger felt, he looked into the reporter's eyes and muttered that he would be just fine. The Boy Wonder has a broken pinkie, and it will cause Cowboys fans to deal with Brad Johnson for the next 3 games. One has to wonder if the pinkie has been bothering Romo the last few weeks. He has admittedly not played up to his capability, despite what his statistics say. Anyone who watched the game became frustrated with Romo's play, yet he ended the game with a 113.3 passer rating. Tony always manages to throw for 3 touchdowns and over 300 yards, yet the turnovers were slowly becoming more and more costly. Maybe Tony Romo will come back in 5 weeks better than ever...right? RIGHT?!

That's not all, folks. Felix Jones had some hamstring problems yesterday, and now it appears that he will miss the next 2 weeks at the least with a strained hamstring. The running game is even more important now that Romo is down, and not having Felix's explosiveness in the backfield is going to hurt even more.

Can I possible have more bad news? Arguably the best punter in the NFL, Mat McBriar, is also battered and bruised. Cowboys punter Mat McBriar will miss 6-8 weeks with the foot contusion he suffered on the last play of Sunday's game in Arizona.
McBriar's kicking foot collided with Cardinals receiver Sean Morey, who blocked the punt and gave Arizona the win. McBriar's injury is an interesting one considering Dallas only has one punter on the roster.

So add these 3 players to the injured list along with Terence Newman and Roy Williams. But wait...there are 2 other issues that must be addressed...

It is very possible that Adam 'Pacman' Jones will be suspended at least one week for his involvement in a fight with a Cowboys-assigned bodyguard last Tuesday. Sources say that Pacman may have violated his probation since he was drinking prior to this scuffle. Commissioner Roger Goodell will most likely factor this into his decision on whether to suspend Jones. If Adam Jones does indeed get suspended, the already depleted secondary will be even more scarce.

So what else could possible go wrong? Wide receiver Sam Hurd, who has not yet made his return, will not be coming back anytime soon. Sam Hurd re-injured his ankle that he hurt during the preseason finale and needs surgery. The number 4 receiver will remain out of the mix for awhile, as Cowboys fans now know how New England felt after Week 1.

After the game, defensive veteran Greg Ellis had this to say about the Cowboys attitude: "I'm just disappointed in this organization right now. From the whole deal of it. Things just aren't going real good," Ellis said. "Before the game, I said everybody's got to take part in this football team - the strength coaches, the coaches, the owners, the head coaches. This football team is truly a team sport. You need everybody to win. Everybody has to do their best for us to win. Right now, I feel like we -- players, Greg Ellis included, all of us -- we're just not putting our best foot forward right now."

The attitude of the team has gone from Tampa bound to disappointment. Can the team pull together and rally in this time of turmoil? Or, will things get even worse as what seemed like the perfect season slowly spiral downward? We will have to wait and see...



--ND