Sacked! 20-17

Tony Romo was pressured all game and the Dallas Cowboys offense scored only twice in four red-zone possessions. Are the Cowboys' playoff hopes sacked as well? (AP Photo/Michael Thomas)

Another week, another game where the Cowboys' offense failed to come up with points on the board after getting deep into opposing territory.

One possession in particular came late in the second quarter, after San Diego kicked a field goal to go up 10-3. The Cowboys' offense continuously pounded the ball down the field with 11 runs (for 68 yards) compared to only one pass attempt (an incompletion to Roy Williams that should have been a pass interference penalty on the defense). The Cowboys then decided to run the ball three more times from the San Diego 1-yard line. Dallas was stuffed each time, concluding with a fourth down run in which the above-pictured Brandon Siler (who wreaked havoc behind the Cowboys' line-of-scrimmage all game long) slammed through the offensive line and caught Marion Barber behind the line of scrimmage for a turnover on downs. On the play, Barber was moved to fullback in an attempt to "trick" the San Diego Chargers (10-3).

"He's not getting paid to block," said Chargers linebacker Tim Dobbins. "We knew it was going to be a flip or a dive. I don't even know what they were thinking. I don't know if they watch film or what."

It seems as though Jason Garret has trouble with the meaning of the word balance. Dallas either runs the ball 15 times in a row or passes it the same amount instead of using each play's success to set up the other. Dallas was 1-9 on third-down conversions for the game.

The Cowboys also continued their habit of committing stupid penalties that either kill their own drives (illegal hands to the face on Kyle Kosier on the Cowboys first drive of the game - Dallas settled with a field goal) or give the other team's offense the big-play they've been needing (pass interference on Gerald Sensabaugh in the first quarter that gave the Chargers first-and-goal at the Dallas 2 and led to San Diego's first touchdown of the game).

Down 20-10 with 1:56 left in the game (after the defense had completely rolled over for the Chargers' offense) the Cowboys rallied to score a touchdown, a 9-yard touchdown pass from Romo to Patrick Crayton. Unfortunately for Dallas, there was only 2 seconds left on the game-clock after the touchdown. Then, on the onside-kick, it looked like there was a miscommunication between the two onside-kickers as Folk kicked the ball right into the other team's hands' directly in front of him

In my opinion, it was a good move to go for the touchdown first. Folk had been extremely erratic and there is no guarantee that A: he is going to make a 30+ yard field goal and B: that your going to get an onside recovery anyways. So I say get the points and then see what happens. If Dallas would have recovered the onside-kick, they would have still had one second on the clock to lob something towards the end-zone, or to try a long field goal. Romo also wasted a couple of valuable seconds when he lofted the ball to the corner of the end zone with 7 seconds left instead of just throwing the football into the ground to stop the clock.

Romo remained optimistic after the game.

"Even though it might not look like we're playing the best football, you can turn it around in a hurry," Romo said. "I suspect this football team will do that."

Ware Injured:

Cowboys outside-linebacker and defensive MVP Demarcus Ware had to be carted off the field, with 11:28 left in the fourth quarter, with what initially appeared to be a severe spinal injury. Ware was rushed to the hospital and for now it is being reported as a sprained neck. The Cowboys' defense rallied around their injured superstar by giving up a touchdown two plays later. Then, later in the quarter with the game on the line, they allowed the Chargers to rush for 32-yards and run 7:17 off the game clock after they had rushed for only 41-yards up to that point.

Did Dallas Really Need A New Holder?

Tony Romo held on field goals for kicker Nick Folk, and appeared to do a great job - just as his predecessor Mat Mcbriar had done. It didn't seem to matter, though, as Fold missed yet another field goal - a 42-yard attempt that would have made it a 10-6 game going into halftime. It is a bad idea to have your starting quarterback double as the holder for field-goals and obviously Folk is having his own issues. Folk has missed a field goal in five straight games and had missed more field goals this season (16-24) than his first two years combined (46-53).

The Lone Cowboys' Bright Spot:

With a 5:28 left in the third quarter, Tony Romo hadn't thrown a complete pass since half-way through the first quarter. That all changed during a 11-play, 99-yard drive that culminated in Dallas tying the game at 10-10. Romo was 5-5 on the drive for 67 yards and a touchdown. It was the Cowboys first 99-yard drive since the last week of the 2006 season against the Detroit Lions. Romo's numbers on the night were again spectacular, despite another Dallas loss, as he completed 19 of 30 (63.3 percent) passes for 249 yards and two touchdowns.

Easily Movable Object Vs Unstoppable Force

The Dallas Cowboys are now 5-10 since 2006 in games played in the month of December. The Chargers at 16-0 with their win over Dallas, and their undefeated play coincides with Philip Rivers first year in the NFL.

What's Next?

The Dallas Cowboys (8-5) have now lost two games in a row for the first time all season, and it couldn't have come at a least opportune time. Philadelphia won their game against the New York Giants and, at 9-4, now hold sole possession of 1st place in the NFC East. Dallas has to win at least two of their final three games now just to make the playoffs, as the New York Giants' are 7-6 and hold the tiebreaker. If the season ended today, the Cowboys would have the 6th and final playoff spot.

The schedule only gets tougher and they have got to find some way to improve before next Saturday's game (Dec.19) against the undefeated New Orleans Saints (13-0).

If the Cowboys can't find some sort of consistent rhythm on offense, they are going to be in trouble against the best team they will play this year.

News and Notes:

• Tony Romo has not thrown an interception in three consecutive games. It is only the second time in his career he has had that long of a streak. The first occurance was earlier this season (Weeks 5 through 8). Romo has 950 yards passing and seven touchdowns during the current streak.
  
• With six receptions for 71-yards against the Chargers, Miles Austin is now one-yard away from his first 1,000 yard season.
  
• Dallas' final three opponents have a combined record of 26-13 and two of the three games are on the road (New Orleans next week and at Washington Week 16)

(Portions of this article were taken from The Associated Press)