Cowboys must have short memory

Dec 13, 2006, 1:15 GMT

- Just when the Dallas Cowboys thought they had it all figured out, a fellow named Drew Brees rode into town and spoiled the show.

Dallas had won four straight and skyrocketed to the top of the NFC East division with a two-game lead over New York and Philadelphia. However, Cowboys quarterback and savior Tony Romo was exposed, and the defense got burnt by a rookie named Reggie Bush.

Romo was 5-1 as a starter and owned a NFL-best 102.4 passer rating before the game. After 60 minutes of football, Romo had played his worst game as a starter and ended 16-of-33 for 249 yards with a TD and two costly interceptions for a 58.8 quarterback rating.

'They beat us all over the field,' Romo said. 'But we've got to put it behind us and move on. If you don't let it go, it will affect what we do the rest of the season. But we're going to find out what we're made of now.'

Now the NFL world gets to see how Romo reacts after losing a big game.

But what left Dallas head coach Bill Parcells scratching his head most on Sunday night was how on earth Brees passed for almost 400 yards with five touchdown passes at Texas Stadium. Just like Dallas, the Saints led their respective division and were on the verge of the postseason, making Sunday's battle a little more intense.

The Cowboys certainly lacked intensity to the tune of a 42-17 beating in front of their home crowd. Dallas, which surrendered 536 total yards in front of a national audience, now owns just a one-game lead over both the Giants and Eagles in the NFC East, after both division rivals won on Sunday.

New Orleans is now second behind the Chicago Bears for the top spot in the conference, which brings with it home-field advantage. The Cowboys had a chance to take over that spot, but dropped to 8-5 on the season. They have three games left on the schedule, with two at Texas Stadium.

'We took a bad beating tonight,' Parcells said after the loss to his protege Sean Payton. 'We got beat in about every way possible. They really outplayed us and kept us off balance. They did a good job and we didn't play well. That was a pretty good licking and I can't think of anything that we really did well.'

While Brees connected with 10 different receivers and eclipsed the 4,000-yard passing mark for the first time in his career, running back Deuce McAllister ran wild for 111 yards on 21 carries for the NFL's top-ranked offense. Bush scorched Dallas with 125 yards and a touchdown on six catches, while running for 37 on six touches. Bush took a swing pass from Brees in the third quarter and made Cowboys defenders look adolescent.

It doesn't get any easier for Dallas, which will have to earn an NFC East title the hard way with wins over Atlanta, Philadelphia and Detroit. The Lions game will be an easy one, but the Falcons have one of best rushing offenses in the league, and the Eagles always play their division rivals tough. Mike Vick and the Falcons are first on Dallas' list in its quest for division supremacy.

Romo will have to turn things around for an offense which struggled all evening against New Orleans, and converted just 1-of-8 first downs. After being sacked just seven times in his previous six games, Romo went down twice on Sunday and was pressured on several occasions. He did manage to throw a 34- yard touchdown pass to Terrell Owens in the third quarter, but it didn't ignite a Dallas comeback.

The offensive star for the Cowboys was running back Julius Jones, who ran for 116 yards on 10 carries, including a 77-yard touchdown run to open the scoring in the first quarter. Jones has 993 rushing yards this season with three games left, and will shoot for the first 1,000-yard season in his career.

The last Cowboys running back to gain 1,000 yards in a season was Emmitt Smith, with 1,021 back in 2001.

Backup running back Marion Barber wasn't his usual self and finished with just two carries for minus-1 yard. Barber is a goal line specialist and the Cowboys were unable to get into the red zone often on Sunday.

When teams try to contain Owens, Cowboys wideout Terry Glenn usually emerges. Glenn had season-highs in catches and yards against New Orleans, with 150 yards on eight receptions. It was his first 100-yard receiving game this season.

One loss in the last five games is not going to stop this Cowboys team. They're too good to roll over and die just because of one lopsided setback at home. It's very important to take care of business at home, where the Cowboys will most likely wrap up the division on Christmas against Philadelphia.

OWENS SOUNDS OFF

Not that his mouth hasn't gotten him into trouble before, but Terrell Owens was back in the news again this week.

In an interview with former Cowboys wide receiver Michael Irvin, Owens admitted he takes plays off and was disappointed Bill Parcells never inquired about his health following an overdose on pain killers.

Owens, who has 971 yards and nine TDs this season, had kept his mouth shut the majority of the season until his latest interview. The flamboyant Owens also noted that instead of basking in the glory of Parcells' speech following a big win over the Giants, he was more focused on his 33rd birthday party in L.A.

This guy appears to have major psychological issues, and it will be interesting to see if he and Parcells both return next season.

UP NEXT: BOYS VISIT VICK IN ATLANTA

Dallas will hit the road to Atlanta for a showdown with Vick and the Falcons at the Georgia Dome.

Atlanta is coming off a solid 17-6 win over Tampa Bay, and has its eye on the postseason as well. Vick leads the No. 1 rushing offense against Dallas, which is 10th against the run.

In the last meeting, on September 7, 2003 the Falcons handed the Cowboys a 27-13 loss at Texas Stadium. That was Parcells' first game on the Dallas sideline.

© 2006 The Sports Network