NFL Dallas Cowboys

Dallas Cowboys Still In NFC East Driver’s Seat

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By @KyleOnTheDaily

Matthew Emmons-USA TODAY Sports

Matthew Emmons-USA TODAY Sports

The Dallas Cowboys have their first losing streak of the 2014 season and look to have all but eliminated some of the Super Bowl talk that surrounded this team now that they are at 6-3 and a half game behind the Philadelphia Eagles in the NFC East.

Quarterback Tony Romo did not play because of two fractures in the transverse process in his back, and his replacement Brandon Weeden was absolutely awful in Sunday’s loss to the Arizona Cardinals, completing 11-0f-23 throws for 103 yards, with his only touchdown coming in garbage time.

All Cowboys fans got a bitter taste of reality of exactly what life without Romo would be like for this team. Dez Bryant was held catchless until the fourth quarter, and DeMarco Murray was held in check because Dallas couldn’t get anything going in the passing game to stay more than one-dimensional on offense. Murray has been the team’s MVP through the first nine weeks, but yesterday showed that Romo by far is the most important.

Jason Garrett, Jerry Jones and the rest of the Cowboys have to be hoping Romo’s back drastically improves on a long flight to London so he can play against the Jacksonville Jaguars come Sunday. If Romo can get and stay healthy, would you think I’m crazy to say that the Cowboys are still in the driver’s seat in the NFC East?

First off, the Cowboys would have a huge edge over the Eagles the rest of the season at the quarterback position, especially since Eagles starter Nick Foles just broke his collarbone and is expected to be out indefinitely.

That leaves the Cowboys’ division rival with Mark Sanchez at the helm. Although Sanchez performed well in relief duty against the Houston Texans on Sunday, you can’t tell me he’s any better than he was when he was a member of the New York Jets. The erratic gunslinger who came out time and time again with the Jets was once again briefly on display against Houston, as Sanchez threw two interceptions, one a head-scratcher and one off a high throw. Advantage Cowboys.

Additionally, the Eagles can’t run the ball as well as Dallas, and I believe defenses will now even further focus on stopping LeSean McCoy because they don’t think Sanchez can beat them. With no running game, the Eagles will be jumping all-in on the passing ability of the maligned former first-round draft pick, and that’s a scary thought.

With the New York Giants and Washington Redskins an afterthought, it’s the Cowboys who still possess the greatest chance to come out of the NFC East. They’re just waiting a few more days or another week for Romo to take his place in the driver’s seat.

Kyle Nault is a NFL Writer for www.RantSports.com. Follow Him on Twitter @KyleOnTheDaily.

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