The disappointing 2011 National Football League (NFL) Season is finally over for the Dallas Cowboys. There were some high moments and some very low ones. Here are five areas that need fixing on the Cowboys.

The Philadelphia Eagles embarrassed the Dallas Cowboys in Week 8.
commons.wikimedia.org/Billy Bob Bain

Primary Running Back?

Who will be the primary running back for the Dallas Cowboys next season? DeMarco Murray should be the guy. However, Murray suffered a fractured ankle in Week 14 that ended his season. That is cause for concern because the Cowboys are thin at running back. Felix Jones continues to be plagued by injuries. Even when healthy, Jones is not the power back the Cowboys need.

Defense When it Counts

New defensive coordinator Rob Ryan implemented a new scheme that promised aggressiveness. The defense played well at times but failed in the most crucial moments. Poor defense resulted in two late-season losses to the New York Giants. Are the players still learning the new system? Do the Cowboys simply lack enough talent on defense?

Dr. Tony and Mr. Romo

Will the real Tony Romo please stand up? Sometimes you get a gutsy performance like the Week 2 victory over the San Francisco 49ers. Other times you get the Romo who literally threw the game away against the Detroit Lions in Week 4. How many more chances does Romo get? He is still not an elite quarterback in the NFL.

Is Garrett the Guy?

Why is owner Jerry Jones convinced that Jason Garrett is the right coach for the Cowboys? Jones criticized Garrett for being too conservative in Week 6 against the New England Patriots. Garrett goofed in Week 13 against the Arizona Cardinals. His clock management effectively iced his own kicker and lost the game. The Cowboys were embarrassed by the Philadelphia Eagles in Week 8. They failed to clinch the playoffs in Week 17 against the Giants. Garrett is supposed to know these teams. Aside from the Washington Redskins, his division rivals got the best of him this season.

Involved Owner

Jones is one of the most involved owners in the NFL. But his control on the team may be part of the problem. Jones is the owner, president and general manager of the Cowboys. He is not the head coach. Jones needs to step back and let the coach be the coach. He needs to give his coach the power to make all coaching decisions and fully support those decisions. Until that happens, this team will not move forward.

These are five areas that need fixing on the Cowboys. They have a lot of work ahead of them. The offseason starts now.

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Edwin Torres has been a fan of the Dallas Cowboys since the days of Tony Dorsett and Roger Staubach. He enjoyed watching the Dallas teams of the 90s dominate opponents on both sides of the ball. As a longtime fan of the National Football League, Edwin follows many interesting games and stories each week. For more articles, follow him on Twitter @FlipPoker.

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NFL – Statistics – Yahoo! Sports

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IRVING, Texas — Dallas quarterback Tony Romo is listed as probable for Sunday’s game at the New York Giants, but Cowboys owner Jerry Jones gave a more optimistic report.

Romo has a swollen throwing hand.

According to an ESPN.com story, Jones on Friday told KRLD-FM radio: “He (Romo) is going to be playing at full strength. It’s just a very big-time feel-good to know that we’re going to be going in with this kind of quarterbacking.”

The NFC East title will be at stake when the 8-7 teams meet.

Jones, also the team’s general manager, said of Romo: “He’s a top, top quarterback and he’s got a good team around him. In my belief, a very good team around him, so the stage is set for us to play well in a big game.”

Romo was limited in practice Friday, according to ESPN.

Meanwhile, running back Brandon Jacobs of the Giants ripped Dallas supporters.

“You know what it is: (The reason) a lot of people and a lot of guys on other teams hate the Cowboys is their fans,” Jacobs said. “Some of their fans are loud and obnoxious and just bad. Just everywhere you go, you got some Dallas fans, and they’re just running their mouth about Dallas.

“It’s not really the team and the star (logo) and all that ’cause they’re just like any other team if you ask me. But their fans are the ones who have me just really feeling the way I feel.”

Are they worse than Philadelphia Eagles fans?

“Yeah, they are … I’m just talking about everyday life,” Jacobs said. “Cowboys fans get on my nerves.”

Jacobs rushed for 101 yards and two touchdowns to help the visiting Giants beat the Cowboys 37-34 on Dec. 11.

Cardinals’ Dockett is docked $30,000

NEW YORK — Arizona defensive tackle Darnell Dockett has been fined $15,000 by the league for hitting Cincinnati quarterback Andy Dalton below the knees last weekend and another $15,000 for a horse-collar tackle on Bengals running back Bernard Scott.

Dockett was called for 15-yard penalties on each play in the Cardinals’ 23-16 loss last Saturday.

Arizona hosts the Seahawks on Sunday.

Dockett was fined $7,500 in 2009 for pushing his forearm into then-Seahawks quarterback Matt Hasselbeck’s throat while Hasselbeck was down.

Washington safety Reed Doughty was fined $15,000 by the league for striking Minnesota’s Christian Ponder in the head and neck area as the quarterback slid. Houston defensive end J.J. Watt received a similar fine for hitting Indianapolis quarterback Dan Orlovsky below the knee.

Atlanta linebacker Curtis Lofton was fined $15,000 for unnecessary roughness for striking New Orleans receiver Marques Colston in the head and neck area.

Notes

• Standout Houston receiver Andre Johnson will play against Tennessee on Sunday after missing the last three games because of a strained left hamstring.

• Quarterback Tom Brady is listed as “probable” on the New England Patriots’ injury report for Sunday’s game against Buffalo. An injury to his left, non-throwing shoulder limited Brady’s participation in practice Friday for a second consecutive day after he sat out Wednesday’s practice session.

• Pittsburgh quarterback Ben Roethlisberger and safety Troy Polamalu each attended practice Friday and are listed as probable for Sunday’s game in Cleveland.

Roethlisberger (high ankle sprain) missed last Saturday’s 27-0 victory over St. Louis. Polamalu (knee) did not practice until Friday but is expected to start.

• Miami running back Reggie Bush won’t play in Sunday’s game against the New York Jets because of an injured right knee. He has a team-high 1,086 rushing yards.

• The Green Bay Packers, who play Detroit on Sunday, will be without three key players on offense: running back James Starks (knee/ankle), receiver/kick returner Randall Cobb (groin) and receiver Greg Jennings (knee). Jennings has missed the past two games.

• Kicker Ryan Succop signed a $14 million, five-year extension with the Kansas City Chiefs.

• Kansas City quarterback Kyle Orton and about 20 other players, who weren’t identified by the plaintiffs’ attorney, are suing Chicago law firm Chuhak & Tecson for more than $10 million, claiming they received bad advice on investing in energy concerns.

For Dallas Cowboys’ fans worried about Tony Romo’s status for the New Year’s Day game against the New York Giants, Miles Austin says not to worry. The receiver, who has been working this week with Romo, said the quarterback is practicing just fine.

Austin went on to say that Romo has been accurate and does not show any signs of the hand bothering him at all. While he said he doesn’t know how Romo feels, he knows that the passes feel normal and are on par with what he is used to from the Cowboys’ signal caller.

Luckily for Romo, there were eight days between the injury and the Giants’ game, so the hand had time to heal. His hand has been wrapped up and protected this week during practice while Romo has been throwing the ball. On Friday, it was heavily taped up in an effort to further decrease the swelling.

Romo has said all week he expects to play in the game. He said his hand has improved day-by-day and the swelling has been going down on a steady basis. In an interesting statement for fans, Romo said that playing with the injured ribs earlier in the season was much harder than playing with the swelling in his hand.

Romo has been playing in pain all season, so it was no surprise to learn he would not miss the game that will determine the NFC East champions. In the first game against the Giants this season, Romo threw for 321 yards and four touchdowns, which makes sense with the Giants having the 27th ranked pass defense in the NFL.

However, Dallas’ defense collapsed in the final two minutes and the Giants came back to win. With the defense prone to slip-ups, especially late in games, Dallas needs Romo at full strength. Thankfully, that is what Austin says his quarterback currently is.

Author Shawn S. Lealos has a bachelor’s degree in journalism from the University of Oklahoma (2000) and has been a Dallas Cowboys’ fan since he was a child. His favorite players range from Roger Staubach and Tony Dorsett to the Triplets of the 90s and he enjoys talking about all Cowboys’ related news, good or bad

Source: dallascowboys.com

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IRVING, Texas (AP) — With tape still wrapped around his bruised throwing hand after practice, Dallas Cowboys quarterback Tony Romo insists that he will be ready to play in what is essentially a playoff game against the New York Giants.

“Everything’s coming together like we thought, just each day it’s getting a little bit better,” Romo said Thursday. “We’ll be good to go this weekend.”

Romo wore the protective wrap on his swollen right hand, the one he banged on a defender’s helmet on the opening series Saturday against Philadelphia before coming out of the game. The wrap leaves his fingers and thumb free. He wasn’t wearing anything on the hand Wednesday.

The Cowboys go on the road to face the Giants on Sunday night, a matchup of 8-7 teams that will decide the NFC East and fill the NFC’s last playoff spot.

Romo, who played through a broken rib early this season, said he isn’t worried about whether he will feel normal Sunday.

“You have to go out there and practice all week and get yourself ready to go to the game on Sunday. I’m excited that we’re in this position and we have an opportunity to go and play in a big game like this,” he said. “This is when it gets fun. No matter what, you’re not going to sit one of these out.”

During the few minutes early in practice open to reporters Thursday, Romo came out of the locker room wearing the protective wrap and made a few soft tosses. He was also bantering with teammates.

“Tony did a little bit more today than he did yesterday. I wouldn’t constitute a full practice, but he’s making some progress,” coach Jason Garrett said. “The swelling still is there. … All the functional things that a quarterback has to do, he has to be able to do by game time, and he’s making progress in all those areas.”

Garrett said backup quarterback Stephen McGee, who finished Saturday’s game after Romo got hurt, got some work with the first-team offense again Thursday.

Even with the rib injury in Week 2 and not playing much last week against Philadelphia, Romo has already thrown for 3,895 yards and 29 touchdowns. He still has a chance for his third 4,000-yard passing season and his second year with at least 30 TDs. No other Dallas quarterback has reached 4,000 yards or 30 TDs in a season.

Romo threw for 321 yards with four touchdowns and no interceptions in a 37-34 home loss three weeks ago against the Giants, who overcame a 12-point deficit in the final 3½ minutes.

Dallas might have already clinched the division had it won that game.

“It’s obvious that this is basically a playoff game. For us, it’s been great energy all week. Guys are ready to go, and they’re excited,” Romo said.

The quarterback’s bruised hand just adds another twist to the important game.

“A lot of quarterbacks throughout the league play through stuff every week,” Romo said. “Sometimes it can be magnified because you’re playing in a game that’s like this. … No one cares, and once you get out there, it’s about winning and losing, so that’s all it’s going to be about.”

Romo said he won’t decide until later this week about whether to wear tape on his hand during the game. He never said how much pain he was feeling, saying only that, “like anything, you just have to deal with it and overcome it.”

Notes: Just like last week, the Cowboys are easing Pro Bowl defenders DeMarcus Ware (neck) and Jay Ratliff (ribs) into practice this week. Neither practiced Wednesday, and were limited Thursday … RB Felix Jones (hamstring tightness) was limited again in practice, but Garrett said he’s looking good in the work he’s doing. … LB Sean Lee missed practice for the second day in a row because of illness.

Copyright 2011 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Read More: Tony Romo (QB – DAL), Jason Witten (TE – DAL), Dallas Cowboys, New York Giants

While Cowboys fans await the status of their quarterback Tony Romo has he battles through a swollen hand, there are some encouraging signs out of Valley Ranch that their signal caller will be able to play on Sunday.

Courtesy of Tom Orsborn of the San Antonio Express-News, thoughts from Pro-Bowl tight end Jason Witten on his injury-riddled friend and quarterback is that he’s “pretty confident” he’ll play.

Tony did good,” Witten said. “I thought he was throwing the ball well. I couldn’t tell any difference. You’d probably have to ask him about the details, but I thought from the receiving end of it, he was as good as he always is.”

More from Witten:

“I would be hard pressed to see him not playing,” Witten said. “Anyone who knows what he is about, knows he’s going to play. I don’t want to speak for him by any means, but I feel pretty confident he will.”

Here is the practice report for the Cowboys on Wednesday:

DID NOT PRACTICE

Outside Linebacker DeMarcus Ware (neck)

Defensive Tackle Jay Ratliff (ribs)

Inside Linebacker Sean Lee (hamstring)

Defensive Back Danny McCray (ankle)

LIMITED IN PRACTICE

Quarterback Tony Romo (hand)

FULL PRACTICE

Running Back Felix Jones (hamstring)

Nose Tackle Josh Brent (knee)

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