Rams at Cowboys
THE STORY: Tony Romo’s roller-coaster ride hit the bottom again last week as Dallas lost its second straight game. Coach Jason Garrett either didn’t trust Romo or he had too much faith in his defense, and it backfired in the Cowboys’ 20-16 loss at New England. Garrett’s underachievers get a breather this week when they host the winless St. Louis. The Rams may be without their starting quarterback, Sam Bradford, who is questionable with an ankle injury.
TV: FOX, 4:15 p.m. ET. LINE: Cowboys -12.5, O/U 44
ABOUT THE RAMS (0-5): St. Louis acquired receiver Brandon Lloyd from the Broncos and Mark Clayton returns from injury to help its woeful passing game. Who will throw them the ball is the question? Bradford has been wearing a walking boot while A.J. Feeley has taken all the snaps in practice. While St. Louis claims it is not a player in the Andrew Luck sweepstakes – the prize for the team that finishes with the NFL’s worst record – the Rams are clearly a mess. They rank 30th in total defense and 25th in offense continuing to get little production on either side of the ball. Making things more frustrating is that St. Louis entered the season with high hopes, winning all four preseason games after nearly qualifying for the playoffs last season. The schedule, however, has not been favorable thus far as the only team St. Louis has played with a losing record is talented Philadelphia.
ABOUT THE COWBOYS (3-2): While Romo is the subject of nonstop debate on the Dallas sports talk shows, it was Garrett who faced the fire after last week’s game. Garrett took the ball out of Romo’s hands in running the ball three straight times late in the game before punting the ball back to the Patriots. Of course, Tom Brady drove New England the length of the field to hand the Cowboys the loss. Romo threw for 317 yards last week after getting back star receiver Austin Miles. But Dallas has since lost running back Felix Jones to an ankle injury. Third-round pick DeMarco Murray and Tashard Choice will split the carries in Jones’ place. The Cowboys also have injuries on their offensive line to deal with after guard Bill Nagy broke his ankle against the Patriots. Defensively Dallas leads the NFL in stopping the run, allowing just 69.6 yards per game.
EXTRA POINTS:
1. St. Louis ranks last in the NFL in scoring at 9.8 points a game. Its receivers have just three TD receptions.
2. All five Dallas games have been decided by four points or fewer.
3. The last time Feeley won a game that he started was in 2004.