Despite Recent Win, Dallas Cowboys' Offense Still Struggling

A few weeks ago, the Dallas Cowboys appeared to be one of the top teams in the NFL, sitting on top of the NFC East with a comfortable lead over the Philadelphia Eagles, New York Giants, and Washington Redskins.

Despite a 7-6 win over the Redskins in Week 11, the Cowboys and the city of Dallas are wondering what has happened to the offense over the last two weeks.

After a 2-2 start, the Cowboys went on to win their next four games with key wins over the Atlanta Falcons and Eagles. In those four games, the Cowboys scored a total of 121 points, averaging 30.3 points per game.

Last week, they missed an opportunity to take a commanding lead in the NFC East by losing to the Packers 17-7. The Eagles lost to the Chargers 23-21 and the Giants were on a bye week, which means the Cowboys could have been sitting on top of the NFC East with a comfortable two-game lead.

Instead, they failed to take advantage of a chance to increase their lead and struggled against a Packers' squad desperate for a big win.

Despite Cowboys wide receiver Roy Williams posting his first 100-yard game of the season against the Packers, his touchdown came with 38 seconds left in the game and was the only points scored by the team's offense all day.

He also had a key fumble in Packers' territory after hauling in a 42-yard reception from quarterback Tony Romo that ruined the team's chances of putting any points on the board.

Romo finished the game against the Packers 24-for-39 for 251 yards, one touchdown, and two turnovers. While he struggled to help the Cowboys passing game find the end zone all day, the ground game failed to get anything going against the league's fourth-ranked rush defense, rushing for 61 yards on 14 attempts.

Against the Redskins, it was a similar situation for the Cowboys as the offense struggled to get anything going; the only difference this time around was they were able to come through with the win.

Romo's first pass of the game to a Cowboys wide receiver came on the last play of the third quarter after Miles Austin hauled in a 23-yard reception. His only touchdown of the game came on a 10-yard pass to wide receiver Patrick Crayton with 2:41 left to play in the game.

While they still managed to come through with the win this time, it's obvious the Cowboys offense won't get lucky each week with these type of statistics.

Over the last two games, the Cowboys have managed to score just 14 points. While the offense has struggled the last two weeks, the Cowboys still find themselves in first place of the NFC East with a 7-3 record.

However, the Cowboys offense needs to figure out why they've struggled the last two weeks and get out of their funk if they want to be playoff contenders, especially with the schedule they have in December.

NFC East Recap, Week 10: Redskins and Giants Come Through As Winners

In Week 9, the Dallas Cowboys took control of first place in the NFC East with a 20-16 win over the Philadelphia Eagles at Lincoln Financial Field. The team appeared to be in good shape as contenders for the division title after an impressive four-game winning streak.

One week later, it's clear the NFC East title is still up for grabs and could be won by any team at this point.

The division may not be living up to the "NFC Beast" name from a few years ago, but it's clear the winner of the division will most likely be determined in Week 16 or 17. Here's a recap of all four teams from Week 10 of the 2009 NFL regular season.

Dallas Cowboys

Prior to Sunday's loss to the Green Bay Packers, Dallas Cowboys quarterback Tony Romo previously won 13 straight games in the month of November. While all good things must come to an end, he can still rally his team for next week's matchup against the Washington Redskins.

The Cowboys failed to find the end zone against the Packers until there were 38 seconds remaining in the game. Even though wide receiver Roy Williams had the team's only score of the day, he had a few costly plays that could have helped the Cowboys stay in the game, including a fumble after a 42-yard reception.

Instead of taking advantage of the Eagles' loss to the Chargers, the Cowboys still remain just one game ahead in the NFC East standings.

However, give credit to the Packers, who may have needed this win more than the Cowboys. The defense stepped it up big to prevent the team from falling below .500 on the season, a place nobody expected them to be even close to in September.

Packers cornerback Charles Woodson had his best game of the season and did everything he could against the Cowboys—including a sack, an interception and two forced fumbles.

New York Giants

With a 5-4 record entering Week 10, the New York Giants could not have asked for a better time to have their bye week. Despite not even playing, the Giants may have had arguably the best week overall out of all the teams in the NFC East.

After beginning the season 5-0, the Giants have lost their last four games to the New Orleans Saints, Arizona Cardinals, Eagles and San Diego Chargers.

At 5-4, the Giants found themselves entering Week 10 two games behind the first-place Cowboys. With losses from the Cowboys and Eagles, the Giants now find themselves in better shape to climb back near the top of the division. Not only do they share the same record with the Eagles, but are now just one game back of the division-leading Cowboys.

Their upcoming game in Week 11 against the Atlanta Falcons may be seen as a playoff game by some considering how important the outcome is for the Giants to stay in the hunt.

This team has performed well in the second half of the season before. It shouldn't be a surprise if they make another late-season run for the playoffs again.

Philadelphia Eagles

No team in the NFC East is more difficult to figure out after 10 weeks than the Philadelphia Eagles.

Some weeks, they look like a team determined to be a strong playoff contender. Other weeks, they look horrendous and struggle against teams they would beat nine times out of 10—such as the Oakland Raiders.

Last week against the Chargers, the Eagles offense failed to find the end zone until the fourth quarter. Unfortunately, their two touchdowns by wide receiver Jeremy Maclin and tight end Brent Celek were "too little, too late" considering the team was already down 28-9.

The Eagles are capable of having one of the top offenses in all of football. For some reason, they struggle to perform well on a consistent basis. Last week's game against the Chargers was the perfect example. McNabb was forced to throw the ball 55 times in the losing effort.

Washington Redskins

Who would have thought the Washington Redskins were the only team in the NFC East to come away with a victory?

A few weeks ago, the Denver Broncos were considered one of the top teams in football with a 6-0 record. Now, they have to deal with losing to a Redskins' team that failed to score over 17 points until Week 10 of the regular season.

It may have taken 10 weeks, but the Redskins finally managed to score more than 17 points in a game en route to their 27-17 win over the Broncos on Sunday.

With running back Clinton Portis resting on the sidelines from his concussion, Ladell Betts stepped it up, rushing for 114 yards and a touchdown.

They may be at the bottom of the NFC East standings with a 3-6 record, but the Redskins have to be satisfied that their four-game skid is finally over. With an important division game coming up against the Dallas Cowboys this week, it should be interesting to see if the Redskins can keep this "winning attitude" going.

Dallas Cowboys: Despite December Struggles, Tony Romo Is Mr. November

Throughout his career, Dallas Cowboys' quarterback Tony Romo has been criticized for the way he performs towards the end of the year. However, it may be time to award him the nickname of "Mr. November" with the type of play he's established during this month in Dallas over the last four seasons.

On November 5, 2006, Dallas Cowboys quarterback Tony Romo made his second career start against the Washington Redskins. He completed 24-of-36 passes for 284 yards and two touchdowns in a 22-19 loss.

Why was this game so significant for the seventh-year quarterback? This was the only time in Romo's career he lost a game during the month of November.

Despite all of the heat taken for his performance when the month of December rolls around, in which he has a combined record of 5-8 over his career, Romo has established himself as a clutch-performer in the month of November for the Cowboys.

Since losing to the Redskins in 2006, he has won 13 straight games in November, including two key victories over the Seattle Seahawks and Philadelphia Eagles this season. Not only has his win streak been impressive, but his numbers at quarterback have been as well.

In the 13 wins, Romo has completed 68.2 percent of the passes he's thrown. Overall, he's completed 269-of-394 passes for 3,641 yards, 35 touchdowns, and just 10 interceptions.

The Cowboys have three games remaining in the month of November with a 6-2 record and a one-game lead over the Eagles for first place in the NFC East. On Sunday, they take on the 4-4 Green Bay Packers at Lambeau Field, who are coming off a loss to the previously winless Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

If Romo can lead the Cowboys to another win in the month of November by defeating the Packers, his streak will increase to 14 games. With two home matchups against the Washington Redskins and Oakland Raiders before December rolls around, there's a good chance Romo's streak can stay alive for 2010 considering both teams each have two wins so far this season.

He may not have the best reputation for being a dominant quarterback once December rolls around.

However, Romo has performed well enough over the last four seasons to earn the nickname of Mr. November in the NFL.