Cowboys-Packers: Roy Williams Fumble, Dropped Pass Kill Offense in 17-7 Loss

The Cowboys' high-scoring offense was grounded yesterday, and the defense held the Packers for three quarters, but finally broke in the fourth as the Packers won 17-7.

Tony Romo racked up a lot of passing yards, but little else (24-of-39, 251 yards, one TD, one interception, and two fumbles), as again and again the Cowboys couldn't convert on third downs (3-for-12), and penalties (10 for 67 yards) killed every drive.

Romo was also under constant pressure, as he was sacked five times, especially after offensive lineman Marc Colombo broke his left fibula. Colombo could be out for the season.

The Cowboys' running game was nonexistent, as they ran just 14 times as a team, even though they were down just three points going into the fourth quarter. Marion Barber had five carries for 26 yards, Tashard Jones had three carries for 13 yards, and Felix Jones also had three carries for just six yards.

The receiving corps didn't do much, either. Miles Austin was silenced yesterday (four catches, 20 yards). Jason Witten had a decent game (five catches, 47 yards), but didn't get many yards after his catches, and Patrick Crayton had four catches for 52 yards.

Roy Williams was another story.

Williams had five catches for 105 yards, but his fumble after a 41-yard catch, which led to a Packers field goal just before the half, changed the momentum of the game.

In the second half, on a 2nd-and-13, Romo threw a pass to a wide-open Williams that would've put the Cowboys in Packers territory, but Williams dropped the pass, and the drive was stalled after an offensive pass interference penalty on third down.

"The fumble, it's on me," Williams said after the game. "The one in the lights, that's on me, but if the lights weren't there that's a caught ball."

"I'm going to account for that. I lost this game for this football team. That's the way I feel."

The Cowboys' defense did all they could to keep the game close. Aaron Rodgers (25-of-36, 189 yards, and one TD) was sacked four times, twice by DeMarcus Ware, and the Packers couldn't sustain a drive in the first half until their field goal just before halftime.

Terence Newman, Orlando Scandrick, and Mike Jenkins, who came out of the game with a forearm injury, held the Packers' receivers in check for the first three quarters. However, the Cowboys had the ball for just four minutes in the third; the defense was on the field for the other 11, and that killed them.

After Rodgers had a one-yard TD run, Romo fumbled just two plays into the next drive after he was sacked on a blown blocking assignment. Jones appeared to land on the ball and was down by contact, but the Packers pulled the ball out and recovered it, and Wade Phillips was told he couldn't challenge because possession can't be challenged on a fumble. 

That gave the Packers the ball on the Dallas three-yard line, and Spencer Havner caught a two-yard pass for a TD, making it 17-0.

This loss makes the next two weeks very important for the Cowboys, as their next two games are at home against the Redskins and Raiders. The Redskins beat the Broncos on Sunday, a team the Cowboys lost to earlier this season, so that'll be a test for them. Then they have only three days' rest before their Thanksgiving matchup against the Raiders. 

The Cowboys had a chance to really turn the corner with this win, but once again they bought into the hype and paid the price for it.