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Cowboys look to rebound from first loss in two months

Dec 22, 2007 - 5:16 PM Dallas (12-2) at Carolina (6-8) Saturday 8:15 pm EST

CHARLOTTE, North Carolina (Ticker) -- For the first time in what to date has been a dream season, the Dallas Cowboys may have a reason to be concerned.

Quarterback Tony Romo's health could be an issue heading into Saturday night's game against the Carolina Panthers.

Romo suffered a right thumb contusion in last week's 10-6 loss to the Philadelphia Eagles that snapped the Cowboys' seven-game winning streak.

X-rays on the thumb were negative and Romo said he expected to "fine", but he is coming off clearly his worst performance of the season.

Romo quarterback threw three interceptions and had his team-record streak with at least one touchdown pass snapped at 17 games. His passer rating of 22.2 was the worst of his career.

"It's all of our guys, it's not just Tony," Cowboys coach Wade Phillips said. "It's our team. We're not used to losing, we don't want to lose and we're basically not going to stand for it. We're going to do what we do to win the next one."

The loss to the Eagles dropped the Cowboys into a tie with the Green Bay Packers (12-2) for the best record in the NFC, meaning they may have to win their last two games to secure home-field advantage.

Dallas finishes at Washington (7-7) next week, while Green Bay visits Chicago (5-9) this week, then hosts Detroit (6-8) in its regular-season finale.

Home-field advantage could make a huge difference in the NFC, as Green Bay quarterback Brett Favre is 0-9 lifetime at Texas Stadium. But if the Cowboys lose the top seed, they could face the prospect of having to face the Packers in late January at Lambeau Field, where weather could always be a factor.

This week, the Cowboys will be without Pro Bowl safety Roy Williams, who was suspended one game for a horse collar tackle on Eagles quarterback Donovan McNabb last week. It is the fourth such violation for Williams in the last two years.

Dallas could get a test from the Panthers, who showed some fight last week in surprising the Seattle Seahawks, 13-10.

Matt Moore, an undrafted rookie out of Oregon State and the fourth Carolina quarterback to play in a game this season, earned the victory in his first career start.

Moore completed 19-of-27 passes for 208 yards in a game that was scoreless unti the fourth quarter. Jake Delhomme, David Carr and Vinny Testaverde previously had started for Carolina this season.

Mathematically, the Panthers are still alive in the playoff race but they need tons of help.