When it comes to Tony Romo support, there aren't a lot of media types out there who have given more than myself. I think he's one of the best in the game – an elite quarterback despite his lack of postseason success – and losing him for half of the season is a crushing blow.
Throw Dez Bryant's injury in there and it's a 1-2 punch to the gut that is difficult to bounce back from.
But after watching Sunday's game with the Falcons, I think the Cowboys missed their defensive standouts even more.
I never thought I would type such a thing, but when you look at all of the guys that are out on defense – and for a variety of reasons – the Cowboys have a better shot of winning this game if they're at full strength on that side of the ball.
I know this article – and the one my colleague David Helman wrote on Romo and Dez – are old news by now. The game is over and the Cowboys didn't get the job done.
But as they move forward, maybe it'll be interesting to see just how much these key losses will affect the team.
Personally, for that game against Atlanta, I think I'd rather play without Dez and Romo if I could get Jeremy Mincey, Rolando McClain, Greg Hardy and maybe even Orlando Scandrick if we can throw him in there.
Those four guys are defensive starters and they provide some leadership and a level of nastiness that isn't replaced on defense.
Yeah, this is the hand the Cowboys have been dealt but since we're arguing which side of the ball missed their stars the most, I'll say defense.
The offense still got 28 points in the first half. If the defense gets more stops, they will probably have better field position throughout the game and could probably add to the point total.
I don't think Matt Ryan would have that much time if Mincey and Hardy are rushing the pocket. Both are strong bull-rushers who would've given both of the Falcons' tackles plenty of problems. And while Julio Jones would give any cornerback fits, having Orlando Scandrick handle him some in the slot would've been beneficial. Scandrick isn't as big as Julio, but still quicker and he's such a student of the game, he would've been able to sniff out some of the Falcons' tendencies.
And in the middle, Anthony Hitchens was knocked off the ball way too much by the interior linemen of the Falcons. That probably doesn't happen with McClain in the middle.
Let's be honest, we've seen Romo and Dez at full strength with a bad defense – they went 8-8 in 2013. Last year, the defense was much better and the team went 12-4.
Maybe we're splitting hairs here, but in a dream world of getting one side of the ball at full strength for this game, give me the defense.
